ZooLights Is Back in Lincoln Park, and the Night You Buy Matters More Than the Night You Go
What does it cost to walk a few blocks to Lincoln Park Zoo on a December evening and look at the lights? For most of the event's history, nothing. In 2026 the answer can be zero, $7, $12 or $20 a person, and the date on the ticket has less to do with it than the day you bought it.
ZooLights Presented by Invesco and ComEd opens to the public on Friday, Nov. 20, 2026. It runs through Sunday, Jan. 3, 2027, from 4:30 to 9 p.m., with last entry at 8 p.m. The zoo promises more than 3 million lights, a light tunnel on the Main Mall, a narrated light show on the South Lawn and a Ferris wheel looking out over all of it. Over the past six seasons, the zoo has changed how it rations those evenings, and living close by now helps less than planning ahead.
ZooLights started charging admission in 2020. Block Club Chicago reported that year that the $5 ticket was the first paid admission for ZooLights in 20 years. Zoo director Megan Ross told Block Club the pandemic had left the zoo "financially vulnerable." In the same report, Ross described the charge as "a nominal admission in order to help us break even." That season had five free nights, and reservations for each opened the Sunday before.
The charge stayed after the pandemic. In 2021, Block Club reported $5 tickets Wednesday through Sunday, with Mondays and Tuesdays free, though tickets were still required. By 2022 the zoo's program listed $5 tickets Tuesday through Sunday, and only Mondays were free. In 2025, NBC Chicago reported that the zoo was offering a flexible admission option for the first time. That season's fixed-date tickets ran $7 to $12.
So in five years, free nights went from two a week to one a week to four Mondays in total. The flat price split into tiers. The zoo gives its reason on the 2026 announcement: ZooLights ticket sales fund animal care, conservation and learning programs, and help keep the zoo free to the public 365 days a year.
Here is how the 2026 prices break down, from the zoo's ZooLights event page:
| When and how you buy | Price per person |
|---|---|
| Fixed-date ticket, bought in advance | $7 to $12, depending on the date |
| Fixed-date ticket, bought the same day | $20 |
| Flexible Admission, good any regular night, not ticketed special events | $20 |
| Free Admission Monday, reservation required | $0 |
On any given night, the same ticket costs more when you buy it that day. Deciding at 5 p.m. on a mild Saturday costs at least $8 more per person than committing ahead of time, and up to $13 more on the cheapest dates. The zoo pitches the $20 Flexible Admission ticket as a way to avoid sellouts and bad weather. In practice it costs the same as buying on the day, but you lock it in before the forecast is known.
Rides add up on top of admission. The Endangered Species Carousel, the Lionel Train Adventure and a holiday VR experience each take one $4.50 ticket per guest. The Ferris Wheel and Gorilla Trek each take two, so $9. A $7 advance ticket plus one Ferris wheel ride comes to $16, still under the $20 a same-day guest pays before boarding anything.
There are four free nights this season: Monday, Nov. 23; Monday, Nov. 30; Monday, Dec. 7; and Monday, Dec. 14. Every guest needs a ticket, infants included, and each Monday's tickets are released one week ahead at 11 a.m. CT. Counting back from those dates gives four release times:
Each release falls on a Monday morning, so from Nov. 23 on, the reservation for next week's free night opens the same day you might be heading to this week's. The last two Mondays of the season, Dec. 21 and Dec. 28, are not free. Free nights get the full regular event. Normal hours apply, ride tickets cost the usual amount, and food and drink are for sale.
The rest of the calendar has gaps too. ZooLights is closed on Tuesdays except Dec. 22 and Dec. 29, and closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. It is open on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.
Several evenings sit outside the regular schedule, each with its own ticket and its own crowd.
The Nov. 24 sensory-friendly night falls on a Tuesday, a night the regular event is closed. In practice that makes it the quietest $7 evening of the season.
The one date that stretches well beyond the zoo is Sunday, Dec. 6. The Chris White Trio returns to Café Brauer for its tribute to A Charlie Brown Christmas. There is a matinee at the Pepper Family Wildlife Center with Santa, Snoopy, a hot chocolate and cookie bar, and ZooLights entry. There is also a kid-friendly evening show, and new this year, an 18+ evening show with the same music in a more grown-up setting.
That same afternoon, the Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce runs its Clark Street Cookie Crawl from 1 to 4 p.m. on Clark Street between Fullerton and Diversey. Local businesses hand out cookies, and there are carolers, hot chocolate and Santa. The Chamber has not yet announced which businesses are taking part. Clark Street is a short walk from the zoo's west edge. The crawl wraps up an hour before the evening shows at Café Brauer, so the afternoon on Clark and the evening at the zoo fit together without overlapping.
Eight days earlier, on Saturday, Nov. 28, the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum at 2430 N. Cannon holds its Sustainable Makers' Market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Vendors include Restless Creatures, The Mulberry Rabbit, Sturge Stitch, ReFelt, From Odds to Ends and Wastenot Compost. The market closes hours before ZooLights opens at 4:30 that evening.
ZooLights admission does not include parking. The zoo's Cannon Drive lot has limited paid parking, and on busy nights the zoo points guests toward transit or rideshare. Its hours and location page lists CTA buses 22, 36, 151 and 156 along the zoo's west edge. The Armitage stop on the Brown and Purple lines and the Fullerton stop on the Red Line are each about a mile west. Anyone who lives within walking distance has the cheapest way in, as long as their ticket was bought ahead too.
For more on how seasonal events reshape the neighborhood's streets, see how the marathon crosses Lincoln Park twice, or browse our Lincoln Park neighborhood guide.
The Monday 11 a.m. releases and the Dec. 6 doubleheader are already on our calendar at Lissa Weinstein. If a winter move or a downsizing is on your family's list this season, we would be glad to plan it around the dates that matter to you. Request a confidential consultation whenever the timing is right.
Whether buying or selling or looking for an expert team to downsize your parents, my team of professionals is here to support your goals and make your next home move as smooth as possible. We are here to guide you, help you make smart investments for your future, transition your move, and take care of all of the details so you don’t have to. We are excited to get to know you and see how we can best be of service.
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