Where Are The Best Holiday Lights In Wilmette, Kenilworth?

WILMETTE, IL — Twinkling lights, colorful displays, and festive decorations transform neighborhoods into magical winter wonderlands every December, making the holiday season feel brighter and even more joyous.

For many of us, taking in our neighbors’ outdoor holiday lighting displays and other decorative touches is as much a part of the season as exchanging gifts and singing Christmas carols.

This year, Patch and T-Mobile have partnered to help you compile a list of lights around Wilmette and Kenilworth that deserve a visit.

There’s science behind the joy these displays bring, according to mental health experts. Decorating for the holidays and taking in the lights can have a powerful impact on our mood, explained Deborah Serani, a psychologist and senior professor at New York’s Adelphi University, during an appearance on NBC's "Today."

“It does create that neurological shift that can produce happiness,” Serani said. “I think anything that takes us out of our normal habituation, the normal day in, day out ... signals our senses, and then our senses measure if it’s pleasing or not."

Decorating for the holidays “will spike dopamine, a feel-good hormone,” she said. “For a lot of us, Christmas is a magical time, it’s a time of innocence. It’s a time of joy.”

So who has the best light displays around Wilmette and Kenilworth? Email Wilmette@Patch.com and let us know the address. Please include "Holiday Lights 2024" in the subject line, and please send a photo (that you took yourself) if you wish to appear in our holiday roundup.