Be Dazzled By Holiday Lights Throughout Chatham This Season

CHATHAM, NJ — There are some spectacular lights being illuminated throughout Chatham this holiday season, with some already glowing each night.

Here’s a roundup of some of the upcoming celebrations with lights in Chatham:

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Thursday, Dec. 2, Green Village Menorah Lighting - At the Green Village Triangle at 6 p.m., Hanukkah’s fifth night, come for the Menorah lighting across from Green Village’s Fire Department. There will be refreshments after the lighting, with the mayor and other officials taking part in the Menorah Lighting. Find out more information here.

Saturday, Dec. 4, Holiday Tree Lighting and Santa Visit in Chatham Borough - from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturday, enjoy hot chocolate and treats to ready for Santa’s arrival and illumination of the holiday tree in Reasoner Park. At 5 p.m., grab some hot cocoa from the Chatham Historical Society, treats from Turpin Realtors and glow bracelets from Chatham PBA 226. From 5:15 to 5:45 p.m., Presbyterian Churches of Ogden and Chatham Township Choir will be singing. From 6 to 6:30 p.m. is a performance from Dance Innovations. Then Santa and Mrs. Claus come to light the tree and stay for a meet and greet. Find out all details here.

Sunday, Dec. 5, Santa Visits Green Village Fire Department - At Green Village’s Fire Department from 6 to 7 p.m., Santa plans to stop by fire engine to help light the Christmas Tree. There will be refreshments from the fire department’s auxiliary. There’s even a celebration before the celebration at 4:30 p.m. at Green Village’s United Methodist Church at 4:30 p.m., for their annual Hot Dog Supper, with free hot dogs, chips and hot chocolate. Before the tree lighting, the group from the church walks down, guided by luminary on the road, singing Christmas carols as they meet Santa Claus. Click here for more details.

Sunday, Dec. 12, Come To Winter Wonderland - Enjoy Winter Wonderland, a benefit for the Chatham Education Foundation on Sunday, Dec. 12 from 4:30 to 8 p.m., rain or shine in the Manor section of Chatham Borough. There will be twinkling lights, festive cookies, hot cocoa, carolers, Santa, Frosty the Snowman and more. Find out how to buy tickets here to support the Education Foundation, which fundraises for special projects, professional development, equipment and other positive initiatives within the School District of the Chathams.

Check out some other light displays throughout the upper half of New Jersey at these drive-through, walk through or drive-by destinations; and click the links for more information about each below:

Turtleback Zoo’s Holiday Lights Spectacular - See more than 50 winter and animal characters throughout the Turtleback Zoo for a twinkling display of holiday lights. It’s free to get in, with donations gratefully appreciated and recommended of non-perishable, shelf-stable foods, new toys and gently used coats. On Friday, Dec. 3 through Sunday, Dec. 5, the displays will be illuminated between 5 and 9 p.m. It’s open nightly after that beginning Dec. 10 and running through Dec. 31, then closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Fanwood’s Famous “Christmas House” - A spectacular light display worth seeing on 83 Paterson Road in Fanwood. On Dec. 4 from 4:30 to 7 p.m., Santa plans to stop by with gifts for the kids, with refreshments courtesy of Fanwood PBA Local 123. Donations are gratefully accepted and are give to the NJ Institute for disabilities at www.njid.org.

Orchard of Lights - At Demarest Farms in Bergen County’s Hillsdale on 244 Wieremus Road through Jan. 9, tickets and reservations are required through the 32 acre light tour. Enjoy the lights, then shop the farm market, sit by the fire pit and sip on hot chocolate.

Martorana Christmas House - Visit the Christmas House in Wayne on 396 Fairfield Road, with lights and inflatables all day. The inflatables are up from 8 a.m. to midnight, with the lights on from 4 p.m. to midnight. The family has over 1,000 of the inflatables between Halloween and Christmas, with about 700 for the Christmas season.

Winter Wonderlights - Be dazzled by more than 1.5 million holiday lights in a drive-thru spectacular, choreographed to holiday music. On 655 Cranberry Road in East Brunswick, what started over 20 years ago with a display at one home, is now their family-run business at the Middlesex County Fairgrounds. Reservations are required for the show.

Mission Holiday Lights - On 265 Mission Road Hackettstown, Washington Township, this family does their light show each year and is in the process of transitioning from Veteran’s lights to holiday ones. Stay tuned to their Facebook Page for updates.

Stickles Pond Christmas - See the light show through Jan. 2, 2022 at 131 Stickles Pond Road in Andover Township, near Newton. View from the street at a private residence, coordinated to music, tune radios to 100.1 FM, while watching. Check out their information for contests on their Facebook Page. The family coordinating the light display also hosts a contest to guess how many lights are on their display, for a $35 ShopRite gift card. They ask those who drive by to “pay it forward” and donate to a charity of choice, including a local food pantry, this holiday season.

Skylands Stadium Lights Show - There’s more than two million lights at the Stadiums’ light show on 94 Championship Place in Augusta, which there’s a fee to drive through. Purchase tickets to to the light show in advance, through Jan. 9, 2022. The Christmas Village is free to enter with hot beverages, food, games and photos with Santa an extra fee.

Questions or comments about this story? Have a news tip? Contact me at: jennifer.miller@patch.com.