In depth · Christmas & New Year
Christmas in Las Vegas: the Bellagio Conservatory, desert lights and New Year on the Strip
Las Vegas does Christmas the way it does everything: big, bright and around the clock. The Bellagio Conservatory turns into a winter fantasy, a cactus garden glows in Henderson, and on New Year’s Eve the Strip closes to cars as fireworks burst from the rooftops of the great resorts.
Updated October 2026
The Bellagio Conservatory
Under the glass roof of the Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens, the horticulturists change the scene with every season, and the holiday display, with its towering tree, poinsettias and fantastical sets, is the most loved of the year. The Conservatory is open around the clock and needs no ticket.
Our advice: come early in the morning, when the Strip is quiet and you have the display almost to yourself.
Lights in the desert
In Henderson, the Ethel M Chocolates cactus garden has been strung with lights every holiday season for more than 30 years, from early November into January. At Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Glittering Lights is a drive-through light show, running from 6 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, according to its producers; tickets are sold per car. Inside the resorts, lobbies and shopping arcades put up trees of their own.
New Year’s Eve on the Strip
New Year’s Eve is the biggest night of the Las Vegas year. In recent years Las Vegas Boulevard has closed to traffic in the evening, and at midnight a synchronised display of fireworks is launched from the rooftops of resorts along the Strip, while Fremont Street downtown holds its own party. Large bags, coolers and glass have been banned on the Strip on the night; check the official rules from the police and visitlasvegas.com before you go.
Our advice: book a table with a view of the Strip or a show for the evening months ahead, and stay on foot: taxis and ride-shares are scarce around midnight.
Questions and answers
Is the Bellagio Conservatory Christmas display worth seeing?
Yes: it is the most popular of its seasonal displays, open around the clock without tickets.
When is Glittering Lights 2026?
From 6 November 2026 to 3 January 2027 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, according to its producers.
Is the Strip closed on New Year’s Eve?
In recent years it has closed to cars in the evening for the celebrations and rooftop fireworks.
Join the conversation
Spent Christmas in Las Vegas? Share your favourite display, dinner or New Year’s Eve spot.
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Dates are from the organisers’ and official tourism sites, read in October 2026. Where a 2026 date is not yet published we describe the tradition only. Check the official sites before you travel.