Every autumn Blackpool strings six miles of lights, tableaux and interactive pieces along the Promenade from Starr Gate to Red Bank Road, and it costs nothing to see. The 2026 run goes from 4 September to 3 January, so it covers October half term, Christmas and everything in between.
You will not walk all six miles with children and should not try. Pick a stretch around the Tower, walk it, then ride an illuminated heritage tram through the rest; the tram is the bit kids remember. Driving through works too, but the queues on switch-on weekend and October weekends are famous for the wrong reasons.
The season folds in Lightpool Festival on the Comedy Carpet at Tower Festival Headland, with events on Friday and Saturday nights, and Christmas By The Sea later on, so a lights trip can piggyback on either.
What it costs: Free to walk or drive through. Illuminated heritage tram tours are the only paid element.
Six miles of lights along the prom from the big switch-on night to early January. Drive it, walk it, or catch a heritage tram through the middle of it, which is the version kids remember.
Seasonal: Sept to Jan. Check before travelling.
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