This will barely be a proper post, but I had to share this great Christmas light display I found in the middle of a long road trip from Tennessee to Texas. Candy Cane Lane in Calhoun, Louisiana was a fantastic surprise for me at the end of day one of a two-day drive. I literally just saw a digital sign on the side of the highway and decided to pull over. There are signs from I-20 to the entrance, or you can put 170 Hwy 151 N in Calhoun, La. into your GPS.
Candy Cane Lane
Once you find the entrance and pay, you have a mile of drive-through Christmas lights ahead of you. You must stay in your car and keep moving, so it can be hard to drive and take pictures at the same time (like some other drive-throughs I’ve been to.) So it helps to go with a carload and a designated driver.
The lights are delightful! There are different themed sections with accompanying music for each, then a portion where you roll up your windows and tune into a radio station instead for the big show tunnel.
There are “Santa at the north pole” areas and parts that look like a little town or a farm. One section is pristine white, followed by a patriotic area. Another features Disney characters and some minions! My favorite is the Louisiana-specific stretch, with fleur-de-lis, alligators pulling Santa’s sleigh, and a swamp cabin with a leg lamp.
But the best by far is the stretch by the highway, where you tune your radio and listen as the lights dance to the music. It all culminates in a long tunnel that dances to the lights. This is the spot where cars slow down the most!
But the best thing I can do is just show you pictures. They aren’t the best, but you can get a feel for the whole mile of lights below.
Between Batman and the Louisiana swamp part is a “dancing lights section.” I took a few short videos below.
Tickets
It costs $20 for a regular vehicle with as many people as you can fit into it. It’s $40 for a commercial bus or van, and trailers or anything too long won’t make it around the curves. It’s cash only at the entrance, or you can buy tickets online on their website.
Except for the part around the dancing lights where you tune to a channel on the radio (there are signs), you’re driving around with the windows down to hear the music. So if it’s chilly outside, you might want to wear a jacket!
And the thing I like best about it is that you can circle through it as many times as you want! At least on the night I went, earlyish on a weeknight, there was hardly anyone there. I went through it once and then again to get better pictures without as many cars. Because even with headlights off, there end up being a lot of taillights in your pictures if there are people in front of you. I would definitely recommend going on a slower night since I think it can get *very* crowded on weekends! (And I’m not sure you’re allowed to go through more than once on those nights.)
I just enjoyed it so much that I wanted to share. If you’re ever down Louisiana way during the holidays, you should definitely check it out!
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