The Remarkable Boise Christmas Lights Map is LIVE for 2023

You know it’s the most wonderful time of the year when one of Boise’s most unique holiday reference guides springs back to life! 

If you’ve come across the page, chances are you’re someone who just can’t wait to know EVERYTHING Christmas happening in the Treasure Valley. When are the parades? How do I bid on a tree at the Festival of Trees? What are the hours for the skating rinks? Where are the best home Christmas light displays? 

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We’ve done our best to assemble the answers to a lot of those questions in our BIG Christmas Calendar for 2023, but we know there’s no better person to ask about Christmas lights than William Higginson! He’s the self-proclaimed Christmas light junkie who created Boise Christmas Lights, a map and website that makes finding the best home displays a breeze. 

In 2015, William saw an opportunity to create a resource that Boise and its neighboring communities didn’t have - a central hub for everything Christmas lights. As someone who enjoyed Christmas lights himself, he thought that maybe other people would like a one-stop-shop. Well, when the site and map launched, people didn’t just like it…they LOVED it! It became more popular than William could have ever imagined. 

That’s why when he briefly moved to San Antonio, he found someone to volunteer to be his boots on the ground in the Boise area, while he managed what he could from afar. William recently moved back to Idaho and manning the map again. Not only does he provide you with the addresses, photos and hours (if applicable) for each display, but as more displays get submitted, he’ll also create curated driving routes that take you past several of the best displays on the list in one trip. 

There are different icons on the map that represent different types of displays: 

• Yellow Music Note - Light Show Synced to Music
• Blue Bench - Free Community Trees/Displays 
• Blue Dollar Signs - Lights Displays with an Admission Fee
• Green Trees - Static Light Displays
• Purple Hammer - Displays Under Construction

The map is under construction right now and is refreshed every couple of days. If you have a completely over-the-top display that you want people to come to see you can submit your information HERE to get added to the map.

In addition to the map, William offers a text version of that directory to make searching for homes in a certain city easier or an app that you can pop open on your phone if you’re an Apple user. 

William does most of the pictures himself and could always use a little help with gas money and other expenses that come with the project, so if you’d like to donate to help keep this AMAZING community resource alive, there’s a link to do that!