Is Wild Lights at Riverbanks Zoo worth it?

Interested in checking out Wild Lights at Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, SC? We went and here’s our review and what you can expect to see (and not see)!

In 2023, Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia, SC launched their brand new holiday light show in the park with Wild Lights.

Wild Lights is an incredible display of large hand-crafted lanterns made in the shapes of animals and nature and is spread through the entire park.

Every holiday season is filled with taking the family to see lights for the holidays and Wild Lights is an experience like you won’t see at any other venue.

Let’s take a look at what you’ll see at Wild Lights (and what you won’t see) and help you determine if it’s worth going!

Wild Lights at Riverbanks Zoo

Living in Charleston, we decided to make the trek to Columbia to check out Wild Lights the week between Christmas and New Years. This meant the crowds were a little less crazy, but it was still packed and sold out.

Since Wild Lights is held at night, we decided to make a night out of it, rather than driving back 2 hours after it was done. We got a hotel around the corner and got to Wild Lights around 5:30.

Here’s what to expect.

What you’ll see at Wild Lights

The Wild Lights display is dozens (hundreds even?) of giant hand-crafted lanterns all around the park. The craftsmanship is incredible and they represent animals all throughout the park.

The displays aren’t lanterns that are lit with fire, but are just lit from within with lights shining through the semi-transparent materials around a metal frame.

We’re used to the Holiday Festival of Lights in Charleston, which is displays of traditional lights in designs, so this is very different.

We so saw many different lanterns of animals that are in the park, but also animals that aren’t (like bison and a crab) and mythical creatures (like an ice dragon and dinosaurs).

As you walk around, you’ll see that some of the displays move but most of them are static and don’t move.

Inside the park, all the normal rides are working, like the carousel and the train. We took both and it was even cooler in the dark. There were fun displays on the train loop like a giant moving peacock.

There are even some lanterns that you can walk through, like an alligator head and a dinosaur head, which people were lined up to get pictures in.

You also don’t want to miss the smoke bubbles that come out of the crab near the entrance. It was a hit for our kids to pop them and see the little mist of smoke!

If you’re looking for food, their restaurants were open, so you can definitely get dinner. Since it’s dinner time, I recommend that this is a good option if the weather is nice. But if you’re local, grab dinner before.

Also, we didn’t see him, but if you go before Christmas, you’ll see Santa and the kids can talk to him.

What you won’t see at Wild Lights

Unless you’re really lucky, you won’t see any animals during Wild Lights. We did see the tiger walking in the dark and the koalas eating, but other than that we didn’t see any animals.

If you want to see animals, you’ll need to go back during the day. Since we spent the night, we actually decided in the morning to go back to the zoo before going home since we were already all the way there.

The climbing course at the zoo is also closed during Wild Lights, as is the petting zoo.

The buildings are open, but again, you won’t see anything, so don’t bother spending time in there.

Is Wild Lights worth it?

I think Wild Lights at Riverbanks Zoo is a definite must-go if you are local to the area. It’s a really fun experience to go to and it a unique event you won’t see anywhere else.

If you are a member at the zoo, admission is free, so there is zero reason not to check it out. If you’re not a member, it might be worth it to get a membership before going, as the tickets can add up. They were $19.99 for adults and $14.99 for kids.

If you’re traveling, this is a cool experience to check out once. I don’t know that we will go up again because it was a whole thing to drive and get a hotel, but I’m glad we did it and the kids had a great time.

In the future, the displays will change every year. They were already taking a beating this late in the season, but there will be all new ones each year!

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