since 4/15/2003.
Internal personal use only. Internal personal use only. Internal personal use only.
HOUSES AND MORE HOUSES
Some locations are from prior years.
There is no guarantee that previous years' light displays
will still be at those locations.
List last updated 12/16/2003, 7:00PM.
Previous update was 12/31/1998, 2:35AM.
since 4/15/2003.
Copyright Notice
© 2003-1998 by the author. All rights reserved.
Excerpts copied and used w/o permission from Seattle Times Web site.
Seattle Times text is Copyrighted, and All Rights Reserved.
Please do not copy anything from this page.
It is intended for internal, personal, private use only, and for the purpose of
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If you want to use the actual articles, please go to their Web sites!
Explanation and Key
Underlines below mean places we've gone to or are interested in visiting,
mostly Seattle.
Certain bolds accidental through search engine.
Words in [ ] are my comments on our visits.
* and a number (e.g., *7) is my personal rating
which was pretty subjective,
and with no guidelines but my mood! (And a somewhat shoddy memory; I should
take a pen!)
Back to Holiday Lights, Seattle Area, a page with links to these articles, and lots more.
Others' links to lights:
Seattle, WA:
Where to see the lights
EXCERPTS:
... some places readers have suggested ...:
SEATTLE
Ballard: A friendly competition has created a winter wonderland at 32nd Avenue Northwest and Northwest 71st Street in Ballard, where extravagantly decorated houses on each corner have gingerbread villages, animated Santa figures, electric reindeer and much more. Neighboring houses also get into the act. Look for the candy-cane-striped flagpole.
Another great house nearby is at 7361 21st Ave. N.W., where reindeer fly off the roof and there are thousands and thousands of colorful lights. In another part of Ballard, at 351 N.W. 52nd St., there's a train on the fence, reindeer on the roof, stars, a lighted fisherman and boat, snowmen and more.
[We saw some of these above, but I don't remember which! Sorry. They sure were traffic-stoppers! One of them gets *7-8.]
Capitol Hill: A classic three-story Capitol Hill home at 1422 E. Aloha St. is detailed with thousands of white lights outlining dormers, gutters and windows. It's topped with green eaves, bushes are covered in red lights and large lighted candles are in the windows.
Lake City: Two cul-de-sacs south of Northeast 125th Street and east of 15th Avenue Northeast have many houses with lights and there is often a Santa at the corner waving and handing out candy canes. [One is south of NE 125th St. at 22nd Ave NE *7.5. I don't know about the other. An additional smaller display just a few blocks away is north of 125th at 24th Ave NE *4.]
Off Lake City Way about Northeast 105th Street (north of the Spaghetti House) is a home on Fischer Place Northeast with every detail outlined in flickering and chasing lights. [This is just one house. Have to get there from L.C.W. from a different street since there is no 105th turnoff. *7]
North Seattle: Always lots of good lights around Olympic Manor. This year the 9000 block of 22nd Avenue Northwest has almost every house decorated. Not far away, at 9701 Dayton Ave. N., are some lovely lights, and a bit farther north, starting at 12020 Evanston Ave. N., are a number of houses to see. [Olympic Manor is really something. (1998 got a 7-8. 1997 got a 8-9.) *8-9]
Queen Anne: More than 100 farolitos (Southwest-style lights in cut-out bags) light the yard at 2309 Nob Hill Ave. N. Icicle lights decorate the house.
University: Candy Cane Lane on Park Road Northeast, north of Ravenna Boulevard Northeast, a longtime tradition of decorated homes, opens tomorrow, but there is often a line of cars to get onto the short street. [You can easily park a block away and walk. Walking might be better since this is a very short lane. (With children I'd guess it's an 8-9. It has had a single, large, spinning display for the last couple of years.) *7]
West Seattle: A street of lights - more than 20 decorated houses - greets visitors to 41st Avenue Southwest off Southwest Barton Street west of 35th Avenue Southwest. Fences, a courtyard, decks, windows and shrubs are lined in lights at 4006 35th Ave. S.W., north of the West Seattle Freeway off Andover Street.
OTHER CITIES
Bellevue:
A lighted manger, elaborate lights and glowing figures at 12818 S.E.
29th St., Bellevue.
There's much competition among neighbors in the Valley High
neighborhood on Northeast 30th Place, west of Bellevue Way. Ten houses are decorated,
including a toyland at 10039 N.E. 30th Place with Santas, toy soldiers, lighted animals
and many chaser lights. [We went out of our way to see them. Maybe I
should stick to my own area of town. *5]
Burien: Neighbors in the 400 block of South 126th Street decorate with many icicle lights, stars in the trees, Santas in chimneys and large lighted cut-out characters. Look for Mr. and Mrs. Claus walking about the neighborhood.
Bothell: Santa's workshop began as a hobby 37 years ago; now the extended family helps put up floodlighted candy canes, a chimney with Humpty Dumpty up top, a Christmas train with Santa, a flying Dumbo and much more at 10617 N.E. 195th St., a mile from downtown Bothell near Maywood Hill School.
Edmonds: Two elaborately decorated townhouses at 7617 206th St. S.W. share a wall and many Santas, reindeer and candy canes. Doors are wrapped like packages and lights are everywhere.
Everett: A couple of wonderfully decorated neighborhoods off the Everett-Bothell Highway, Silver Firs, off 19th Avenue Southeast and 100th Street Southeast, and Eastmont, north and east of 100th Street Southeast.
Federal Way: Santa and nine reindeer are on the roof at 2215 S.W. 332nd St. Mickey and Minnie, Snoopy and Frosty and other characters are in the yard.
Issaquah: A mind-boggling display of a dozen lighted and very detailed dollhouse-size castles and buildings at 350 Third Place N.W., at Dogwood Street. Out front is a 20-foot-tall, 44-foot-long circus tent with a roller coaster (for dolls), carousel, animated characters and more. Up top a life-size Santa and Nutcracker greet visitors. Park and walk around; it's worth walking a couple of blocks to get up close and see it all.
Another Issaquah home has multicolored lights festooning eaves, windows, doors, bushes and fences at 4225 258th Ave. S.E.
Kent: There are snowmen, angels, decorated buildings and thousands of lights at 12614 S.E. 217th Place. More angels, stars, a tree of elves and hundreds of strings of lights decorate 13722 S.E. 202nd Place.
Kirkland: The trees, shrubs, houses and yards of five homes are filled with lights on Finn Hill, off 91st Place Northeast and Northeast 133rd Place.
Lynnwood: Get a hint of the massive light display at 17221 Spruce Way from I-5 as you travel north of Alderwood Mall and look west just before the 164th Street Southwest exit. Two lighted 40-foot trees beckon visitors to Santa's workshop, gingerbread houses, a North Pole scene and many thousands of lights.
Maple Valley: Lake Wilderness Lights in the Lake Wilderness Country Club community is an annual event where some 200 houses light up. From Highway 169 in the middle of Maple Valley, turn south on Witte Road and drive one mile to the entrance. Today, 6 to 9 p.m., bring a donation or a new unwrapped gift for the local food bank.
Mill Creek: There is a cul-de-sac of about 25 wonderfully lighted homes in the Sunrose subdivision off Trillium Boulevard and 142nd Place Southeast. They are among hundreds of homes that decorate for the annual lighting contest in the large residential community.
Normandy Park: Toy soldiers line the driveway, there's a nativity scene out front and reindeer and a big star on the roof at 602 S.W. Colewood Lane. At least six houses on the cul-de-sac do large displays of lights and characters. To find them, take First Avenue South through Burien, turn west on Southwest 186th Street and go two long blocks to Colewood.
Redmond: Just south of Marymoor Park on Marymoor Hill at 16220 N.E. 50th St. is a home with a lighted sleigh and reindeer out front, lighted wreaths in every window and thousands of multicolored lights on bushes, trees and outlining the house. [It was off at 9PM when we went.]
Renton: A carousel and handmade displays of Santa going over the moon, Mrs. Claus cooking, elves making toys and a bear band light up 3908 N.E. 10th St.
Sammamish: There's an elaborate display of lights on buildings and trees, including green "palms" with purple tops, at 4637 227th Place S.E. in Highland Park. Many neighboring homes are also decorated, mainly in white.
On the Redmond side of the plateau in Heritage Hills (near Sahalee), a home at 2509 227th Place N.E. has a huge display. A few of the features include a "waterfall" into a sparkling "lake," lighted deer around it and a Frosty in a snowstorm of twinkle lights.
Shoreline: Snow people, a huge Nutcracker and almost 400 strings of lights illuminate a house at 824 N. 196th Court (at Linden Avenue North).
Near North 175th Street and Palatine Avenue North are two homes where the families compete each year to see who can put up the most lights and yard art.
[Do not recall these in Shoreline. Maybe a 6 for the first, and a 7.5 for the other? I don't know. Sorry. 11/29/1999. *?]
Snohomish: A gazebo of animated santas and elves, a Santa train, an ice-skating bear, shooting stars, a bear who peeps out of a stump, toy soldiers, candy canes and more at 17806 87th Ave. S.E. Winnie-the-Pooh, Tigger, a nativity scene, trains, Santa's Workshop and Mrs. Claus are part of this delightful display at 9002 180th St. S.E.
[Oh no, Tigger. "The wonderful thing about Tiggers, is Tiggers are wonderful things. Their tops are made out of rubber. Their bottoms are made out of springs. They're ??opsy, ??opsy, ?opsy? Fun, fun, fun, fun, fun. (But) the most wonderful thing about Tiggers is -- I'm the only one. I'm the only one!"]
© 2003-1998 by the author. All rights reserved.
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