Sparkle Light Festival in Rosemont

Hands down, our favorite walk-thru light experience.

Sparkle Light Festival Rosemont — *Photo via Sparkle Rosemont*

When anyone comes to me asking for a suggestion for a walk-thru light experience, 100% my 1st recommendation is Sparkle Light Festival at Impact Field. We’ve gone multiple times since they first opened in 2021 [back then, it was Amaze Lights] and we have yet to be disappointed!

Depending on the day you attend, there are 2 or 3 hr time slots and some evenings have multiple times to choose from. You can arrive any time within the time slot you reserve.

PRO TIP: If you visit on an evening that has multiple times available, the later time slot is less busy! OR if you want to attend the earlier time slot, just don’t arrive at the start of it. The parking lot gets so busy and you’ll be waiting in line for quite awhile. Instead, arrive a half hour or even an hour after the start to avoid the crowds, and then you can stay past the end of your time slot and into the next one!

Either way, don’t be scared by how long the line is to park. The line to get into the festival goes very quickly and once you’re inside, it opens up into a huge display of beautiful twinkling lights!

The Sparkle Light Festival is set up across the entire Impact Field. There are separate “villages” that you can stroll through, each with its own theme, such as Frozen Forest, Snowflake Circle, Winter Wonderland, the North Pole and Deck the Halls. Also chugging its way around the field is a FREE Holly Trolly train. I would recommend leaving this attraction for later in the evening, because the line does tend to get long at the start.

New this year is the ice skating rink. Also set up on the field, you can rent skates for just $5 and glide your way around the rink, while surrounded by the display of gorgeous lights. You also won’t want to miss the Alpine Slide. This very popular attraction is a two-story ice slide that you can add on to your admission ticket for $22pp – and that’s for unlimited rides! It does sell out though, so be sure to book it in advance.

Don’t forget to also visit Santa’s workshop, where you can write letters to Santa and enjoy interactive activities while you wait to visit the Big Man himself.

There will also be a lot of options for festive food and drinks. However, I personally would plan to eat dinner somewhere else, either before or after your experience, because you won’t want to waste your time waiting in the very long lines to get food.

So what exactly is it about the Sparkle Light Festival that I love so much? Well, in addition to the obvious reason that the scenery is just absolutely breathtaking with lots of opportunities for Instagrammable photos, I love coming here with kids because I feel that the large open space is perfect to navigate when you have littles. There’s no stress of trying to keep the line moving on a narrow trail and making sure that your kids aren’t bumping into everyone around them. Instead, Sparkle at Impact Field, allows your kids to let out some energy and run out into the open space, through the twinkling lights surrounding them. And it’s never too crowded to where you worry that you might lose sight of them. It is just such an enjoyable experience, where you can take as much time as you need and at your own pace, and immerse & lose yourself in the stunning display of lights.