The L.A. Zoo's banner for this year's holiday event says "Tickets start at $19." That figure is a child's ticket on a value weeknight. On one of the most expensive dates, the same child pays $25 and the adult next to them pays $35. What sets the price is the date on the ticket, and the Zoo's 2026 calendar puts every value-priced December night before December 11.
The Autry Museum of the American West sits a short distance from the Zoo, and its December programs all land in that same early window. If you live in Atwater Village, with the Zoo and the Autry just across the Los Angeles River, the cheapest weeks to visit both are also the ones with the most to do.
How the Zoo Lights price calendar is built
L.A. Zoo Lights runs on select evenings from November 20 through January 10. Entry is timed, with 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. slots, and parking is free. Starting October 16, the Zoo is selling tickets in three tiers:
| Tier | Nonmember adult / child | Member adult / child | 2026–27 dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Value weekday | $29 / $19 | $24 / $14 | Nov. 23–25; Dec. 2–3, 8–10 |
| Value weekend | $32 / $22 | $27 / $17 | Nov. 20–22; Dec. 4–6; Jan. 2–3, 8–10 |
| Holiday peak | $35 / $25 | $30 / $20 | Nov. 27–29; Dec. 11–13, 17–23, 26–30; Jan. 1 |
Count the dates and the season has 38 open nights. Nineteen of them, half the run, are holiday peak. Only eight are value weekdays, and every one falls between November 23 and December 10. After December 10, each open night left in December is priced at the peak rate. A family of two adults and two children going on a peak night instead of a value weekday pays $120 instead of $96 at nonmember prices.
The Zoo lists these nights when the event is closed:
- November 26, Thanksgiving, and November 30
- December 1, 7, 14, 15, 16, 24, 25 and 31
- January 4 through 7
The Monday-to-Wednesday gap from December 14 to 16 deserves attention. It sits between two peak blocks, so midweek in mid-December offers no cheaper fallback. Next comes the week of December 17 to 23, when every night is peak.
Children under two get in free. The box office takes $3 off adult tickets and $2 off child tickets for military visitors. The Zoo's FAQ doesn't list a discount for Los Angeles residents, and members must log in to see member pricing. On the day itself, the box office is open from 5:45 to 8:45 p.m.
Three December dates where both sides of the park line up
The Autry's calendar fits around the Zoo's cheaper nights.
Wednesday, December 2. The Autry offers free admission on the first Wednesday of every month. December's first Wednesday is also the first value weekday of the month at Zoo Lights. You can spend the afternoon at the museum for free and take a 6:30 slot at the Zoo that evening at the lowest of the three date-based tiers. The Zoo also advertises limited-time presale tickets below those tiers but doesn't say when the presale ends.
Saturday, December 5. The Autry's "Santa's Winter Wonderland" runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. That is also the first full weekend of the month, when the Autry offers free individual admission to Bank of America, Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank cardholders and employees through Museums On Us. Across the parking lot, Zoo Lights is on value-weekend pricing that night, $32 for nonmember adults and $22 for children.
Thursday, December 10. The Autry After Hours series presents "Happy Holidays" from the SAG-AFTRA Radio Players, with shows from 3 to 4:30 p.m. and 7 to 8:30 p.m. It is the last value weekday of the Zoo Lights season. From the next night on, the rest of December is priced at peak.
That gives you three dates in eight days with the Autry's free admission or holiday programming on the same day as a lower-priced Zoo Lights night.
The weeks before the lights go on
The stretch between now and Zoo Lights is quieter, and most of it happens in daylight.
Boo at the L.A. Zoo takes up two weekends: October 24 and 25, then October 31 and November 1. Trick-or-treat stations run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with keeper talks, pumpkin enrichment for the animals, photo spots and performances. It's included with paid Zoo admission or an active membership. Members at the Family Deluxe level and above get a separate early-access session from 8 to 10 a.m. on Saturday, October 24.
The same Saturday, the Autry hosts "Family Fun Day: Mini Pumpkin Patch and Spooky Cartoon Shorts" from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Both events start in the morning, so October 24 is the one Halloween date this year when you can do both in a single visit across the river.
November's biggest date at the Autry is free for everyone. The Sacred Path x Autry Pow Wow runs Saturday, November 7, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., with Grand Entry at 1 p.m. The program includes traditional dancing and songs led by Northern- and Southern-style drummers and singers, Indian tacos and fry bread, and vendors selling Native arts and crafts. The same day, the Autry opens "Takes Care of Them," an exhibition built around Dyani White Hawk's print series and the roles of Lakota women.
Three longer-running shows are also on view. "Promised Lands: California's Unratified Treaties and Native Resilience" opened September 26 and runs through July 30, 2028. "Creative Continuities: Family, Pride, and Community in Native Art" stays up through June 27, 2027. The one with a near deadline is "Life, Liberty, and Los Angeles," which closes January 31, 2027. The next free Wednesday is November 4.
Travel Town keeps its regular schedule through the season: Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Mondays, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Griffith Park Train Rides lists its 2026 special-event details as "coming soon." Its holiday train page still shows last season's dates, so those don't apply to this year. At the Los Angeles Live Steamers, a private Fall Meet runs October 23 to 25, with no public rides on Sunday, October 25. Public run days on November 1, 8 and 15 appear on the club's schedule.
Getting across from Atwater
Free parking is the perk the Zoo advertises for Zoo Lights. From Atwater Village, you can also reach both venues on foot or by bike over the river.
The City's LA River Revitalization guide names the Autry and the Los Angeles Zoo as two of Griffith Park's access points to the river. It also notes that the river bike path begins at the historic Riverside/Zoo Drive Bridge, bends south at Ferraro Fields and runs through Atwater along the Glendale Narrows.
The most direct link from the north end of the neighborhood is the North Atwater Bridge, the cable-stayed span over the river from the North Atwater side. It is about 300 feet long and closed to cars. As The Eastsider reported, the bridge is divided in half, with riders on horseback using the upriver side and people walking or biking using the downriver side. On the Atwater side, North Atwater Park at 3900 W. Chevy Chase Drive is open from dawn to dusk.
Those dawn-to-dusk hours matter more for Zoo Lights than for any daytime event. A 6:30 or 7:30 entry slot in late November or December falls after dark, so an evening visit by bike or on foot calls for lights and a planned route home. Daytime events like Boo at the Zoo, the Pow Wow and the Autry's December 5 program all finish before the park closes.
Putting the season on one page
Here is the full season in order, with prices and hours as published:
- Saturday, October 24. Boo at the L.A. Zoo, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., plus the Autry's mini pumpkin patch, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- October 25, October 31 and November 1. The remaining Boo at the L.A. Zoo dates.
- Wednesday, November 4. Free First Wednesday at the Autry.
- Saturday, November 7. Sacred Path x Autry Pow Wow, free, Grand Entry at 1 p.m., and the opening of "Takes Care of Them."
- Friday, November 20. Zoo Lights opens at value-weekend pricing.
- November 23 to 25. Value weekdays at Zoo Lights.
- Wednesday, December 2. Free First Wednesday at the Autry and a value weekday at Zoo Lights.
- Saturday, December 5. Santa's Winter Wonderland at the Autry, the first full weekend of the month, and value-weekend Zoo Lights.
- Thursday, December 10. The SAG-AFTRA Radio Players at the Autry and the last value weekday at Zoo Lights.
- December 11 onward. Peak pricing on every open night left in December, with the event dark December 14 to 16, 24, 25 and 31.
If you're working out which of these dates suit your household, Michael Druker can talk through what Atwater Village is like from the river's edge, including which streets sit closest to the North Atwater Bridge side of the neighborhood. Explore listings or schedule a consultation.
