Holidays at Filoli: Festive Christmas Lights in the Bay Area
Published Dec. 2023 | Updated Nov. 2025
Filoli Historic House and Garden is decked out in Christmas lights and open late for their annual Holidays at Filoli event from November 22, 2025, to January 11, 2026. It’s a festive display of lights and decor on the manicured grounds and throughout the historic estate.
If you’re looking for a fun holiday activity in the Bay Area, head to Holidays at Filoli! The decor and activities are always slightly different, evolving and improving each year.
As you meander through the gardens, you’ll find a twinkling tunnel of lights, a charming holiday bar serving cozy drinks, fire pits and heaters to keep you warm, and a permeating sense of holiday joy.
The house, which is more of a mansion or estate, also gets a festive makeover with vintage holiday decor in every room.
I visit Filoli Historic House and Gardens regularly throughout the year to experience the changing seasons in both the garden and mansion!
If you want to learn more about Filoli and what to expect outside of the Holidays at Filoli event, I have a full guide to Filoli.
In 2025, Filoli introduced two new daytime events for Holidays at Filoli: Gilded and Thistlewyck. Gilded is the elegant decor throughout the house and gardens, while Thistlewyck is a whimsical village with miniature fairy houses and trains.
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Getting Tickets to Holidays at Filoli
The Holidays at Filoli is a popular, long-running event in Woodside, California. Tickets can sell out, especially on weekends.
If you want to experience the holiday festivities at Filoli, be sure to get your tickets in advance! You will have a much better chance of getting tickets on a weekday.
Even if you’re a member, you must purchase tickets for Holidays at Filoli and pick a time slot (but you do get a discount!)
The daytime tickets for entry are at 10am, and you must leave by 3:30 pm. This gives you entry to the main grounds and Natural Lands — both of which have special daytime events for Holidays at Filoli in 2025.
The evening holiday ticket entry times are 4 pm, 5:30 pm, and 7 pm — Filoli closes at 9 pm.
I’ve gone a couple of times at the 5:30 pm time slot, where it’s already dark by the time I arrive. I usually spend a few hours there and leave by 8:30 pm, feeling like I have seen everything.
I’ve also gone during the 4 pm time slot, which was even better because I got to see the garden while it was still somewhat light out, and once it got dark — best of both worlds!
Holidays at Filoli – Lights
Tour the Filoli Historic House
While the flowers and plants aren’t as visible during Holidays at Filoli since it’s dark outside, the house is fully decked out in holiday decor with at least one Christmas tree in every room.
The holiday decor is absolutely magical and gives you a sense of what Christmas was actually like for the families that lived at Filoli when it was a private estate.
You can expect completely different decorations each year! The house is not only regularly rearranged and decorated differently throughout the year, but it’s not even the same from one year to the next. It keeps things fun and interesting for people who visit often!
Get Drinks at the Holiday Bar
I am a huge fan of mulled wine, and especially love being able to drink it while surrounded by holiday cheer! The Filoli Holiday Bar is located in the Woodland Court, which is the rooftop of a building in the garden.
Just take the stairs up and you’ll find tons of Christmas lights, firepits, heaters next to tables, a holiday bar, and a coffee bar.
There are usually lots of people hanging out at Woodland Court (when it’s not raining) or walking around with their hot drinks as they explore the garden.
The setup in this area changes yearly — some years they’ve had heaters and fire pits, while other years they just had fire pits.
There are also a few private fire pits in mini chalets that you can book in advance for an additional fee.
Relax by the Fire Pits
Once you get a cozy drink, grab a standing table or sit by one of the free fire pits for a while as you admire the lights, sip your holiday drink, and get nice and warm. It gets cold in this area at night, so a warm drink by a heat source is a welcome break from exploring the grounds!
If you want to do something really special, you can book a private fire pit for your group and have access to your very own private Holiday Bar.
Walk Through the Garden
The garden at Filoli is the best part — I love seeing how it changes seasonally. Since you can usually only visit Filoli during the daytime for the majority of the year, being at Filoli after dark is a unique experience!
The garden is meticulously decorated with Christmas lights, light globes, and an incredible light tunnel (perfect for photos!). You can easily spend a couple of hours exploring the garden.
With the timed tickets, it never gets too crowded, so it’s easy to enjoy a relaxing walk through the garden.
Take Photos in the Light Tunnel
The long light tunnel that runs through the Meadow is the perfect spot for your holiday photo! The lights are constantly changing colors and patterns, so you can wait for the exact color of lights you want.
Holidays at Filoli — Gilded
Gilded is a new daytime experience at Filoli that decks the house and the garden with enchanting decor. Tickets and reservations are required, though it is free for members of Filoli.
Gilded Mansion
The mansion is filled with Christmas trees and decor, as it is every year. Every room has its own tree and unique style!
Visiting the mansion during the daytime with all the festive adornments is just as magical as nighttime. Though it doesn’t have the same evening coziness, you can see the rooms even better with light streaming through the windows.
Gilded Gardens
The beautiful winter gardens also have a dash of holiday elegance for the daytime visitors. You’ll find ribbons, Christmas trees, lanterns, and more throughout the garden.
The gardens are gorgeous all year-round! Even in winter, when there aren’t as many flowers, the lush gardens are beautiful to stroll through. During Gilded at Filoli, the added decor in the gardens makes them even more exciting to explore!
The garden is also all set up for the nighttime event, Lights at Filoli. You can see peeks of the holiday lights during the day at the light tunnel in The Meadow and the giant moon at the High Place.
Holidays at Filoli — thistlewyck
Follow the trail into Filoli’s Natural Lands to discover the miniature village of Thistlewyck during the daytime entry. I attended the ribbon-cutting that opened Thistlewyck for the first time and was completely charmed by it!
Miniature Train Depot
Thistlewyck is a small area within the Natural Lands, built as a walk-through, with multiple electric trains running along the tracks. You can watch the trains from inside and outside of Thistlewyck.
The quaint fairy homes are adorable! It’s so fun to squat down to look at each one up close — some look like Dutch houses, while others were reminiscent of Hobbit Houses.
Troll – Rose Wonders
In November 2025, Filoli said goodbye to its six temporary trolls by Thomas Dambo and welcomed a new permanent troll — Rose Wonders!
This 27-foot troll is the largest one yet. Her most unique feature is the staircase inside, which leads to her giant hands.
When I visited, it wasn’t fully set up yet with the safety rails, so we couldn’t climb the stairs to reach her hands.
Natural Lands Village
Like at the Nightfall Halloween event at Filoli, there are huts with snacks and refreshments in the Natural Lands for Holidays at Filoli.
For Holidays at Filoli, there’s an Elf Emporium where you can dress up, a Post Office to send letters, and a Snack Hut to get treats, refreshments, and snacks (of course).
The Trailhead Store also gets a festive touch with ornaments and other holiday-themed items available for purchase.
What to Wear for Holidays at Filoli
It gets chilly outside as you walk around the garden! I’m always happy when I’m bundled up with a sweater, coat, and earmuffs/a warm hat.
If there’s rain in the forecast, I recommend a clear umbrella so you can still see all the lights and decor while shielding yourself from the rain.
Some people dress up a bit fancier for visits to Filoli. If that sounds like something you want to do, do it! You’ll look like you fit right in.
Other people dress more comfy in leggings, sweaters, and coats. There’s no required dress code, so you can dress as fancy or casual as you want.
It would be fun to wear a festive holiday sweater!
What I recommend bringing:
Comfortable walking shoes or boots
Holidays at Filoli FAQs
When is Holidays at Filoli?
The Holidays at Filoli event is November 22, 2025–January 11, 2026. Book your tickets now to reserve your entry date and time!
What if it rains during Holidays at Filoli?
Filoli stays open rain or shine! It rained during one of my visits to Holidays at Filoli, and it was still a magical experience. It was almost completely empty, which made it even more magical to experience the lights and garden without anyone else around.
Is Holidays at Filoli at night?
Holiday Lights is a nighttime Christmas event at Filoli.
For 2025, two new daytime experiences have been added: Thystlewick and Gilded. These experiences are only available during daytime admission during the Holidays at Filoli event from 10 am to 3:30 pm.
Do members get into Holidays at Filoli for free?
No, members must still purchase tickets for the nighttime Holiday Lights event. Members get a 20% discount on these tickets.
If you have a membership purchased after July 1, 2025 (new membership tiers), you get free access to the daytime Holidays at Filoli.
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