We are really excited that the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium is continuing their new Lantern Festival again this a new light show for the Christmas season. Though we’ve seen a lot of light displays, we’d never seen anything like the lantern festival they have. The Aquarium Lantern Festival is amazing and a super fun new event that we know your family will love. And we are impressed that they added so many new lanterns in just the second year.
Lantern Festival
The Aquarium Lantern Festival takes place outside on the large plaza in front of the aquarium buildings. The entire area is covered in lights and lanterns. There are dozens of displays of countless animals, many of which are sea creatures to fit the aquarium theme. The animals all glow, and many change color, and are larger than life.
The lights are really bright and amazing at the Aquarium Lantern Festival. It’s sort of hard to describe, but it’s as if the animals are made of parachute material and lit from the inside. There is a ton of color and detail. Some of the animals have movement, which makes it even better. The animals look stunning, and you can watch the puffer fish inflate or the crab move.
There were a few interactive displays, which were fun for the kids. These include light up stepping stones, games, light tunnels, light swings, and lot of places to take pictures. We loved the fun frames they had with different animals to snap a photo.
Bonus: Inside Visit
You can make this a two for one adventure. The actual aquarium is open from 5:30 pm until 9 PM, so plan on going inside, too. It was fun to warm up in the aquarium after spending time walking through the Aquarium Lantern Festival outside. Some of the animals were asleep, but many were out and active. We love that we can see the live animals inside and enjoy the lantern animals outside.
We love the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium. In fact, we’ve been going to the aquarium since it was located in an old supermarket on the east side of the freeway in Sandy. It has been fun to watch the aquarium grow into the major venue that it is. In fact, when people come to visit us from out of state, or even another country, the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium is our go to venue on the Wasatch Front. We love all the animals, information, and programs, and this new Lantern Show is definitely a hit! If you’d like more info about the actual aquarium, check out our post.
We were blown away by the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium Lantern Festival, and even hoped aloud that they would make this a permanent exhibit that you could enjoy all year. So we are excited it is back for a second year. Here is the current information for the 2025 event:
Dates: November 6, 2026 – January 9, 2027
Time: 5:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m every day, even Sundays. The aquarium indoors is open from 5:30 – 9:00 pm. It is open any day!!
Ticket Pricing:
Adult | $27.95
Teen | $24.95Â
Child | $22.95
Children 2 and under are free. Students, seniors, and military are eligible for discounts. SNAP, EBT, and WIC are not accepted for this event. Members get a 15% discount. Purchase tickets here.
