From early November into the first weekend of January, Eisenhower Park runs on two schedules. Mornings go to runners and veterans' groups. Evenings go to 14 acres of lanterns, inflatables and, new this year, a train. Most weeks they stay out of each other's way. One Saturday they share, and one Sunday morning stacks a race and a ceremony back to back. Those are the two dates to plan around.
Here is the season in order, starting with the Sunday morning that has two events on it.
Sunday, Nov. 8: a race and a ceremony before lunch
The first big date is a morning, and two separate events share it.
The Nassau County 5K Turkey Trot starts at 9:00 a.m. in Eisenhower Park, with the kids' 1K, "Chase the Gobbler," running from 8:30 to 8:45 a.m. Jogging strollers are welcome in the 5K. Organizers are asking participants to bring non-perishable food to check-in or on race day for local families. The adult 5K was listed at $44 on the registration page, marked down from $55.
An hour after the 5K starts, the United Veterans Organization and local veterans' organizations hold the annual UVO Veterans Day Ceremony at 10:00 a.m. at the Eisenhower Park Veterans Memorial Plaza, according to Nassau County's event calendar.
So between about 8:30 and late morning that Sunday, the park hosts a kids' dash, a 5K field and a county ceremony one after another. Whether you're running, attending the ceremony or just out for a regular Sunday walk, plan on more cars than a typical November morning.
That Sunday also sets up the rest of the season. Veterans Day itself falls on Wednesday, Nov. 11, and the lights open that same night.
Wednesday, Nov. 11: the night shift opens, with a train this time
LuminoCity Holiday Lights returns for its fifth year at Eisenhower Park, 1899 Hempstead Turnpike, from Nov. 11, 2026, through Jan. 3, 2027, according to the festival's Oct. 8 announcement on PR Newswire.
If you've gone in past years, here's what's different in year five:
- The Lumi Express. The festival calls it Eisenhower Park's first holiday train ride. It loops through the lit grounds. Spots are limited each day, and children three and under ride free with a paying adult. LuminoCity says online RSVP details are "coming soon," so watch for them if the train is the reason you're going.
- New inflatables. Happy Holidays Hop is a 20-foot-tall Santa, and next to it is the Triceratops Bounce Nest.
- Santa pop-ups on select weekends.
The layout keeps four themed zones, Magical Wonderwood, Dino Safari, Holidayville and Tundra Twilight. Together they hold more than 100 illuminated and animatronic creatures and a 40-foot Christmas tree.
The most local part of the festival is Lumi's Utopia, now in its sixth year. It's a children's art program run with the Long Island Children's Museum, and winning drawings from this year's "Dino Friends" contest are turned into handcrafted light sculptures. Master Lantern Artisans Huang Xingxiu and Jiang Lei will also give a sensory-friendly demonstration.
Picking your night: the closures matter more than the crowds
LuminoCity runs 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday with last entry at 9:00, and 4:30 to 10:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday with last entry at 9:30.
Until Dec. 14, the festival is closed every Monday and Tuesday. Dec. 14 is a Monday, so for the first five weeks the gates open only Wednesday through Sunday. That's also the stretch when early-season family plans, school-night outings and visiting relatives all compete for the same five evenings a week. From Dec. 14 on, the festival is open daily, apart from the holiday closures below.
Three dates are closed entirely:
- Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 26
- Christmas Eve, Thursday, Dec. 24
- Christmas Day, Friday, Dec. 25
If family is in town for Thanksgiving and you were planning a lights night, Wednesday the 25th or Friday the 27th works. Thursday doesn't.
Price follows the calendar too. LuminoCity sells two ticket tiers, and its terms say admission prices vary by day and time slot. The lower tier is $29 for general admission, $22 for children 4 to 12 and $56 for VIP. The peak tier is $33, $26 and $58. Both exclude taxes and fees. Children 3 and under get in free. For two adults and two kids in the 4-to-12 range, that's $102 on the lower tier and $118 at peak, a $16 gap before fees. Some add-ons, including attractions inside the grounds, are priced separately. LuminoCity suggests buying add-ons online ahead of time because availability at the gate is limited and lines can form. The festival's ticket page has also been advertising a 20% early-bird discount.
If plans change, unused admission tickets can be refunded as long as you request it at least 24 hours before the festival's final day. Tickets can also be moved to another date through a self-rescheduling portal. Add-ons and activity bundles become non-refundable once you've checked in.
The theme nights all land on Saturdays
LuminoCity has posted three theme nights. Guests are invited to dress up, and there's live music plus a limited-edition merch giveaway while supplies last.
| Date | Theme night | What else is happening in the park that day |
|---|---|---|
| Saturday, Nov. 21 | Lumi & Me Night | Long Island Turkey Trot 5K, 9 a.m. |
| Saturday, Dec. 5 | Cosplay Under the Lights | Nothing else posted |
| Saturday, Dec. 19 | Ugly Sweater Night | Nothing else posted |
Nov. 21 is the season's true double shift. The Long Island Turkey Trot 5K Run/Walk in Memory of Neil Chadderton, put on by the Never Stop Running Foundation, starts at 9 a.m. at Eisenhower Park Field 2, Parking Lot 2. A free Kiddie Dash goes off 30 minutes earlier, and the race runs rain or shine. Later that day, the lights open at 4:30 for Lumi & Me Night. A family could run in the morning and come back for the lights after dark without leaving East Meadow. Anyone driving past the park that Saturday should expect traffic at both ends of the day.
Getting in, and what to bring
Parking is free and on-site. You reach it from Salisbury Park Drive, the main road through the park. The nearest cross streets are Hempstead Turnpike on the south side and Merrick Avenue on the west.
A few details that affect how you pack the car:
- Time. Most visitors spend one to two hours inside. Arriving at 7:30 on a weeknight still leaves a full visit before the 9:00 last entry.
- Strollers and wagons. The grounds are stroller-, kid-wagon- and ADA-friendly, but there are no rentals and no check-in, so bring your own.
- Snacks. You can bring snacks and drinks, but not into the amusement activities. A food and beverage vendor is on-site.
- Restrooms. There are heated restrooms plus porta-potties.
- Dogs. Only ADA-registered service animals are allowed. Emotional support animals are not admitted. The family dog stays home.
Down Hempstead Turnpike, a kitchen that outlasts the lights
The park's night shift has a new neighbor this year. Shake Shack opened Wednesday, Oct. 21, at The Meadows shopping center, 1902 Hempstead Turnpike, Long Island Business News reported. The park's own address is 1899 Hempstead Turnpike.
The timing works with the lights. LuminoCity's last entry is 9:00 p.m. on weeknights and 9:30 on weekends, and LIBN reports the East Meadow Shake Shack is open until midnight Sunday through Thursday and until 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday. That leaves a wide window after even the latest visit. The 3,437-square-foot restaurant has indoor seating and a drive-thru with a digital menu board and two ordering lanes. If the kids fall asleep in the car on the way out of the park, the drive-thru is the easy option.
It opens at 10 a.m. daily, so it works for a post-race lunch on Nov. 8 or Nov. 21, though not for coffee before the start. LIBN reports it's the chain's ninth Long Island location, after Melville, Westbury, Lake Grove, Oceanside, New Hyde Park, Selden, Holbrook and Riverhead. On opening day, the restaurant donated $1 for every sandwich sold to Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County.
The season at a glance
- Sun., Nov. 8: Kids' 1K at 8:30 a.m., Nassau County 5K Turkey Trot at 9:00 a.m., UVO Veterans Day Ceremony at 10:00 a.m.
- Wed., Nov. 11: LuminoCity opens. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays until Dec. 14.
- Sat., Nov. 21: Long Island Turkey Trot 5K at 9 a.m. from Field 2, then Lumi & Me Night after dark.
- Thu., Nov. 26: LuminoCity closed for Thanksgiving.
- Sat., Dec. 5: Cosplay Under the Lights.
- Mon., Dec. 14: LuminoCity starts opening seven days a week.
- Sat., Dec. 19: Ugly Sweater Night.
- Thu., Dec. 24 and Fri., Dec. 25: LuminoCity closed.
- Sun., Jan. 3: Final night of the lights.
Constantino Alves works across Nassau and Suffolk and keeps up with what's going on around Eisenhower Park, from new openings on Hempstead Turnpike to the dates that fill Salisbury Park Drive. If you have questions about East Meadow, or about what a busy park calendar means for the streets around it, let's connect.
