Be Dazzled By Holiday Lights In Hopatcong, Sparta This Season

HOPATCONG, NJ — There are some spectacular lights being illuminated throughout Hopatcong, Sparta and beyond this holiday season, with some already glowing each night, including Menorahs.

Here’s a roundup of some of the upcoming celebrations with lights in both communities:

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Friday, Dec. 3, Sparta Tree Lighting - Sparta’s Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, hosted by the Recreation Department, begins at 6:30 p.m., on the lawn of the VFW building. Santa Claus is coming down from the North Pole to light the tree and then is going to meet families across the street at the Municipal Building until 8:30 p.m. There will be carolers and refreshments. The event is free and attendees are encouraged to make donations to the Sparta Ecumenical Food Pantry while attending. Call Sparta Recreation with questions at 973-729-2383. See complete details here.

Saturday, Dec. 4, Hopatcong Holiday Market In the Park, Santa Visit, Tree Lighting - A fun-packed day in Hopatcong from 3 to 8 p.m. in Modick Park. With a snow or rain date of Dec. 11, there will be over 100 crafters, artisans, vendors, local businesses, community groups and more for the holiday market in the park event, hosted by Hopatcong Recreation. The event, will also include food trucks. Games for the kids are planned and Santa arrives at 6 p.m., just in time for the tree lighting and photos with his fans. Click here for the event page.

Friday, Dec. 10, Holiday Home Decorating Contest - Another event coordinated by Sparta Recreation, Sparta Township residents can register for the contest with the Recreation Department by Dec. 10. Registration is by phone 973-729-2383 or online https://register.communitypass.net/SpartaTownship. Sparta Recreation can take photos of homes the week of Dec. 13 or homeowners may send in their own photos. Those homes will then be displayed on the Sparta Recreation’s Facebook Page at www.facebook.com/Spartarecreationnj. The two houses with the most “likes” will be picked as winners, announced on Facebook, be given a prize and sign for their lawn. See full details here.

Friday, Dec. 10, Hopatcong Home Christmas Decorating Contest - An event for Hopatcong residents only, there are different decorating categories with the deadline to enter by 5 p.m. on Dec. 10. Homes will be judged the evenings of Dec. 11 through 18, with families asked to keep their lights on through 10 p.m. each night. To complete the form and for more details, click here.

Newton Medical Center is aglow with lights for the 2021 holiday season. To find out more about this fundraising initiative for the medical center, click here.

Check out some other light displays throughout the upper half of New Jersey at these drive-through, walk through or drive-by destinations; and click the links for more information about each below:

Turtleback Zoo’s Holiday Lights Spectacular - See more than 50 winter and animal characters throughout the Turtleback Zoo for a twinkling display of holiday lights. It’s free to get in, with donations gratefully appreciated and recommended of non-perishable, shelf-stable foods, new toys and gently used coats. On Friday, Dec. 3 through Sunday, Dec. 5, the displays will be illuminated between 5 and 9 p.m. It’s open nightly after that beginning Dec. 10 and running through Dec. 31, then closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Fanwood’s Famous “Christmas House” - A spectacular light display worth seeing on 83 Paterson Road in Fanwood. On Dec. 4 from 4:30 to 7 p.m., Santa plans to stop by with gifts for the kids, with refreshments courtesy of Fanwood PBA Local 123. Donations are gratefully accepted and are give to the NJ Institute for disabilities at www.njid.org.

Orchard of Lights - At Demarest Farms in Bergen County’s Hillsdale on 244 Wieremus Road through Jan. 9, tickets and reservations are required through the 32 acre light tour. Enjoy the lights, then shop the farm market, sit by the fire pit and sip on hot chocolate.

Martorana Christmas House - Visit the Christmas House in Wayne on 396 Fairfield Road, with lights and inflatables all day. The inflatables are up from 8 a.m. to midnight, with the lights on from 4 p.m. to midnight. The family has over 1,000 of the inflatables between Halloween and Christmas, with about 700 for the Christmas season.

Winter Wonderlights - Be dazzled by more than 1.5 million holiday lights in a drive-thru spectacular, choreographed to holiday music. On 655 Cranberry Road in East Brunswick, what started over 20 years ago with a display at one home, is now their family-run business at the Middlesex County Fairgrounds. Reservations are required for the show.

Mission Holiday Lights - On 265 Mission Road Hackettstown, Washington Township, this family does their light show each year and is in the process of transitioning from Veteran’s lights to holiday ones. Stay tuned to their Facebook Page for updates.

Stickles Pond Christmas - See the light show through Jan. 2, 2022 at 131 Stickles Pond Road in Andover Township, near Newton. View from the street at a private residence, coordinated to music, tune radios to 100.1 FM, while watching. Check out their information for contests on their Facebook Page. The family coordinating the light display also hosts a contest to guess how many lights are on their display, for a $35 ShopRite gift card. They ask those who drive by to “pay it forward” and donate to a charity of choice, including a local food pantry, this holiday season.

Skylands Stadium Lights Show - There’s more than two million lights at the Stadiums’ light show on 94 Championship Place in Augusta, which there’s a fee to drive through. Purchase tickets to to the light show in advance, through Jan. 9, 2022. The Christmas Village is free to enter with hot beverages, food, games and photos with Santa an extra fee.

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