We Had An Arctic Blast At The Memphis Zoo’s Lantern Festival
My wife Nicki and I headed over to the Memphis Zoo last night to experience their first ever Lantern Fest.
Usually this time of year, the Memphis Zoo puts on their holiday Zoo Lights celebration. We’ve attended it and their Zoo Boo a few times over the years. This Lantern Festival was very much like those, but even bigger than what we’ve seen there at the zoo before.
The entrance had lights up the columns on either side of the walkway out in front of the main gift shop coffee shop, and a large light up Sphinx greeting us as we entered the zoo. The wading pool had several displays around it and the creek that runs to it.
There was waaaaaay more LEDs and new displays in the trees and along the main pathways. There was music playing, glowing hieroglyphics, and some lights blinked and changed colors, and some displays had movement and/or smoke effects.
We decided to go right and go past Primate Canyon and head towards the Zambezi River Hippo Camp area of the zoo.
This stretch of the path had a lot of great animal displays.
It was here that I saw one of my favorite light displays- the butterflies and fireflies. The butterflies changed color and the “lightning bugs” moved back and forth. It was a great effect as we approached it, and even close up it was cool.
There were several butterfly displays throughout the festival.
The flamingos and elephants were near the Zambezi/hippo area, too. One of the elephants had an animatronic head that moved side to side.
Some areas like Cat Country and Primate Canyon were closed to the public, but there was plenty of the park open and we walked so much that we actually hit our 10,000 steps goal!
We also saw the trams carrying attendees around the zoo along the main oval path around the zoo, and they passed by us several times while we were there. I drove a tram there briefly back just after the pandemic. Part of me misses driving it and being a tour guide for zoo guests, but the other part of me remembers how hard it was to navigate around pedestrians, especially the ones who didn’t want to move out of the way- or the ones who purposely would jump out or stop in front of the 30ft long vehicle..! I tell folks it was like being in “Smokey and the bandit” where the Bandit is telling Frog, “DON’T HIT THE KIDS- DON’T HIT THE KIDS!!!” Even with the tram only going about 3mph that could be challenging.
My favorite was probably the large Chinese dragon/Loong. It was probably a good 35-40ft long or more, had color changing lights, and would breathe smoke out of it’s mouth. Tip: if you want to catch it breathing smoke, listen for the compressor to kick on. It’s a signal that there will be smoke puffing out of the dragon in a second.
There was a gorgeous swan/lake display across from the dragon, as well as several light-up swings, a see-saw, dance floor, rabbit photo ops, and what I can only describe as a “rave room” for kids and families to enjoy.
There was also a hot coco vendor, and an art/souvenir tent near the dragon. Was tempted to get one of these…so cool.
After we passed Teton Trek there was a Chinese Zodiac Calendar display.
They all had a sign next to the light up animals with a description of each and what years they are. Nicki’s sign is an ox.
Turns out mine is a horse. I like horses but Nicki and I were both shocked to find out mine wasn’t a monkey..!
Talk about laughable!!!
Just beyond the zodiac signs were a couple bird displays with what looked like a Scarlet Macaw and other parrots. We could also see the big dragon from here. Usually during the Zoo Lights there’s an outdoor skating rink in this open space.
The Northwest Passage was closed, but we could see the full moon raising up behind it.
Next up was another walk-through display featuring water lilies and lily pads. It was pretty impressive, and I’d love to know just how long it took to put all this up!
As we exited that part of the festival, we saw a couple other displays on the left- one was a mechanized color changing peacock sponsored by WMC TV5- our local NBC affiliate.
As we rounded that corner I took a quick bathroom break (I’ve learner where all the public restrooms in the zoo are), and then we continued on seeing a trio of bright hyenas and some more butterflies off in the distance next to the elephant enclosure.
We continued on until we passed the carousel and got to the China section of the zoo.
Lots of colorful creatures and blossoms. The giant pandas that live here have gone back home to China, and the red pandas have moved into their former living space.
And of course it wouldn’t be a lantern festival without any lanterns, and we saw plenty of those in the section.
I really love the architecture and design of the China section of the zoo and it looked even more spectacular for this after dark festival.
Near the water park and herpetarium was a great glowing bear.
Just beyond that was another amazing light display- it was pretty vast field with spinning and color changing windmills.
Near the Komodo Dragons enclosure were some awesome chameleons with moving mouths and tongues. I mean, of you’re gonna have a color changing animal it’s gotta be a chameleon..!
As we rounded the corner near the aquarium and farm section there were large flowers, lady bugs, caterpillars, butterflies, and more.
As we passed the farm and train area and neared the Penguin Rock island we saw the train going around the track and through the covered bridge/tunnel. There was “snow” machine and a flower that blew out puffs of smoke when someone stepped on a glowing pad. I saw a kid watch two girls do it and get hit in the face with the smoke. He said he wanted to try it, stepped on the pink pad, and when he got hit in the face he exclaimed, “I wasn’t expecting that to happen..!” The things you hear at the zoo…
To the left headed back towards the windmills and chameleons, there were several sparkly animals like a lion, elephant, hippo, and zebra.
There were also a few interactive musical animals like a cow that you played his ribs, or this shark that had chimes in its mouth. The kids were loving these- the parents, not so much.
Out in front of the bird house was a display of budgie/parakeet birds, and tropical ones. There was also a seat/throne for a photo op.
The last section between the birdhouse and Cat House Cafe was lined with Christmas trees, deer, candy canes, and snowflakes. I had fun trying a few shots using a puddle near a curb.
Speaking of the Cat House Cafe, we stopped in for a bathroom break. We both were a bit hungry but didn’t really wanted a full dinner, so Nicki bought us a couple pretzels. They were fresh and warm, and we noticed they had done a lot of remodeling to the cafe. The service seemed to be moving pretty quick.
When we were done eating our snack, we headed back towards the butterflies and dragon to take some video of them. We forgot to bring the Go-Pro camera and my phone was down to about 10% power, so Nicki let me borrow her phone to record while she took more stills with her Sony DSLR camera. We didn’t do a complete loop. After I got some video of the dragon we headed back to the exit, and I got a couple more quick shots of the butterflies. It was such a fun display! We took a couple shots in front of the large Christmas tree out front and then called it a night a little bit before the event closed. Once we got home I made us a couple mugs of Mexican hot chocolate. It was good and hit the spot, but I think I put just a little bit too much cayenne and cinnamon- will need to cut back a bit next time. Might make it an “adult beverage” then…
It was cold and Nicki and I had a blast, an “arctic blast”! even though it was cold, thankfully it wasn’t as cold as our tri up to Nashville just before Christmas…that was COLD! I hope you get a chance to check it out for yourself, but I recommend dressing in layers.
If you can’t make it to the zoo in person, here’s a walk-through video.
Memphis Zoo Lantern Festival Full Tour 2025 – Zachary’s Zoo Adventures (YouTube)
(He does a non-commentary walk through at around 1hr 2min.)
Hope you all had a Happy New Year, and great 2026. Stay warm, my friends!
Lin
More info on the Lantern Festival:
ZOO LIGHTS JUST GOT A GLOW UP! Memphis Zoo is debuting it’s first-ever Lantern Festival Presented by Truist. The holidays are about to shine brighter than ever at Memphis Zoo. In partnership with Tianyu Arts & Culture, and presented by Truist, Memphis Zoo is proud to announce the inaugural Memphis Zoo Lantern Festival, a one-of-a-kind holiday light experience featuring more than 60 larger-than-life illuminated fixtures. The Memphis Zoo Lantern Festival will transform the Zoo into a dazzling wonderland of color and light. Guests can stroll through glowing pathways, marvel at vibrant animal-shaped lanterns, and capture unforgettable memories beneath radiant displays designed by the world-renowned Tianyu team. Tickets can only be purchased through the Memphis Zoo. Celebrate the season safely, enjoy time with family and friends, and make memories that will last a lifetime.
