Why Does Denver Leave Its Christmas Lights Up Through January?

Nov 09, 2024

Soon, cities across the United States will start decking the halls. In Denver, the lights stay on for longer—almost to the end of January—and it’s thanks to a long-standing tourism tradition.

The City & County of Denver​ Building in Civic Center Park will stay illuminated through Jan. 26, 2025. It's a long tradition in Denver to leave up lights while the Stock Show is in town.

Last year, as January drew to a close, the multi-colored bulbs framing my door and decorating my home were still glowing. I hadn’t taken my Christmas tree down either, or packed away any of my holiday decorations. I plan to keep my Christmas lights up this year, too, until Jan. 26 or even a little later.

“Great job keeping your lights up,” my neighbor, whose outdoor Christmas lights were also still shining, told me in passing like it was a secret code shared among Denverites.

In some parts of the country, leaving your Christmas lights up for a month after Christmas could mean you’ll get slapped with an HOA fine. But in Denver, it’s a cherished tradition that longtime residents like myself are clued in on: Christmas lights stay up until the National Western Stock Show ends.

Handlers lead longhorn cattle up 17th Ave during the National Western Stock Show Kick-Off Parade on January 05, 2023, in downtown Denver. In Denver, many homeowners and businesses leave Christmas lights up until the end of January when the stock show winds down. (Photo by Andy Cross/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)

Every winter, nearly 70,000 people descend on Denver for the National Western Stock Show (Jan. 11-26, 2025), a Western extravaganza that includes rodeos and horse shows. The Stock Show started in 1906, and, at some point, it became tradition to keep holiday lights up as a sign of hospitality—though some of the details on how the tradition came to be are a little murky.

“Keeping the Christmas lights on through the Stock Show may have been there since the beginning,” says Tom Noel, a state historian who is known as “Dr. Colorado” and is the author of “Riding High: Colorado Ranchers and 100 years of the National Western Stock Show.”

Even before the National Western started in 1906, the Christmas trees and reindeer in Civic Center were illuminated, Noel points out.

The holiday lights at Denver's Union Station. The 40-foot-tall outdoor tree features more than 7,000 lights.

It’s hard to pin down which U.S. city has the best Christmas lights display. But Denver likely has the longest.

A 1955 article published in The Steamboat Pilot newspaper zeroed in on the tradition, explaining that for at least 12 years prior, Denver had been keeping its Christmas display up for the stock show so that “thousands of visitors throughout the nation can view the famous scene in civic center. The only change made which differs from the regular Christmas display is the playing of Western music rather than carols over the loudspeaker system.”

To this day, the lights shine bright well into January at the City and County of Denver Building in Civic Center Park. The “Light the Lights” celebration happens from Nov. 27, 2024 through Jan. 26, 2025, which is the last day of the National Western Stock Show. Every night at 5:45 p.m. and then again at 6:45 p.m., the building puts on an eight-minute choreographed light and music holiday show before the festive, static holiday display sets in, illuminating the area until 10:45 p.m.

At some point, residents and businesses also started adopting the tradition, leaving their lights up through mid-to-late January, welcoming out-of-towners who pump $120 million into the local economy.

“Some have called it tacky, but we do it to share the holiday spirit with our more rural neighbors who come into town for the Stock Show and perhaps didn't have a lot of holiday decorations around their farms and ranches,” says Kosta Skordos, general manager of Wynkoop Brewery, which is Colorado’s oldest brewpub. “They come here in January and get to see the whole city in lights.”

The brewery is along the Stock Show Parade route. Downtown Denver streets are shut down as 30 or so Longhorn cattle lumber down the streets to kick off the stock show.

This year, Denver will add to its lights tradition with a new drone show that follows a more traditional holiday schedule: Starting Nov. 22, and continuing for 40 nights through New Year’s Eve, 400 drones will light up the Mile High City’s skyline for 15-minute shows that begin each evening at 7 p.m. Animated scenes have been built specifically for Visit Denver, so viewers can expect to see scenes depicting Colorado’s mountains and sports teams in the night sky.

The Denver Botanic Gardens’ holiday light show is another popular place to enjoy holiday lights in Denver. Visitors can wander through the illuminated gardens as 1 million LED lights twinkle for the annual Blossom of Lights show.

Snow covered Christmas tree glowing outdoors in a frosty cold winter forest at dusk after a fresh snow fall

When it comes to putting up and taking down Christmas lights, there’s all kinds of opinions on timing.

As for the timing of putting up lights, a survey by Today’s Homeowner found that the most popular time to decorate for the holidays was after Thanksgiving, but before Dec. 1, with 40% of Americans choosing that time frame for hanging holiday decorations. But 34% plan to put up lights prior to Thanksgiving.

Another tradition that guides decorating decisions is “The 12 Days of Christmas.”

While you may know how the song goes (partridges in a pear tree, maids a milking, lords a leaping …) the actual 12 days of Christmas in Christian tradition isn’t a countdown to the big day, but rather is the period between Christmas Day (Dec. 25) and Epiphany (Jan. 6). In Christianity, the 12 days mark the period between when Jesus was born and when the three wise men or kings arrived. So, for some, the merrymaking continues through Santa’s delivery and New Year’s Eve celebrations until Jan. 6, and then decorations are taken down.

For me, I love leaving my lights up through mid-to-late January, adhering to the Stock Show tradition. Knowing that my lights will be up through January allows me to enjoy Thanksgiving and the gourds and pumpkins without rushing to get the holiday decor up. Plus, it’s cold and dark in Denver in January, and keeping the Christmas lights and cheer around a little longer is welcome not just for the stock show visitors—but also the residents.

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