December 1, 2021
The South Carolina State Fair will usher in the holiday season with its third annual downtown drive-through holiday light show, Carolina Lights, Dec. 4-26 at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds.
The drive-through light experience will feature more than 100 individual LED light displays sync’d to holiday music along a mile-plus stretch in the fair’s “Lexington Medical Center Fair Park” at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds.
“We are delighted to bring back our downtown drive-through light show,” said South Carolina State Fair manager, Nancy Smith. “In the comfort and safety of a vehicle, patrons can brighten their holidays by enjoying dazzling lights and perhaps some cookies and milk!”
The light display will feature favorites from last year along with several new displays. Guests will be delighted by the Twelve Days of Christmas, a nativity scene, dinosaurs, dancing Christmas trees, the three wise men, a tunnel of lights, Santa Claus plus many more surprises. Added this year will be the opportunity to drive-through and purchase baked cookies and milk and Pepsi products.
The lights will run 6-9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 6-10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. The light show will be closed on Christmas Day. Admission is $20 for cars, $35 for mini-buses (9-24 passengers) and $70 for vehicles with 25 or more passengers. Payment can be made online (scstatefair.org) or at the gate. Cash, Visa and MasterCard will be accepted at the gate.
*Discount car passes ($5 savings) are available online through December 3, 2021.*
Patrons should enter at Gate 6 on George Rogers Boulevard. To ensure safety and control the flow of traffic, visitors will not be allowed to exit their vehicles.
Guests can tune their radios to music that synchronize with the lights.
Guests are invited to drive-through a second time on the same night if they obtain a return pass at the exit gate.
The South Carolina State Fair, a self-supporting 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, was organized in 1869 and is dedicated to preserving and promoting South Carolina’s agricultural roots while supporting statewide education. In addition to the 12-day South Carolina State Fair, the charitable organization manages annual football parking, is a popular event venue and hosts Carolina Lights — Columbia’s downtown holiday drive-through lights show. The South Carolina State Fair has awarded more than $4 million in scholarships since 1997.
