The Greek Theatre's online calendar now jumps six months at once. Tom Jones played his rescheduled date on Wednesday, November 4, at 8 p.m., with doors at 6:30. The next listing is Lola Young's "Everything Begins" on May 4. Nothing else is on the theatre's calendar between those two dates.
For anyone living below the park on the Los Feliz side, that gap changes winter evenings. Through the concert season, the Greek's 8 p.m. curtains on Vermont Avenue set the park's after-dark rhythm. From now until January, the park's evening programming moves to its northeast edge, along Zoo Drive. There, two holiday events on neighboring properties will run on the same nights for most of December.
Six Months on Vermont Canyon Without a Headliner
The Greek's last two dates show how quickly the season wound down. "Weird Al" Yankovic played a UHF live-to-screen show with orchestra and a live Q&A on Saturday, October 31. Four nights later came Tom Jones. After that, Vermont Canyon has no amphitheater nights.
One Vermont-side venue keeps its evening hours through winter. Griffith Observatory at 2800 East Observatory Road stays free to enter. It opens noon to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends, and it is closed Mondays. The holiday changes are short: closed November 26 and December 25, and open noon to 5 p.m. on December 24 and December 31. We come back to the Observatory below, because its two December programs fall on the same days as the busiest nights on Zoo Drive.
Zoo Drive Takes Over on November 20
L.A. Zoo Lights 2026 opens Friday, November 20, and runs through January 10, from 6 to 10 p.m. The Zoo is at 5333 Zoo Drive, and parking is free for the event.
This year's displays are new, built around plants and pollinators. The Zoo describes illuminated oversized birds, butterflies, insects, flowers, marine creatures and Ice Age giants. The event map names nine stops along the walking route:
- Holiday Tree
- Butterfly Garden
- Glowing Garden
- Flamingo Road
- Ocean Passage
- Ocean Dance Party
- Illuminated Loop
- Cactus Corridor
- Ice Age Adventure
A new outdoor skating rink is also part of this year's event. It runs nightly from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., weather permitting, and needs its own ticket. Food along the route includes churros, hot chocolate, s'mores, pizza and full meals, with extra vendors on weekends. Guests 21 and older can buy beer, wine and spiked hot chocolate every night, and cash bars open Friday through Sunday.
Prices change with the night, and a Zoo membership lowers every tier:
| Night type | Adult, nonmember | Child, nonmember | Adult, member | Child, member |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value weekday | $29 | $19 | $24 | $14 |
| Value weekend | $32 | $22 | $27 | $17 |
| Holiday peak | $35 | $25 | $30 | $20 |
Children under two get in free, and Santa photos cost extra on select nights. The Zoo has also set two themed evenings: a sensory-inclusive night on Tuesday, December 8, and Pride Night on Thursday, December 17.
The closed nights matter most for planning. Zoo Lights is dark on November 26 and 30; December 1, 7, 14, 15, 16, 24, 25 and 31; and January 4 through 7. Most of those dates are Mondays and holidays. Two runs of closures stand apart: Monday, December 14, through Wednesday the 16th, and the four nights from January 4 through 7, just before the season ends.
A Second Holiday Venue Opens on Zoo Drive
A week after Zoo Lights opens, a new neighbor arrives on Friday, November 27. NBC Los Angeles reported on October 27 that Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group is bringing a new event, the North Pole Railway, to Travel Town for select nights from November 27 through December 24. The event is closed every Monday except December 21, and public tickets went on sale November 4 at noon.
Travel Town is at 5200 Zoo Drive, a short distance up the same road from the Zoo. According to the North Pole Railway's official site, the evening starts with a train-car trip using theatrical lighting, animated scenery, sound, scents, effects and live characters. Guests then step off into a decorated holiday area with Santa visits, miniature-train rides, s'mores pits, treats, lights and photo stops. A VIP package adds a Santa photo, a miniature-train ride and a separate VIP queue to admission. NBC Los Angeles reported that Travel Town's vintage cars and carriages will also be lit and decorated for the run. The official site has the current nights, times and ticket tiers.
Together, the two events make Zoo Drive a two-venue holiday corridor this December. For four weeks, from November 27 to December 24, both venues run holiday evenings within a short walk of each other. Each has s'mores pits, each has Santa, and each is aimed at families. The two calendars are also set up differently. Zoo Lights closes on most Mondays and on Christmas Eve. The North Pole Railway closes on Mondays too, but runs through December 24.
The road there has also changed this year. Streetsblog LA reported in March that LADOT was installing about four miles of new striping on Crystal Springs Drive, Western Heritage Way and Zoo Drive. Some sections lost car lanes, and parts of Crystal Springs Drive went from four lanes to two. This will be the first holiday season of two-venue traffic on the restriped roads.
Where Vermont Canyon Still Overlaps
The Observatory's December schedule overlaps with Zoo Drive on two dates.
On Saturday, December 19, the Observatory holds a free Public Star Party from 2 to 9:45 p.m. Zoo Lights is open that night.
On Monday, December 21, the Observatory's free Sunset Walk & Talk meets at Greek Theatre Parking Lot F/G, 2700 North Vermont Avenue, from 3:30 to 6 p.m. That puts a group back in the Greek's lots, seven weeks after the theatre's last show. The Observatory building itself is closed that day, as it is every Monday. December 21 is also the one Monday the North Pole Railway is open, and it isn't on Zoo Lights' list of closed dates. The walk ends at 6 p.m. and Zoo Lights opens at 6, so the same evening can start in Vermont Canyon and end on Zoo Drive.
The Season, Date by Date
- Wednesday, November 4: The Greek's final listed show, Tom Jones, 8 p.m.
- Friday, November 20: L.A. Zoo Lights opens, 6 to 10 p.m.
- Thursday, November 26: Zoo Lights and the Observatory both closed for Thanksgiving.
- Friday, November 27: North Pole Railway opens at Travel Town.
- Tuesday, December 8: Sensory-inclusive night at Zoo Lights.
- December 14 through 16: Zoo Lights' three-night closure.
- Thursday, December 17: Pride Night at Zoo Lights.
- Saturday, December 19: Public Star Party at the Observatory, 2 to 9:45 p.m.
- Monday, December 21: Sunset Walk & Talk from Lot F/G at 3:30 p.m.; North Pole Railway's only Monday opening.
- Thursday, December 24: North Pole Railway's final date; Observatory open noon to 5 p.m.; Zoo Lights closed.
- Thursday, December 31: Observatory open noon to 5 p.m.; Zoo Lights closed.
- Sunday, January 10: Zoo Lights' final night.
- May 4: The Greek's next listed show, Lola Young.
Homes near the park follow two calendars each year. Summer brings Greek nights on Vermont, and December brings the holiday events on Zoo Drive. When Antonio Bruno values a Los Feliz home near Griffith Park, both are part of the picture. To find out how your street's position between Vermont Canyon and Zoo Drive affects your home's value, schedule a private consultation.
