Atlanta’s best holiday light attractions

We sent four reporters and a handful of a target demographic (kids) off into the winter night to check out metro Atlanta’s biggest holiday lights displays. Here are their reports to help guide you. But the bottom line for any lights aficionado: You probably have to see it for yourself.

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Lake Lanier Islands Resort

The reflections of the millions of holiday lights in the dark waters of Lake Lanier makes the Magical Nights of Lights even more impressive.\uFEFF

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Photos courtesy of Lake Lanier

Lake Lanier Islands Resort’s ‘world’s largest’ holiday light show includes some animated displays.

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Stone Mountain Park

Stone Mountain Park’s laser show has a holiday theme.

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Allen Sullivan/Staff

Buildings in the Crossroads village in Stone Mountain Park blaze with holiday lights aplenty.

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STONE MOUNTAIN PARK CHRISTMAS

Highlight:

Lowlight: The train schedule. We got in line at 6:30 p.m. and were told the next train would not leave until 7:20 p.m. — a 50-minute wait just standing in cold weather. Plenty of people decided it wasn’t worth it. Stone Mountain says it runs two trains on Saturday nights, which cuts the wait time to 20 minutes.

Other lights: The park grounds are very pretty, with twinkling snowflakes on all the lamp posts and little displays throughout. You could do a low-key drive-through for $8.

The kid’s-eye view: Kyndall Human and Savannah and Kayla Drexler, all students at Northwood Elementary in Roswell, bounced like their legs were springs between the line for Santa and the line for the Snow Angel. “I wanted to come see the Snow Angel,” Kyndall said. “She looks really pretty and fun to be with.” Savannah said her favorite part was the train ride. “It’s really pretty on the train and they played that song about the eight maids a-milking.”

Worth the trip? It’s expensive — Crossroads is $20 for ages 12 and up, $17 for kids up to 11, plus $8 to get into the park. But you get several hours’ worth of stuff to do.

Stone Mountain Park, U.S. 78 East, Stone Mountain. 770-498-5690, www.stonemountainpark.com.

— Phil Kloer

CALLAWAY GARDENS: FANTASY IN LIGHTS

Highlight: Now in its 17th year, the 5-mile ride through the gardens offers 8 million lights and 444 speakers blasting holiday music and sound effects. For 6-year-old Luci Cosby, the butterfly scene took the cake (“This is like a wonderland!”). Brother Vincent, 9, liked seeing his favorite birds in lights, complete with sound effects. The grown-ups liked the glittering scene of stars and white lights hanging in sheets from trees, creating a tunnel of romantic sparkle.

Lowlight: After driving 1 1/2 hours to Callaway, the children dreaded climbing in and out of the car to get from the ticket booths to the Discovery Center to the Horticultural Center and then to the Butterfly Center. (We could have hopped on an open-air trolley, but frigid temperatures changed our minds.)

What not to miss: The Christmas Village, a 22,000-square-foot tent full of holiday decor. The kids loved the sights of holiday trimmings (all for sale) and activities such as making their own stuffed animals. Santa was also on hand for family photos. Nearby on the beach, check out the two 10-minute holiday light productions of the Nativity scene and “The Night Before Christmas.”

The kid’s-eye view: Between the birds and butterflies and ornaments and rides and plants and — oh, yeah — the lights, the kids were hoping to return next year. Their one request for the show designer: “Please let there be pitcher plants!” Maybe next year’s show can feature their favorite carnivorous plants among the elves.

Worth the trip? Definitely, but only if you make a day of it. Tickets are $22 for adults and $11 per child, which meant a whopping $66 (plus tax) for our foursome. Ticket fees include garden entrance, so we were able to take in a birds of prey exhibit, the butterfly garden and horticultural center as well as the holiday lights.

Callaway Gardens, Ga. 18 at Ga. 354, Pine Mountain. 1-800-225-5292, www.callawaygardens.com.

— Katie Leslie

LAKE LANIER ISLANDS RESORT: MAGICAL NIGHTS OF LIGHTS

Highlight: Saying that its 6 miles of holiday twinkle is “known as the world’s largest” is an artful way to avoid competing claims, but the display at Lake Lanier Islands Resort is certainly huge, and the lights number in the millions. Highlights are the truly clever animations: deer jump over the road, tennis-playing elves volley a blob of light back and forth, Santa’s helpers splat each other with snowballs.

Lowlight: After you’ve already paid your $30 admission ($40 on weekends and holidays), more money gets vacuumed from the wallet at the Holiday Village, where kids clamor to ride the same portable carnival rides that show up in shopping center parking lots.

Other lights: One can also visit Santa, watch a drama about Christmas, see a live Nativity scene (with goats, donkeys and a real camel), hear a reading of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” and spend even more money in shops packed with ornaments and other Christmas foofaraw. (For $2 you can get a skewer of marshmallows to roast on the outdoor gas fire.)

The kid’s-eye view: Becca, 9, loved the Twister; Joe, also 9, loved skee-ball; and both loved the lighted scenes from “The Wizard of Oz” and the beautiful red cardinal that flies through the woods.

Worth the trip? It’s an hour from downtown, but the setting, with lights reflected in Lanier’s dark waters, is gorgeous, and $5-off coupons are available at McDonald’s.

Lake Lanier Islands, 7000 Holiday Road, Buford. 770-932-7200, 770-945-8787, www.lakelanierislands.com.

— Bo Emerson

LIFE UNIVERSITY: LIGHTS OF LIFE

Life University, the Christian chiropractic college in Marietta, started hanging Christmas lights in 1989. The display is made up of several hundred thousand bulbs, according to Win Williams, owner of Holiday Lights in Atlanta. His crew takes three months to string them up and a month to take them down. More than 50,000 visitors are expected to drive the mile-long route, with several dozen displays along the campus’ main drag and a few side streets.

Highlight: The most indelibly beautiful images are the lush field of green “grass” and the blue “curtains” across the forest.

Lowlight: When traffic is thick there’s little room to move at your own pace.

The kid’s-eye view: A giant teddy bear scales a tree-sized candy cane then rappels down the side with a blue rope. (Hilarious!) The mountain lodge’s ski ramp launches reindeer into the sky, and their parachutes open in midair. (Impressive!) The Chinese dragon floating on the campus lake, his pointed tail swinging to and fro, threatening a pair of white swans. (Scary!)

Worth the trip? Yes, if you’re in the neighborhood. Santa visits Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights for photos. Cost for the tour of lights is $5 per car, $10 per van, $20 per bus. Refreshments are available for purchase.

Life University, 1269 Barclay Circle, Marietta. 770-426-2905, www.life.edu.

— Pierre Ruhe