Drop your cocoa, grab the kiddos and make the drive to see this holiday display!  You won't be disappointed.  Every single year, the Carter family in Albert Lea goes all out to help bring Christmas magic to everyone and invites the public to check out their display at 1905 Brookside Drive, Albert Lea, MN 56007.

Why is the Carter Christmas Lights Show in Minnesota So Special?

If you keep reading, I've got a video for you to check out so you can see the amazingness but first, here are a few of the fun facts that the Carter family has on their website:

Carter Christmas Lights Show in Albert Lea, Minnesota

The Carter Christmas Lights Show is back on and is one of the most magical Christmas displays to see in Southeast Minnesota. Located in Albert Lea, Minnesota, you'll enjoy over 45,000 lights that come to life thanks to popular Christmas songs and many, many computers. See times and more info at the Carter Christmas website.

Gallery Credit: Jessica On The Radio

  • This year, the display has 45,000 lights!  If you've seen the display in the past, you'll notice that this year they have added 50 yard stakes, 2 jumbo candy canes, an 8 foot soldier, 2 spinners, 1 RGB window, 1 slender tree and tripled yard lights.
  • Each of the three RGB TV Boards has 1152 pixels. Every pixel is made up of 3 mini lights (red/green/blue), so technically in total there are 3456 lights with each RGB TV alone! (we only count the 3 lights within a pixel “node” as one light)
  • This display uses around 6500 feet of extension cords spanning over 1.25 miles made up of over 341 individual cords.
  • There are 7 dedicated computers used to run the show, which are the size of a credit card (Raspberry Pis).
  • The drummer boy is 16 feet tall, making him almost 3 people high.
  • We designed AND built the drummer boy ourselves using corrugated plastic sheets and over 1,700 lights.
  • We start programming the show typically in February for the following year, taking about 8 months to create.
  • During a typical holiday season, the full display will run almost 900 times.
  • More facts can be found here.

When to Watch the Carter Christmas Light Display in Albert Lea

The show runs from 5pm to 9pm every day from now until December 30th, 2022.  On Fridays, Saturdays, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day, the show will run from 5pm to 10pm.

Below are a few of their shows from the past few years.  Go ahead and watch, enjoy, and fyi, if you go, bring a few bucks too.  They have a spot where they are taking donations for Albert Lea's "The Children's Center" - childcare scholarships.  If you can't make it, you can help them reach their goal through online donations too.  Just click here to learn more.

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What Is Your Favorite Christmas Movie? 

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10 Neighborhoods in Rochester with Amazing Christmas Light Displays

Grab a cup of cocoa, hop in your car, turn on Y-105FM, Rochester's Christmas Station and enjoy these amazing Christmas lights. We did the driving and researching for you and found the 10 best neighborhoods with gorgeous holiday displays.

Gallery Credit: Jessica Williams