This Event is Going to Be "Lit"

Sponsored story:

100,000 square feet of holiday lights.

Six tunnels, filled with festive cheer.

Two 30-foot Christmas trees.

And one happy Santa, ready to greet kids and adults alike.

That’s just some of the fun visitors will find at the Holiday Light Experience, debuting at the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center on Nov. 19. With a massive indoor holiday light show featuring tens of thousands of lights, an outdoor patio filled with crafts and food and drinks, a marketplace of local and handmade gifts, and of course, Santa’s Village, the Holiday Light Experience may just become Central Oregon’s most sought-after holiday event.

With millions of lights spread over a gigantic space, the Holiday Light Experience will be the place to be for holiday events in Redmond this year. Credit: Holiday Light Experience

At least, that’s what organizers of this new event are hoping for.

“Invite your friends and family, take pictures, make memories, and have some fun!” said Geoff Hinds, general manager of the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center. “We hope this will becomes a new Central Oregon tradition.”

The light experience at the event was created by metal worker and designer Steve Driscoll of R Entertainment, who’s crafted holiday light experiences similar to Redmond’s in Scottsdale, Arizona, and has also developed other experiences for the Final Four Sponsors Ball, Super Bowl events, the PGA and more.

Themed tunnels alllow visitors to be surrounded by holiday cheer. Credit: Holiday Light Experience

The event at the Deschutes County Fair & Expo includes six different tunnels crafted by Driscoll, each with a different theme. Traditional holiday motifs such as snowflakes, presents and candy canes will occupy the tunnels—but the fun gets even more creative with the addition of optical illusions like endless “neon” squares. Interspersed between the tunnels are other scenes including the classic Santa’s Village and a forest of aspens. Oh, and there’s also the Holiday Light Theatre, a 20×40-foot screen that displays more holiday fun.

“This will be an immersive experience for all patrons,” Driscoll said.

In addition to inviting locals and visitors to bring their friends and families to the event, organizers also envision having businesses use the Holiday Light Experience as a venue for their upcoming holiday parties. Located near Roberts Field, the main airport for Central Oregon, the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center has long been the place to hold large events, hosting some 400 events each year. During the pandemic, the Center was also put to use as a courtroom space for Deschutes County Circuit Court, mass vaccination clinics and more outdoor concerts than ever before. As of February 2022, it will also the new home of Oregon WinterFest, the region’s largest winter festival.

Santa is the star of the show, but the holiday lights and other festivities will also draw the crowds. Credit: Holiday Light Experience

Tickets for the Holiday Light Experience event went on sale in October and are available by going to holidaylightexperience.com. The Holiday Light Experience opens Nov. 19 and runs through Jan. 1.

Story brought to you by the Holiday Light Experience

This article appears in Nov 10-17, 2021.