Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is wiring the mountainside again. Electric Safari opens on Friday, December 4 for its 36th year and runs 28 nights, and the zoo has used the announcement to ask for votes: the event is up for Best Zoo Lights in North America in USA TODAY’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards.
The Colorado Springs zoo published the dates and the nomination on November 2, 2026. Tickets are on sale now.
The voting has a deadline
Fans can vote once a day at cmzoo.org/lights until 10 a.m. Mountain time on Monday, November 30. The national top-ten rankings should be announced the week after. Electric Safari has finished in the top three for the last six years, so this is a defense rather than a long shot.
What is actually on the mountain
More than 50 acres of lights, over 90 hand-made light sculptures built by the zoo’s grounds and events team, and larger-than-life illuminated animal inflatables. There is a holiday-safari drone show nightly. The Mountaineer Sky Ride runs, weather permitting, which puts the lit city of Colorado Springs below you from the side of the mountain.
Santa is in Safari Lodge every night through December 23, taking lists and posing for free photographs. Animal demonstrations and keeper talks are scheduled, select habitats stay open, and the zoo’s giraffe herd and budgie flock are both available for paid feeding. Grizzly Grill, Cozy Goat, Pizza with a View and Longneck Café are open for food.
Times, tickets and the parking problem
Electric Safari runs 5 to 8:30 p.m. nightly from December 4 through January 1, 2027, closed on Christmas Eve. Members and their paying guests get in from 4 p.m.
The parking is the part to plan around. Advance timed tickets are required for on-site parking, for members and the general public alike, and the zoo says some nights will sell out of them. Anytime rideshare tickets are always available, which is the zoo’s way of saying the mountain road is the constraint rather than the gate. Entry is free for members, who can come as often as they like and still need to reserve a parking or rideshare slot. Children’s Hospital Colorado and Toyota support the event.
Cheyenne Mountain has had a visible year beyond the lights. In September the zoo named two orphaned grizzly cubs by public vote, raising $18,000 for wild grizzly conservation, and in October it marked 45 years since the rediscovery of the black-footed ferret, a species its breeding program has worked on for decades.
Quick answers
- When is Electric Safari 2026 at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo?
It runs 5 to 8:30 p.m. nightly from Friday, December 4, 2026 through Friday, January 1, 2027, closed on Christmas Eve. That is 28 nights, and the 36th year of the event. Members and their paying guests get early entry from 4 p.m.
- How do I vote for Electric Safari in the 10Best awards?
Vote once a day at cmzoo.org/lights until 10 a.m. Mountain time on Monday, November 30, 2026. The national top-ten rankings are expected the following week. Electric Safari has placed in the top three for the last six years.
- Do I need a ticket to park at Electric Safari?
Yes. Advance timed tickets are required for on-site parking, for members and the general public alike, and the zoo says some nights will sell out of them. Anytime rideshare tickets are always available.
- Is Electric Safari free for zoo members?
Yes, and members can attend as often as they like. They still need to reserve a timed on-site parking ticket or a free rideshare ticket.
- What is there to see at Electric Safari?
More than 50 acres of lights, over 90 hand-made light sculptures built by the zoo's grounds and events team, illuminated animal inflatables, and a nightly holiday-safari drone show. The Mountaineer Sky Ride runs weather permitting. Animal demonstrations and keeper talks are scheduled and select habitats stay open, with paid feeding available for the giraffe herd and budgie flock.
- Will Santa be at Electric Safari?
Yes, in Safari Lodge every night through December 23, collecting lists and posing for free photographs.
