New York City
Go for Rockefeller Center, of course, but stay for the Christmas windows at Bergdorf Goodman, Saks and Barneys, then head to Dyker Heights in Brooklyn for over-the-top neighborhood Christmas lights.
Newport Beach, California
The Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade runs for five nights every Christmas season, and dates back 100 years.
Image via @christmasboatparade
Waipahu, Hawaii
Christmas in Hawaii is its own special holiday gift. But the Waikele neighborhood lights put other neighborhoods to shame—and not only because they're 100 percent solar-powered.
Image via @waikelelights
Niagara Falls, Ontario
The Winter Festival of Lights at Niagara Falls lasts from the beginning of November to the end of January. Everything is illuminated. No, seriously—there are more than two million lights.
Image via @winterfestivaloflights
Medellin, Colombia
The annual Festival of Lights, aka Alumbrados Navideños or El Alumbrado, is one of the city's biggest festivals of the year. This year's displays include 26 million LED lights—which is actually 11 million fewer than last year.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
The floating Christmas tree in the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon has two million lights.
Paris, France
The Champs-Elysées done up in Christmas lights—could anything be more magical? (And this year, the inimitable Karl Lagerfeld turned it all red.)
Salerno, Italy
For Le Luci d'Artista each year in Salerno, the city is festooned with incredible lights and installations.
Tbilisi, Georgia
Technically, Georgians don't celebrate Christmas until January 7. In Liberty Square, the statue of St. George decorated like a Christmas tree gets everyone in the holiday mood.
Copenhagen, Denmark
Christmas really takes over Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest amusement parks in the world.
Image via @tivolicph
Brussels, Belgium
The don't call it the Grand Palace for nothing—especially at Christmastime.
Vilnius, Lithuania
In Cathedral Square, you'll find one of the world's most beautiful Christmas trees.
Tokyo, Japan
Magical light displays dot Tokyo in the winter—including Ao no Dokutsu ('Blue Cavern') along the Meguro River.
Kobe, Japan
The magical light display in Kobe has somber roots—it honors the victims of the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995.
Hong Kong
As one might expect, Victoria Harbor truly does go all out at Christmas. Prepare to have dropped jaws.