Enjoy Holiday Light Displays In and Around Mayberry

Start a new holiday tradition this Christmas season by loading up the car and visiting Andy Griffith's hometown of Mount Airy, North Carolina. You'll get a chance to see a different side of Mayberry, one that's all aglow with holiday lights.

Below are the top six holiday light displays in the area with a description of what can be seen and how far it is from the Mount Airy Visitors Center on Main Street in Mount Airy.

# 1: Holiday in the Park – The local American Legion post transforms Veterans Park (691 W. Lebanon Street, Mount Airy) into a holiday walking trail of lights. Churches, businesses and organizations will have their own holiday scenes for people to see. Admission to the park is free but donations are accepted. The park will be open with these displays from Dec. 2-24. Hours are 6-9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; and 6-10 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. On Dec. 2, local elementary school students will sing holiday songs, and on Dec. 15 there will be a catered supper, live DJ and dance, plus gifts for with disabilities and special needs. For information, contact Curtis Munday at 336-648-7500. (Located about 1.5 miles from Mount Airy Visitor Center)

#2: Brady Family Christmas Lights – Over near Pilot Mountain in the Pinnacle community, Ricky and Nancy Brady have put up Christmas lights and decorations since 1989 at the 1700 block of Bradley Road, Pinnacle. They have more than 500,000 lights covering about 30 acres of land. The display includes two homes and a log cabin. It is open to the public to walk or drive through daily. (Located about 20 minutes from the Mount Airy Visitor Center)

#3: Winter Wonderland of Lights – Adam and Eva Dalton at 139 Charlie Davis Lane in Dobson present an annually display of lights. Visitors are encouraged to park, tune their radio to 93.5 FM and watch as the Christmas lights dance to the tempo of the music. Open nightly from 5-9 pm. through New Year’s Eve. (Located about 30 minutes from the Mount Airy Visitor Center)

#4: The Christmas Family Lights – Down in the big city of Winston-Salem, folks come from near and far to see the Christmas Family Lights at 3420 Shiloh Church Road, Winston-Salem, 27105. This is a computer animated light show featuring 240 channels of computer animation using Light-O-Rama. It also features 45,000 lights. The center point of the display is a 24-foot-tall, 24,000-light mega tree, which uses 128 channels of animation. Other displays include RGB LED North Poles, leaping arches, snowflakes, Santa and all nine reindeer, and more. Be sure to tune to 89.7 FM while watching the lights. (Located about 40 minutes from the Mount Airy Visitor Center)

#5: Tatum Family Christmas Lights – Across the state line in Virginia, the Tatum Family Christmas Lights are a synchronized display at 3930 Ayers Orchard Road in Stuart, VA. The lights are synched to an FM transmitter to allow visitors to stop and listen to the music while watching the lights. Tune your radio to 101.3 FM. Open Sunday through Thursday from 6-11 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 6 p.m. to midnight. (Located about 40 minutes from the Mount Airy Visitor Center)

#6: High Country Lights – Just over the Virginia border in Galax, the High Country Lights provide a holiday spectacular at Felts Park (601 S. Main Street, Galax, VA). It's an animated display where 100,000 lights are choreographed to Christmas music. Tune the radio to 95.9 FM and relax in the comfort of your vehicle or hike around the walking trail and listen to the music. The show operates nightly from 6-11 p.m. from Thanksgiving through New Year's Day, with the exception of during inclement weather. Admission is free. For information visit www.highcountrylights.com (Located about 40 minutes from the Mount Airy Visitor Center.

Plenty of cozy lodging options are available in Mount Airy and Surry County, ranging from award-winning hotels and bed-and-breakfast inns to rental cabins and vacation homes. To see all the unique lodging options available, click here.