Is Bentleyville *Still* Worth It? Our Honest Review + Best Tips After 5 Years

Is Bentleyville Still Worth It? Our Honest Review + Best Tips After 5 Years

12/10/2023

Bentleyville, a name just as famous as tator-tot hotdish in the land of 10,000 lakes. As a free light show that just celebrated it's 20th anniversary, we've been lucky enough to begin our tradition of walking through the incredible display during the holiday season since 2014. Even though we've missed a few years in between, we've visited Bentleyville over 5 times over the years, and haven't been the only ones that have noticed how much this holiday tradition has continued to grow over the last 2 decades - both with the number of visitors (now up to 300,000 every year) and holiday lights (over 5 million!!). So, this begs the question, is driving to Duluth to visit the famous Bentleyville *still* worth it after all these years?

Our Essential Travel Resources :
There are plenty of travel companies, but these are our favorite websites and resources for planning an unforgettable trip. This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Car rentals are best through Discover Cars - just make sure to bring your international driver's permit with you!

We always use Expedia's easy to use platform for comparing hotels.

To keep cell service while traveling, we always use Airalo’s easy eSIM’s (no installation required).

For fun things to do, we always recommend Viator to find the best tours in the America's and Europe, and Klook for tours in Asia.

Just in case, Safetywing is what we use for travel insurance.

Lastly, our packing list for any international or domestic travels.

What to Know Before You Visit Bentleyville + Best Tips

Basic Information
The Bentleyville Tour of Lights is located at the Bayfront Festival Park, near downtown Canal Park. Each season is a little different depending on dates, but typically Bentleyville begins its season in mid-November and ends December 26th, opening every single night from 5 pm to 10 pm (9 pm on Sundays). With thousands of visitors every single night, there's plenty of tips we have for first time visitors (all listed below) - and it's important for you to decide whether a trip to Duluth is worth it for a free light show or if paying $20 per adult to stay closer to the Twin Cities and enjoy light shows like Glow Holiday Festival or Sam's Christmas Village is better for you and your family.

If you're looking for an epic holiday experience consider staying at the Pier B Resort, which overlooks Bentleyville and has their own private shuttle that takes you there!

Our Favorite Tours on the North Shore :
- Two Harbors Kayaking Tour
- North Shore Helicopter Ride
- Paddleboard Day Rental

Our Best Tips for Visiting Bentleyville

Expect Crowds : Bentleyville receives about 300,000 visitors every year, meaning that over the span of about 5 weeks they get thousands of visitors DAILY. Trust us, this means crowds, all of which are tunneled through a 8 foot wide walking path. Although certain parts of the tour of lights can feel especially crowded (notably the beginning as you enter the walkway, as well as the areas where you can receive free goodies) - it typically tends to spread out once you're in the walkway. If you're looking to avoid the crowds, we recommend going on weekdays (Monday - Wednesday specifically) or waiting about 2 hours after they open on weekends.
Dress Warm : The Bentleyville Tour of Lights is an event held entirely outside. In Minnesota. In the winter. SO that means that in order to best enjoy the event - we recommend dressing in layers, bringing hand warmers, and making sure you have boots, mittens, a scarf, a hat as well as your coat to make sure you stay warm for as long as you want to enjoy the lights.
Take Note of Their Map : When you enter the park, you'll be shuttled through the walkway in a counter-clockwise direction, with the large tree being at the center of the grounds. Along the way, there will be countless photo ops, a cookie & hot chocolate stand, a popcorn stand, a marshmallow stand, bathrooms, a chance to visit with Santa, a view of the iconic Duluth lift bridge, and a gift shop. Of course, to make the most of it we recommend stopping at every attraction you can - but to be honest the long lines at Santa mean we've never actually taken the time to meet him. (Don't judge.) It's also worth noting that there are bathrooms near the entrance and again near the marshmallow/popcorn area, which is about halfway through the park!
Parking : There are quite a few places to park near Bentleyville, but trust us they can fill up fast. We typically try to park onsite at Bentleyville which costs $10 per car, or at the nearby AMSOIL Arena and walking over. If you're looking for something even more unique, you can purchase tickets for the Bentleyville Shuttle Train, which meets at Fitgers and takes you on a 10 minute ride to Bentleyville for $10 a person. This will allow you to avoid the hassle of finding a parking spot!
Consider Donating : The Bentleyville Tour of Lights is run entirely on sponsors and donations, and throughout the event there'll be multiple occasions where you have the opportunity to consider donating. These can be done in the form of Venmo or cash, and they also accept donations of non perishable food items and toys for their drives with the Salvation Army!
Naughty & Nice List : For $5 per name suggestion, you can add names to the posted "Naughty & Nice List" at Bentleyville! Make sure to plan this ahead of time and to schedule it for the correct week, they only update the lists on Saturdays!

Our Honest Thoughts on Bentleyville

We've been to Bentleyville 5 times in the past 8 years, making it a pretty solid holiday tradition in our household. (That is, until we moved to Alaska which made it a little harder to visit.) However, on our most recent visit just the other day, we were reminded of how much we loved Bentleyville and why we were so eager to visit every holiday season. Not only is it fun to interact with all the people you're crowded in with, but everyone is in good spirits - visitors and staff alike. The lights themselves are on a whole other level (let's be honest with over 5 million of them why wouldn't they be) and although the displays don't really change from year to year, it's still an exciting overstimulation of a gathering of the best light display in the state. To be completely honest, if you've never visited before, then we 100% recommend visiting Bentleyville - and if you've already visited in the past then chances are it's already part of your yearly family tradition!

Watch our Adventures in Minnesota here!