All entrants images and videos are reviewed by a selection panel and a list of finalists is determined. The finalists are then visited by the judging team on Wednesday 29 November.  Finalists are acknowledged publicly on the lights locations map. Once again, this year all Christmas Lights Competition entrants will be invited to the Winners Announcement in St Nicholas Precinct on Friday 8 December. Winners are announced to the public following the Christmas Lights Winners Announcement event.

The judging is conducted by local celebrities and partners of the competition. The selection panel will review all entrants images and videos and a list of finalists will be determined. They will then travel around the region on the night of Wednesday 29 November to visit the finalists displays and conduct their final judging.

Finalists will be notified via email or phone prior to the final judging evening on Wednesday 29 November.

Lights must be turned on each night from 1 – 25 December. Judging of the finalists external display will be conducted on Wednesday 29 November between 6.30 pm – 10.30 pm. Finalists will be notified prior to final judging on Wednesday 29 November.

Winners of the Christmas Lights Competition can be found here.

Entry for the Christmas Lights Competition is done online. Enter here.

There is no cost to enter the Christmas Lights Competition. Entrants are responsible for all costs associated with their display.

Entrants can enter into one of the following categories, Residential, Business/Organisation or New Entry. Streets with three or more participating homes or businesses can also enter the Best Street. All entrants will be automatically entered into the People’s Choice.

This must be the first time you have entered your home or business in the City of Ipswich Christmas Lights Competition to be classified as a ‘New Entry’.

Three or more homes, businesses or organisations from the same street are required to participate and enter the competition to be eligible for the Best Street. All displays must also register individually and provide the main contact for their street as part of the entry process.

Members of the community who do not wish to be part of the competition (or Ipswich City Council employees) but still want to encourage the community to visit their display can submit a ‘Listing Only’ entry for public viewing. Listing Only entries will not be judged and are not eligible to win a prize in the competition (including but not limited to the People’s Choice).

Council has produced a design and safety ‘tips and tricks’ information sheet for entrants with expert lighting design advice and safety tips from Energex. Council will also promote the safe viewing of the City of Ipswich Christmas Lights Competition entries through the Christmas in Ipswich marketing campaign and the Ipswich Festivals social media channels and website.

Entrants need to consider the impact their display (and compliance with any restrictions or directions) will have on the safety of vehicular and pedestrian traffic and must plan to ensure that any risks are minimised, including obtaining any relevant permits. 

Your display address and business details (if applicable) are displayed publicly for viewing of your lights display. All other contact details are handled as per the Council Personal Information Digest which can be found HERE.

Please upload a minimum of two and a maximum of five photos of your lights display. Don’t forget to upload the very best photos of your display, as these will be viewed by our judges and the public when voting for the People’s Choice. NOTE: The first photo uploaded will appear as your listing photo in the People’s Choice gallery, so be sure to highlight the full display. Minimum file size is 1MB and maximum file size is 10MB.

To ensure your photo/s are of the highest quality (as they are used for the People’s Choice voting and reviewed by the judges) use the tips below:

1. Start photographing your lights around dusk – this is the best time of day to get the perfect shot of your lights display.
2. Act fast – light changes so quickly between sunset and nightfall, each minute will bring slightly different lighting conditions.
3. Forget the flash.
4. Fill your frame – fill it with everything you are trying to capture.
5. If using an IPhone try using burst mode, this will take a number of shots each time and you can go back later and select the best ones.

Yes, all entrants must display the official Christmas lights corflute sign (or window decal for businesses/organisations) in a prominent well-lit position during the competition period.  

Entrants will be supplied with key information on when and where signage is available for collection.

*Please note: ‘Listing Only’ entrants are not required to display a sign.

If you would like to remove your Christmas Lights Competition entry please contact us via [email protected].

All entrants (except ‘Listing Only’) will automatically be entered into the ‘People’s Choice’ competition. During the voting period (1 – 4 December) members of the public can submit one online vote for their favourite display.

The People’s Choice voting takes place online from 9.00 am Friday 1 December – 9.00 am Monday 4 December.

The winner of the People’s Choice will be determined according to which entry receives the most votes lodged online during the voting period which commences at 9.00 am Friday 1 December and closes at 9.00 am Monday 4 December.

Yes, voting is limited to one per person.

Voting is limited to one per person.

Simply try from home or your mobile device.

Our Christmas Lights Competition Safety Partner Energex have provided electrical safety tips to assist participants in reducing the risks associated with displaying Christmas lights. Read their tips HERE.

Yes, our creative designer has prepared some fantastic tips and tricks to help you not only design your display, but also to put it together safely. Our Christmas Lights Competition Safety Partner Energex have also prepared some dos and don’ts to keep in mind when it comes to electrical safety. These can be viewed HERE.