Welcome to our Christmas pages

Bill & Peg's 2007 Display will run fron Friday 7 Dec. 2007 to Tuesday Jan. 1st 2008

c Bill Chartres 1988-2007

We wish you a happy and prosperous 2008

Bill & Peg

Christmas is the Time of Year When Heaven Touches Earth (Anon.)

• We live in   Lobethal    South Australia,  a small village in the picturesque Adelaide Hills, about 40k South East of Adelaide AUSTRALIA, and have been presenting our Christmas Lights Display since 1986.
  

    
  

• The tradition of Lobethal's Christmas Lights began nearly 60 years ago when a few business men hand painted globes to decorate their Main Street shops for the Christmas season.  This tradition spread and today about 80% of all homes and business in the village "light up" for Christmas with a variety of spectacular displays.
  
  • The Lobethal Christmas Lights Festival has become the largest Christmas Light display in South Australia, and Possibly the largest community Christmas event in Australia.   The Festival runs from the second Sunday of December until New Years Eve each year (although our display runs from early  December into the New Year).
  • During The Festival there are a variety of stalls, events and live entertainment to add to the spirit of the Festival.
  • When we moved to Lobethal in December 1983 we followed the towns tradition of having a few lights for Christmas.  Each year we made the comment that we really should do a bit more, but it was not until 1986 that we finally made the effort, and each year since we have added to and revised our display.
    

      
    

• For Christmas 1998 we added a new feature, a Christmas Room, which contains "all things Christmas", including Christmas Collectables, decorated Christmas Trees and other Christmas decorations. The Christmas Room is left up throughout the year, and we often enjoy a special quiet meal in it during the year.
  Although not open to the public, The Christmas Room can be viewed through large windows.
  

    
  

• Since Christmas 2003 we have been adding more Window Displays, and in 2005 we had three extra Window Displays plus a Childs Bedroom Christmas Display for viewing.
  
  

    
  

• As lights have become more readily available over the last few years the towns display has grown and it is now estimated that up to 250,000 people visit Lobethal each year, and we estimate that about 80,000 actually enter our property for close up view of our display.
  

  • Each year we are asked the question ...
    "How many lights are there?"
    We really don't know, but we estimated that in 2006, there were about 80,000 lights and 125 cut-outs.
    See our FAQ  Page.
    

      
    

• During the display we have a visitors books for our guests to sign, and usually get between 3,000 and 4,500 entries (although we estimate that only about 10% sign), and visitors have come from as many as 35 different countries, as well as all Australian States.
  

c Bill Chartres 1988 - 2007