by 
By Mark A. Leon
There are some Charleston holiday traditions that have been around for generations. Others are newer, but somehow already feel like they belong.
Aquarium Aglow at the South Carolina Aquarium is one of those newer traditions.
Each holiday season, as the sun sets over the Charleston peninsula, the Aquarium takes on an entirely different personality. The familiar galleries and exhibits are transformed by thousands of lights, colorful installations and holiday decorations, creating an immersive experience that has quickly become one of the Lowcountry’s favorite ways to celebrate the season.
Now entering its sixth year, Aquarium Aglow returns in 2026 on select evenings from November through December. The Aquarium describes it as “Charleston’s most colorful holiday tradition,” and the event has certainly earned a place on the city’s growing list of seasonal traditions.
A tradition born in 2021
Aquarium Aglow may feel like an established Charleston holiday event, but its history is surprisingly recent.
The South Carolina Aquarium introduced Aquarium Aglow in 2021, creating a new holiday experience at a time when the community was looking for reasons to gather, celebrate and find a little more joy.
The Aquarium’s own history notes that the event was created as a celebration of joy during the winter holiday season. Thousands of lights illuminated indoor and outdoor exhibits, and the response exceeded expectations, surpassing both attendance and revenue goals in its first year.
What started as a new idea has grown into an annual Charleston tradition.
The Aquarium’s 2026 event materials note that Aglow has become one of the Lowcountry’s favorite holiday traditions, with capacity expected to exceed 25,000 guests.
Where the Aquarium meets the holidays
Part of the appeal is that Aquarium Aglow doesn’t simply add Christmas decorations to an existing attraction. It changes the atmosphere entirely.
The Aquarium is transformed into a world of immersive holiday light installations, with dozens of displays throughout the building. Visitors can stop for festive photographs, enjoy holiday food and drinks, and explore the Aquarium after dark.
And then there is Scuba Claus.
Rather than arriving by sleigh, Santa makes his appearance beneath the water, diving nightly in the Great Ocean Tank. It is a distinctly Charleston take on a holiday tradition—and one that children have come to anticipate.
The event also offers plenty for adults, including festive refreshments and beverages for guests 21 and older.
A different kind of Charleston holiday experience
Charleston has no shortage of beautiful holiday traditions. There are decorated historic homes, holiday markets, downtown lights, concerts, parades and celebrations throughout the Lowcountry.
Aquarium Aglow offers something different.
It combines the wonder of the natural world with the spectacle of the holiday season. Visitors aren’t simply walking through a building decorated for Christmas. They are experiencing familiar aquarium exhibits in an entirely new setting.
The result is part holiday light show, part family outing and part uniquely Charleston experience.
That combination may help explain why Aglow has established itself so quickly.
In 2024, the event attracted more than 28,000 visitors, according to Our State magazine, demonstrating how rapidly the relatively new celebration has grown.
2026 Aquarium Aglow
This year’s Aquarium Aglow begins November 20 and continues on select evenings through December 31.
The 2026 schedule includes November 20–22, November 27–29, and numerous evenings throughout December, culminating with a special New Year’s Eve celebration.
Aglow runs from 5:30 to 9 p.m. with scheduled entry times. The special New Year’s Eve celebration will feature entertainers, face painting, a DJ, Scuba Claus and a family-friendly countdown featuring a pufferfish ball drop—all designed to wrap up before bedtime.
Tickets are currently available, with early-bird pricing offering 15% off through October 31, 2026. Aquarium members receive 20% off, and ticket prices increase by $3 on the day of the event. Proceeds from Aquarium Aglow support the South Carolina Aquarium’s work in animal care, education and conservation.
A tradition in the making
Perhaps the most telling sign that Aquarium Aglow has become part of Charleston’s holiday calendar is that people are beginning to return year after year.
For some families, it is becoming the night when the holiday season officially begins. For others, it is an annual photograph, a night out with friends or a way to introduce visiting family to something uniquely Charleston.
That is how traditions are made—not necessarily over generations, but through experiences people want to repeat.
Aquarium Aglow may have begun in 2021, but after several years of growing attendance and increasingly elaborate displays, it is becoming something much more familiar: a Lowcountry holiday tradition that Charleston can call its own.
And for one evening, beneath the glow of hundreds of thousands of holiday lights, the Aquarium becomes more than a place to see the wonders of the ocean.
It becomes part of the wonder of Christmas in Charleston.
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