This online map reveals Windsor-Essex’s most festive Christmas homes

From Amherstburg to Belle River, glowing reindeer, towering snowmen and twinkling trees are drawing people out for evening drives through residential streets.

This December, those drives are becoming more intentional.

An online holiday map is guiding residents to some of the region’s most elaborate Christmas displays. It also encourages them to step out of their cars, take photos and even give back to the community.

According to Jennifer Green, who runs the W.E. Have Fun Holiday Maps and Hunts Facebook group, they opened the Christmas map on Dec. 1 and already have almost 18,000 hits.

The map features more than 90 registered locations across Windsor-Essex, each marked with its own elf and story. Homes are labelled as either drive-by displays or interactive stops, where visitors are encouraged to get out and take part.

Red locations have an interactive challenge. Some interactive homes include hidden elves, photo challenges and movie-themed scavenger hunts tied to local light festivals such as Bright Lights Windsor and Amherstburg’s River Lights. Green locations are drive-by or walk-by displays. Locations marked purple are major regional festivals and light displays in parks or riverfronts.

For homeowners, the displays often represent weeks of planning and years of collecting.

On Crawford Avenue, Lacey Tessier’s display features a 20-foot snowman that now rivals her family’s Halloween decorations.

“My mom does a display on the east side,” Tessier said. “She does a Halloween display also, and she has the 20-foot Frankenstein, so I had to add my 20-foot snowman,”

She says setting everything up takes time.

“It varies. It can take up to a few weeks, moving things around, switching,” she said. “I had a few of my pieces go down this year, so I had to fix them and add some more.”

On Peter Street, Lynn Bamford credits her landlords for the bright display that lights up her home.

“I like to say I did it, but I’m a renter here, and I’m very happy to be here,” she said. “My landlord and landlady do all of the decorating.”

She says it took them three days to set everything up.

“They really care about their home, and they care about me, and they take good care of everything,” Bamford said.

For Bamford, Christmas lights are about more than decoration.

“It’s just a happy time to be with family, and it’s just a wonderful time of the year,” she said.

On Bouffard Road in LaSalle, Tim Hampson has been building his display for two decades, adding something new every year. This year marked a milestone: lighting a massive blue spruce topped with a star.

“The way I get the star up is I climb up the center of the tree with my climbing gear,” Hampson said. “I have to move it up every single year because the tree grows probably about a foot every year.”

He says his inspiration comes from childhood memories.

“When I was young, my dad was always into Christmas,” Hampson said. “So I’m hoping I’m making him proud that I’m doing this.”

The response from the community keeps him going.

“We’ve had people actually stop by our door,” he said. “People have stopped by in cars and asked me how I got the lights on the tree.”

“I just love doing it,” Hampson added. “I love putting smiles on people’s faces.”

Beyond holiday cheer, the map also supports a cause.

Through W.E. Have Fun, Green is collecting donations for Jeffery’s Holiday Helpers, which provides toiletries and winter gear to people without housing in Windsor. Donations include toiletries, socks, mittens, hats, scarves and blankets.

A full map of displays and attractions is available at wehavefun.ca.