The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden is preparing to say goodbye to one of its most recognizable and loved holiday traditions.
The 12 Days of Christmas display will return for one final season this year before the arboretum retires its 12 oversized gazebos depicting scenes from the classic Christmas carol.
KRLD first reported on the decision in March when CEO Sabina Carr spoke to a Dallas Park and Rec board meeting on Thursday March 26. The Arboretum has since announced the decision to visitors. Carr said the decision to end the gazebos comes after years of wear and tear on the structures and their animatronics.
Visitors viewing one of the gazebos Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden
The gazebos were originally designed to last about five years, but have remained in use for roughly a decade, as the love of the displays kept the tradition alive. Carr said the animatronic elements were increasingly breaking down and becoming difficult to maintain.
“We were on like year 10,” She said. “They’d already gone twice as long as we had hoped.”
The arboretum conducted a market study two years ago that received about 2,100 responses. Carr said a majority of respondents indicated they were ready for a change, while also making clear they wanted the arboretum to maintain a Christmas theme.
The final season will include special events built around the number 12, including planned $12 nights and nightly singalongs of “The 12 Days of Christmas.” The arboretum also plans to add a beer garden to its Christmas Village.
The gazebos will not simply disappear. Carr said the arboretum plans to recycle as much of the metal and other materials as possible, while preserving some interior elements for future displays.
Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden
Carr said having grown up “a bit” in New York City, the gazebos remind her of the Christmas windows on Fifth and Madison Avenue she would experience during the holidays.
For the 2027 holiday season, the arboretum will feature HYBYCOZO, an art exhibition created by a husband-and-wife team based in Los Angeles. The large-scale sculptures use geometric, ornamental metal forms illuminated from within.
The exhibition will run from November 2027 through February 2028 and will be the largest exhibition HYBYCOZO has created, according to Carr.
She said the arboretum’s permanent new Christmas tradition will debut in 2028. She did not reveal many details but said it will continue to focus on Christmas narratives, with a different theme each year.
“We are staying with Christmas,” Carr said.
Before then, the arboretum also plans to debut “Alice’s Wonderland” in April 2027. The exhibition will feature massive plant sculptures inspired by characters from “Alice in Wonderland.”
Carr said the arboretum hopes the new exhibits will create new traditions while continuing to give visitors reasons to return throughout the year.
