LUMINARIAS
DESERT BO T ANICAL GARDEN
Welcome
Welcome to Las Noches de las Luminarias! Get ready for an evening filled with sparkling luminaria-lit trails and twinkling holiday lights. Musical performances, entertainment and festive food and drinks all make for a picture-perfect night.
This year, get a front row seat to nature’s film.
FRAMERATE: Desert Pulse turns the slow-moving desert into a cinematic experience. Five immersive installations. Thousands of images. One unforgettable journey.
Thank you for choosing to spend your holidays at the Garden and we wish you a festive season.
Entertainment Venues
A Admissions
B Binns Pavilion
Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust Desert Terrace
D
C The Pavilion at Sunset Plaza
E Center for Desert Living Trail
F Webster Auditorium
G Plants & People of the Sonoran Desert Trail
H Boppart Courtyard
I Dorrance Hall
GARDEN GO LIKE A PRO
Don’t be shy–anyone with a name badge and twinkling lights is happy to help.
Stay on the trails. Desert plants have shallow roots.
Visit our Garden Shop to find the perfect holiday gifts, open until 10 p.m.
Enjoy a meal or quick bite to eat at Gertrude’s by Tarbell’s, Patio Café or Sunset Plaza.
The Insider’s Guide to Experiencing FRAMERATE:
Desert Pulse
STOP, EXPERIENCE, LISTEN
At each Desert Pulse installation, take a moment to sit, observe and listen. Sound and visuals of Desert Pulse are interwoven in a continuous loop that repeats several times per hour. Slow down, tune in and let the desert speak.
1
STOP 1: Present Echoes 5 min.
The plants you see in this Garden bed are the same plants you see on the screens. This garden bed was scanned every day for 365 days. One second on screen = 25 days in real time!
2 3
STOP 2: Elsewhen 10 min.
Head to Lewis Desert Portal and witness a saguaro’s transformation. As the landscape shifts seasonally, reflect on how forces of nature shape the natural world.
STOP 3: Calyx 7 min.
The vibrant cactus blooms you’ll see are a few of the species that the Garden is working to protect for generations to come.
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STOP 4: Refuel + Horizon | Imprint 20 min.
Kick back on Ullman Terrace and take in this cinematic artwork, that inspires you to ponder human impact on the desert.
STOP 5: Desert Pulse 24 min.
The RAF Exhibit Gallery
Step inside the heart of Desert Pulse. This continuous video loop features 20 screens that are accompanied by a soundscape to provide an immersive perspective of desert life and leave you in awe.
Stay at your leisure or experience it multiple times during your visit.
STOP 6: Making Desert Pulse Ottosen Gallery
Peek behind the curtain and discover how Desert Pulse came to life.
STOP 7: Reflect + Explore
Take a final wander through the Garden trails. Let the desert’s rhythms linger as you reflect on how art, technology and nature pulse together.
