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The Most Festive Christmas House in NYC is Greek

greek american christmas lights house dyker heights brooklyn
Greek-American Isidoros Bilas decorates his home spectacularly every year for Christmas. Credit: Greek Reporter

Thousands of people visit Dyker Heights in Brooklyn, New York, every Christmas to admire the “Christmas House,” decorated by Isidoros and Anna Bilas, the Greek-American couple who own the home.

Each year, the Bilas family, with roots from the Greek island of Chios, outdo themselves by putting up nearly 300,000 Christmas lights to decorate their home, which has become a beloved Christmas-time tourist attraction.

Local media is always full of praise for the house and its glittery holiday spirit. In 2017, Time Out magazine put the Brooklyn home in their “Christmas in NYC” guide, reporting that around 100,000 people visit the Bilas home every year and the decorations outdo the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.

The house has become a favorite spot for those who just love Christmas, and many come to marvel at the lights and decorations each year.

Greek’s Christmas house in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn a holiday favorite

The Bilas family started the amazing tradition 35 years ago, and every year people flock from all over New York — and the world — to his Brooklyn house to gaze at the spectacle.

There are even special buses that bring people to the home in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn from the city just to come see the house.

Apart from the stunning lights, the house is decked out with at least two Christmas trees, hundreds of festive ornaments — and, of course, a Greek flag.

When asked which part of the house is his favorite, Bilas stated that “every single ornament in here is my favorite.”

Bilas, who came to the US from Greece 50 years ago, says that he made all the decorations used to bring sparkle and joy himself, and used his experience working in construction to design the best Christmas decoration scheme possible. He even still uses some of the original decorations he created when he first started the tradition 35 years ago.

Decorations cost over $5,000 in electricity, but are “worth it,” owner says

He says that it takes over five weeks to decorate his house and it costs $5,000 in electricity for the season.

“I could buy another house with the money I’ve spent on decorations all these years,” he says.

Watch our tour of the most magnificent Christmas home in NYC below:

But for the Greek-American, it’s well worth the time, effort, and money: “I play with my toys and I feel like a kid again,” he explains.

Visitors to the house are encouraged to give donations to the Ronald McDonald House, a charity that provides support to children with health problems and their families.

After Christmas, the decorations are stored in no less than three different garages to wait for the next season.

“But it is all worth the effort,” Bilas says with joy.

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