Niagara Falls Tourism Winter Festival of Lights Campaign by Zerotrillion Shines Bright

Niagara Falls, ON — Niagara Falls Tourism has successfully concluded the 2025–26 Winter Festival of Lights, which ran from November 15th to January 4th, supported by a stunning new integrated campaign created by Zerotrillion with production by DreamTheory.

The cinematic campaign reimagined the Festival through a heartwarming narrative of illuminated “light animals” journeying from across Canada to Niagara Falls, an imaginative expression of the anticipation, warmth, and wonder that define winter in the destination. The work was the foundation of an integrated media rollout spanning digital, connected TV, radio, and out-of-home.

As the Festival wrapped, the campaign resulted in standout performance, far exceeding travel-industry benchmarks and reinforcing Niagara Falls’ position as a compelling winter destination.

A Fresh Take on Winter Storytelling for Niagara Falls

Winter tourism presents a distinct creative challenge: the illuminated displays and snowy environments that define the Winter Festival of Lights are only available late in the season, making traditional production approaches impractical. Rather than relying on archival footage, the campaign embraced a more imaginative direction, bringing the Festival to life through animation, story and character to evoke the emotional experience of visiting Niagara Falls in winter.

The work builds on Niagara Falls Tourism’s belief that winter is one of the destination’s most magical times of year. As Canada’s largest illumination festival, the Winter Festival of Lights also serves as a gateway to the broader range of winter experiences Niagara Falls has to offer. Long recognized as a signature attraction for families and couples, the Festival continues to inspire a sense of discovery and wonder, an emotion the campaign successfully carried through its creative and reflected in strong performance throughout the season.

Strong Results in a Highly Competitive Winter Media Environment

The campaign delivered exceptional engagement and efficiency across platforms:

• Stunning Video View Through Rates: Both short- and long-form videos achieved completion rates of approximately 90% across Canada and the U.S., well above typical industry averages of 30% to 70%.
• 3x Travel Industry Benchmarks: Paid Search CPC averaged was three times more efficient than the travel industry benchmark of $2.12 USD.
• Unparalleled Conversion: Paid Search conversion rates were approximately four times the typical benchmark of 5.75%.

“These results reflect what happens when creative truly connects with people,” said Aubrey Podolsky, President of Zerotrillion Toronto. “The campaign held people’s attention and motivated audiences to take action, exactly what great destination marketing should do.”