Christmas Excursions Close to Home
When you think of taking a trip to celebrate Christmas and other winter holidays do you dream of going to Lapland, where you can see real reindeer, visit Santa Claus Village, experience the Aurora Borealis & snow buildings like igloos & ice hotels. Or maybe you dream of a river cruise in Europe to visit the wonderful Christkindlmarkts. For most of us these trips are simply not feasible. They are expensive & many of us have beloved holiday traditions & prefer to be home with family & friends. Well, I am here to share some other options that are much closer to home.
Baltimore and Philadelphia both have good Christkindlmarkts. Old town Alexandria is having a Christmas market on December 9th at John Carlyle Square from 11-4. Many nearby towns have parades, with Middleburg, VA having an exceptional one. Things kick off at 8:00 am on December 2nd with breakfast with Santa. The Middleburg Hunt leads the parade at 11:00. Then wrap things up with progressive food, wine, cider, beer & spirit tastings at the many wineries, breweries & distilleries.
The Greenbrier & Homestead Resorts go all out with decorations. For a great indulgent experience take tea at one of the many DC hotels - The Willard, The Ritz, The Waldorf-Astoria, The Four Seasons and many more offer this delightful afternoon tradition. The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond is another excellent choice & the Lewis Ginter Gardens offer a spectacular light show.
Williamsburg at Christmas is unique. You can walk through the restored area for free and marvel at the door decorations on the houses. All items used for the decorations have to be things that were found in the 1700’s. Shells, pine cones, apples & other fruit, nuts & greenery adorn the homes with some really outstanding ideas! And there is Busch Gardens Christmas Town, Virginia’s largest Christmas celebration. Rides, shows, food & lights transform the theme park into a winter wonderland.
There is always New York! The Rockettes, the Macy’s Christmas windows, the Christmas tree and skating at Rockefeller Center, Central Park, various high rise observatories, Dyker Heights decorations - the list goes on & on. It’s an easy train journey, & not expensive if booked early, & there are many reasonable hotels.
My favorite Christmas trip was to Christmas City in Bethlehem, PA. We stayed in the Bethlehem Hotel right in the town center with many shops & restaurants nearby. The Moravians founded this town and are probably best known for their delicious Moravian cookies (very thin & crispy spice cookies) & the 26 pointed Moravian star. They also have a very good Christkindlmarkt.
I hope I have given you some ideas for Christmas experiences. I have a wealth of travel knowledge from living in 5 countries & visiting 41 states & 32 countries. Feel free to contact me at Sam.dejager@cruiseplanners.com or join my Facebook business page.
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"Travel is the only thing you can buy that makes you richer." (Anonymous)
