Delaware – Wilmington and Schellville
Visiting Wilmington, Delaware during the holiday season has much to offer. The Wilmington and Western Railroad has a fun train ride past Christmas lights, and the train itself is lit and Santa can often be found there. Downtown, there is a tree at Rodney Square, and the Wilmington Riverfront is lit up for over a mile.
Longwood Gardens and Brandywine River Museum are a short drive from Wilmington, right over the PA line. Longwood has a world-class display – every year the conservatory is absolutely beautiful, and there are outdoor light displays throughout the Gardens as well. They sell out quickly, so make reservations soon and expect to pay $25-30 per person ($16 per kid); membership is well worth the cost if you plan to go more than once. Both Longwood and Brandywine River Museum have fun model train displays set up that are quite large (Longwood’s is outside and the Museum’s is inside).
Schellville in Southern Delaware takes place at Tangier Outlets Seaside in Rehoboth Beach. Heading South on Rt 1, you will see the large festival taking place behind the outlets, from 1 to 4PM (generally best for the younger crowd) and from 5 to 9PM for those who want to enjoy the Christmas lights in the darkness, hear live music, and perhaps enjoy some adult beverages.
Schellville takes place every weekend from mid-November through the end of the year, and seems to have more attractions every year, including tons of twinkling lights, a tiny town for the little ones to play in, a synthetic ice rink, a huge synthetic “sledding hill,” a playground full of stuffed snowballs, stands and booths where you can buy food and treats, and more. The whole extravaganza is free, and it’s a blast for family fun.
The Eastern Shore of Maryland
This is a fun region to visit during the holidays, with a number of festive things to do. The little town of Ridgely, MD hosts a large, free festival each year, with food trucks, free synthetic ice skating rinks, inflatable bounce houses, carriage rides and more. Throughout the season, the park in the middle of the town boasts 6 blocks of lights that can be walked through, with a life sized gingerbread house, historic train station and selfie-stations.
Christmas at St. Michael’s is another lively annual holiday celebration and a lovely place to stay is the Inn at Chesapeake Bay Beach Club in Stevensville on Kent Island, where you can also enjoy a festive lights display. Winter is the off season, so you can find lower prices, fewer crowds and fresh seafood that is just as delicious as always in this part of the country.
New York City
Nobody does over-the-top holiday décor like NYC. If you have limited time, just driving around the times square area will give you views of the Rockefeller Christmas Tree, the Saks 5th Avenue lightshow that repeats every 10 minutes after 5, Radio City, the Empire State Building, and other lit and heavily decorated icons of NYC. You can also catch lights at Central Park, Hudson Yards and quite a few other places. Some more ideas can be found here.
Pennsylvania – Bethlehem and Lancaster
The town of Bethlehem, PA is known as “The Christmas City,” and for good reason. The Moravian Historic District comes to life with twinkling white lights, candles and stars, horse and carriage tours, and stalls where local crafts and treats of all kinds are sold during the Christmas season. This Christmas market is free to enter and sprawls along Main Street and out from the Historic Hotel, Moravian Museum, and Visitor’s Center. You can also view the Moravian “putz,” which is a handmade nativity scene used to tell the story of Christ’s birth.
On the southside of the river, where the well known steel stacks are located, you will find an indoor ice rink and another Christmas market actually inside the steel stacks, but there is an entrance fee which is around $15. The decorations are very lovely and the market is very popular.
The town of Lancaster is truly charming at any time of year, but especially during Christmas. You can take an Amish buggy ride or visit Dutch Wonderland, a children’s amusement park that is set up with thousands of lights that can be viewed from their train ride, and numerous other working rides, mostly geared toward younger children. Santa is also in town there, and there are some opportunities to warm up inside the café. Lancaster also hosts the drive-through Christmas Spirit Light Show, where the lights blink in time to the music tuned into your radio. It’s a delight. Not too far south of Lancaster is Herr’s Snack Factory, which provides a drive through light show from 5 to 7 throughout the holiday season. It is also delightful, and free! This is also easily accessible from Wilmington, DE.
Virginia – Richmond and the Surrounding Area
The Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden does a glorious lights display each year on select nights during the holidays, and you can warm up with specialty drinks and tasty food while you’re there. Other events around the area include a mile-long track of holiday lights in the historic district of downtown Ashland, VA, and renowned light shows at nearby amusement parks. Kings Dominion’s Winterfest is lit up with millions of lights and some rides are open. Busch Gardens’ Christmas Town in Williamsburg includes different sections decorated in themes of different countries, and has been consistently rated as America’s most beautiful theme park.
