Friday, November 30, 2007

Holiday Lights & Displays - Part 1

Like I mentioned on Tuesday, Michael and I enjoy finding some great Christmas lights and displays every year. The Washington, DC area is full of some really fantastic ones that are free or low cost. I found a decent list of some of the popular light displays in this area on About.com.

December is always packed full, so we try out some new activities each year and also revisit some favorites. This Saturday we are planning to catch the Alexandria Holiday Boat Parade of Lights on the Potomac River in Old Town Alexandria. We saw some pretty creative decorations last year in this unique parade of lights. I'm sure the boaters will have some cool ones again this year. Of course, since it's on the river, you can watch from anywhere long the water for free.

A few years ago Michael and I went to see the Festival of Lights at the Mormon Temple in Kensington, MD. It was okay, but since we didn't live nearby, it wasn't really worth the drive. However, I did like their indoor display of nativity sets from around the world. Two bonuses were that the people there were super nice, and admission is free.

Winter Lights at Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, MD is definitely worth a visit and the fee. If you go Sunday - Thursday, it's only $10 per car. However, you can also get a $2 coupon at Lake Forest Mall for a Monday - Thursday visit. Turn on some Christmas music and enjoy the slow 3.5 mile drive. It's quite beautiful!

One that I'd like to try out this year is the Bull Run Festival of Lights in Centreville. It looks like the best deal on this one would be to go Monday - Thursday ($15/car) and use the $3 coupon.

December is a great time to visit DC since there are so many affordable seasonal activities. The museums and other attractions are also less crowded. However, if you don't live in this area and aren't planning to visit this year, check out your local newspaper or Google "holiday light displays" or "Christmas" in your town. You could also check out About.com to see if they list anything for your city. For example, here's an article they have about the best holiday light displays in Atlanta.

Enjoy the season!

Sphere: Related Content

2 comments:

Kristi said...

Thanks so much for the link to the Atlanta list! Bryan and I crossed one off already. We went to the hockey game last night (with FREE tickets from his work!) and strolled through the lights at Centennial Park on the way. I had no idea they had something at Atlantic Station, so hopefully we'll get a chance to check that out as well.

Betsy said...

Kristi, I love a fun, free date like you and Bryan had last night. Way to go! ;-)

Yes, and since many of my upcoming posts will be about holiday attractions in DC, I thought I'd throw my loyal Atlanta readers a bone.