Christmas in Charleston

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. October 14, 2008

CHARLESTON, EC< September 28, 20007. With mild temperatures and value rates, there's no better time to experience the rich history of the Charleston area than during the holiday season. Plan to celebrate with the annual !SSChristmas in Charleston!" festival where you will be welcomed to the season of beauty, lights and magic that surrounds the entire Charleston area in November and December. Charleston offers history, culture, splendid shopping, unique tours and delicious holiday dining.

The Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CACVB) launched a newly designed Christmas in Charleston website, www.ChristmasinCharleston.com, packed with extensive information needed in planning a holiday trip to the Charleston area. Not only does the updated site feature events and packages, but it boasts fresh photography, free e-cards, group itineraries, Christmas sweepstakes, Charleston goodies available to purchase online, and more. For more information, please visit www.ChristmasinCharleston.com or call 843-853-8000.

Here are just a few of the trimmings sure to make this year!|s holidays merry and bright:

-- !SSIt!|s Lovely Weather for Shopping Together!"

Ladies, shop the boutique mecca of the South, then escape the holiday hustle and bustle at Wild Dunes Resort on the Isle of Palms. Stay in luxury at The Boardwalk Inn and enjoy breakfast before being whisked downtown for a day of shopping. Then come back and pamper those toes with a peppermint pedicure before retreating for a good night's sleep by the sea. (Package available for Fri-Sun stays November 30 through December 23). For more, please visit http://www.charlestoncvb.com/xmas/packages.html?id=661.

-- !SSA Peace Tree Glows in Charleston!"

With special package rates in effect from November 30th through December 26th, luxury accommodations, complimentary breakfast daily, in-room display of poinsettias, a menorah during Hanukah and holiday cookies nightly at turndown, the Market Pavilion Hotel rings in the holiday season in style. Holiday programs for kids include Christmas Cookie Cooking Classes and Afternoon Teas with Santa. For adults, there is complimentary gift-wrapping in the lobby and several unique holiday menu and culinary offerings at Grill 225, inside the boutique hotel. For more, contact (516) 944-8612.

-- 18th Annual Holiday Festival of Lights - More than a million enchanting lights adorn James Island County Park. Come experience the three-mile driving tour and see a wide array of dazzling designs for the holidays, November 9 !V January 1. Create your own light display at the Lakeside Lights activity center or take a leisurely stroll through the Enchanted Forest. The Festival of Lights was ranked on the 2004 AmericasBest.com Top 10 list. For more information, please call (843) 795-4FUN.

-- Plantation Christmas - Visit one of Charleston!|s several historic plantations during the holiday season. America!|s oldest landscaped gardens are decorated with colorful camellias and holly trees, and the 18th and 19th century buildings are adorned with pine swags, mistletoe, and wreaths. These lavish seasonal decorations will put you in the holiday spirit. Call (843) 853-8000 for more information.

-- Christmas Past Alive at Premier Historic Houses !V The public is invited to experience Christmas at two of Charleston!|s premier historic house museums !V The Nathaniel Russell House, 51 Meeting Street, and the Aiken-Rhett House, 48 Elizabeth Street, will be dressed for the season from November 23-January 2, 2008. Exhibits at the Nathaniel Russell House will portray Christmas in 1808, the year the Federal-era mansion was completed. Natural foliage will adorn the house and a grand dining table will be laden with treats as if awaiting the arrival of the Russell!|s holiday guests. Meanwhile, a Victorian Christmas in the South will captivate visitors to the Aiken-Rhett House. Decorations will hearken back to the time of Charles Dickens and the first use of Christmas trees. Exhibits in the outbuildings, where slaves both lived and worked, will emphasize their unique traditions. For more information, please call (843) 724-8481.

-- 27th Annual Charleston Christmas Parade - This holiday tradition is better than ever as bands, floats, marchers and performers parade through downtown Charleston. The parade begins at the intersection of Calhoun and Meeting streets and is sponsored by the Tri-County Fire Chiefs Association. For more information, please call (843) 720-1981.

-- Annual North Charleston Christmas Lighting, Festival and Parade - Sat. Dec. 1, visit Park Circle, North Charleston to experience a Christmas festival in the original garden community. The parade begins at 6, but activities begin at 4. Entertainment on three different stages, hayrides and tree lighting will be enjoyed by all. For more information, please call (843) 745-1087.

-Continued-

-- 28th Annual Parade of Boats !V On December 1, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., get on board with a Lowcountry holiday tradition as this display of lighted and festive boats proceeds from the Cooper River, through the Charleston Harbor and into the Ashley River, culminating in a brilliant fireworks display over the harbor. View the procession along Charleston!|s waterfront or decorate your own boat and join the parade. The festivities begin along the shores of Mount Pleasant and viewing from the peninsula begins at 6:30.

-- !SSHolly Days!" in Summerville - Celebrate the holidays with strolling carolers, hot cider & cookies and late shopping on Thursday evenings Dec 6, 13, 20 until 7pm. On Saturday Dec. 8, 15, 22 from 12!V4pm find Santa in Town Square!|s !SSElf Central!" and entertainment at various downtown locations. Bring your own camera or have pictures taken by the Elves. For more information, please call (843) 821-7260.

-- City of Charleston Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony !V Join Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr. and Santa Claus in lighting the magnificent 60-foot Tree of Lights, the official City of Charleston Christmas Tree at Marion Square on Dec. 1st. Festivities begin at 4:30 p.m. For the entire month of December, the park will be beautifully lighted and decorated for the holidays, including a larger than life Hanukkah menorah and a Kwanzaa Kinari. Holiday Magic in Historic Charleston offers family oriented activities and performances that capture the holiday spirit for everyone in the community. For more information, please call (843) 724-7305.

-- Holiday Farmers Market !V On several December weekends this year, one can find brightly colored tents at Marion Square where vendors will offer everything needed to deck the halls for the holidays and fill the pantry with baked delights: natural wreaths, fresh greenery, special breads, cookies, fresh vegetables, as well as the best assortment of art, crafts and holiday gift items. For more information, please call (843) 724-7305.

-- 20th Annual Progressive Dinner - The Progressive Dinner offers visitors a nighttime tour and carriage ride of downtown Charleston accompanied by fine cuisine at three of Charming Inns!| historic and elegant hotels all decorated in grand style for the holiday season. Book reservations now for availability that begins November 30th and runs intermittently through December 22nd . Check with hostess for all available dates. For more information or to make reservations, please call (843) 853-7828.

-- Spirituals Concerts at Drayton Hall - Drayton Hall presents African-American spiritual music with three concerts by Ann Caldwell and The Magnolia Singers. The concerts are a rare opportunity to gather in the candlelit great hall and hear music that could have been heard centuries ago in the fields. Tickets include a catered reception and informal house tours. Evening concerts on Dec. 1 and 2 run from 6-8pm and an additional concert on December 2 from 3:00 !V 5:00 p.m. Call (843)-769-2605 for reservations.

-- Christmas Events at Middleton !V From the Big House to the Quarters, festive holiday decorations will be adorning all of Middleton Place for the entire month of December. It will look as though you!|ve stepped into December in 1860. On December 15 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. families can enjoy storytelling around a warm fire, Christmas caroling and ornament and wreath making. See craftspeople working in their shops by candlelight, and a live nativity scene featuring many of the plantation!|s animals. Hot cider and seasonal refreshments included and reservations are required. Please call (843) 556-6020 for more information.

-- Christmas 1860, A Candlelight Tour - Enjoy a candlelight tour of the historic Edmondston-Alston House, dressed for the holidays. Living historians in period clothing will tell the story of Charleston!|s last opulent Christmas before the start of the Civil War, and will share the different Christmas traditions of the day. Edmondston-Alston House is located at 21 East Battery. Please call (843) 722-7171 for more information.

-- Women!|s Council Holiday Tour !V This self-guided tour of houses and gardens in downtown Charleston benefits the Gibbes Museum of Art and is followed by a reception at the Gibbes. Explore some of the lushest gardens and most elegant private homes all decorated for the holiday season on December 1 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Call (843) 722-2706 for tickets and information.

-- Magnolia Plantation and Gardens!| Camellia Christmas !V December 3-31, America!|s most extensive outdoor camellia display will be in full bloom. The plantation house is decorated for the season. A Nature Train and guided Plantation House Tour is available at additional cost. Call (843) 571-1266.

-- Wining and Dining in 18th & 19th century Charleston !V Guests begin their tour at the Heyward-Washington House, where the focus is on 18th century culinary and entertaining traditions. Tour the c. 1740 kitchen building and learn about open hearth cooking and much more. Next, travel to Drayton Hall. Family letters, entries from Charles Drayton II!|s diaries and photographs open doors to where a !SSballet!" took place in the upper great hall and where guests withdrew into smaller chambers for cards and conversation after dinner. Find out what activities were customary in each of Drayton Hall!|s entertaining spaces. Call (843) 722-1784 for more information.

-- Joseph Manigault House Dresses for the Yuletide Season !V The Garden Club of Charleston will decorate the Joseph Manigualt House in the design typical of the period, and plant materials available at the time the Manigault family resided there (1803-1852). The house, built in 1803, is a premier example of Adam-style, or Federal, architecture. Available the first Saturday in December through December 31 of each year, this special treat is included with general house admission. Please call (843) 722-1784 for more information.

-- True Lowcountry Christmas at Boone Hall !V Throughout the month of December festivities will include !SSA Gullah Christmas!", bell choirs, carolers, candlelight tours and traditional Christmas decorations. For more information on specific dates and times, please call (843) 884-4371.

-- Happy New Year, Charleston - Celebrate an alcohol-free alternative to New Year!|s Eve observances with the community and the arts. Music, dance, theatre, and children!|s activities!Xentertainment for all ages! For more information, please call (843) 724-7305.

For a complete !SSChristmas in Charleston!" festival schedule with events and packages, visit: www.christmasincharleston.com or call 1-800-868-8118. To download Christmas in Charleston images for media use, please visit http://www.charlestoncvb.com/media/gallery.html.