By Pam Teel
From festive furry friends to holiday light shows, Bucks County offers the perfect events and activities to celebrate the holiday season. Bring the whole family across the river into Pennsylvania to welcome winter and spread the yuletide joy!
Everyone’s favorite street will be decked out in holiday lights during ‘A Very Furry Christmas’ on select dates from November 19 through January 1 at Sesame Place! New this year is a holiday sing-along adventure on the Furry Express and Lightening the Reindeer! The park will also have special Christmas shows, dry rides, the illuminated Neighborhood Street Party Christmas Parade, visits with Santa in his Furry Workshop, Christmas treats and shopping.
Millions of lights illuminate acres of Newtown farmland during Shady Brook Farm’s 2016 Annual Holiday Light Show. Take a tractor-drawn wagon ride through whimsical light displays filled with your favorite holiday characters or keep cozy and warm in the comfort of your own vehicle from November 19 through January 8.
Dress the kids in their PJs as they live out their Christmas fantasy and hop aboard the North Pole Express on the New Hope & Ivyland Railroad for an unforgettable holiday journey! Santa and Mrs. Claus will join you with hot cocoa, cookies and Christmas Carols on select days from November 19 through December 31.
Get a feel for a colonial Christmas this year at Pennsbury Manor during their annual Holly Nights December 1 and 2. A community tradition for more than 35 years, warm up beside crackling bonfires, listen to the beautiful sounds of carolers and take a candlelit tour of this historic Manor House built by Pennsylvania’s founder William Penn.
Santa kicks off the holidays at Peddler’s Village with one million dazzling lights during the Grand Illumination Celebration on November 19. The lights will stay on through the holidays. Stop in to see their locally made Gingerbread House Display!
Witness history on the shores of the Delaware River on December 11, during the annual re-enactment of General George Washington’s daring river crossing on Christmas Night in 1776. Watch more than 200 re-enactors row across the river in the same style Durham boats and see colonial-era games and period demonstrations. Or catch the Annual Christmas Day Crossing Re-enactment takes place at Washington Crossing Historic Park.
Come to the Christmas capital of the county, Byers’ Choice, this holiday season! Enjoy Christmas cookies and juice as you explore the famous Christmas workshop observation deck and marvel at more than 250 Nativities from around the world in the Creche room. On December 9 and 10, listen to the great-great grandson of Charles Dickens when he performs a reading of the classic “A Christmas Carol.” From November 19 through January 3, stop by the Mercer Museum to visit the “Under the Tree: A Century of Holiday Trees and Toys” exhibit. See Fonthill Castle decked out for the holidays December 2-January 2, stop by on December 10 for a special Holiday Lights Meander, or marvel at the castle under the cloak of darkness with a candlelight holiday tour December 30. On December 4, Fonthill and Moravian Pottery & Tile Works host a free Holiday Festivities event for the whole family.
Take a holiday tour of the farmhouse once lived in by Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winning author Pearl S. Buck during the 38th Annual Festival of Trees November 8 through December 31. Come out for the Community Open House on December 8 or be sure to stop by on select dates from November 25 through December 4 for their annual Holiday Craft Show!
The Bucks County Visitor Center in Bensalem will be filled with holiday cheer as 25 uniquely themed trees light up the main gallery during the 11th Annual Bucks County Holiday Tree Fest. Throughout the six-week celebration, visitors can browse the decorated trees, enjoy musical entertainment, visit with Santa Claus and even bring their furry friends along for pet photos on select dates between November 22 and January 5. Information courtesy of Alexa Johnson, Public Relations Manager- Visit Bucks County.