Our Christmas Blog

Many of us love the quaint small towns featured in our favorite Christmas movies. You know the type of town - friendly local people, festively decorated main street, sparkling lights on all the trees around the town square, and the best hot chocolate for miles around.

And, of course, many extras like a little holiday snow, sleigh rides, beautifully decorated cozy little inns, the sound of Christmas Carols in the air. Everything you need to fill you with Christmas spirit!

Well, those towns do exist! Across the US you will find many small towns filled with enough charm and Christmas cheer that they could easily be the setting for your next favorite Christmas movie.

Here are some of my favorite Christmas towns. The towns that were selected for this list were chosen for their decorations, activities, sparkling lights, and their abundance of Christmas spirit and cheer!

Asheville, NC
Many are familiar with the Biltmore in Asheville, and the historic Vanderbilt mansion certainly does go all out for the holidays. The decorations and festivities at the property are not to be missed. But that's not all. The town itself also joins in the holiday spirit - with a drive through light show, horse drawn carriage rides, or shopping for unique gifts in Ashville's well-established art district.

Bethlehem, PA
This list would not be complete without including Bethlehem - also known as The Christmas City. Bethlehem is probably best known for hosting the Christkindlmarkt, a German inspired Christmas market which features live Christmas music, crafts, food, unique artisans and handmade gifts from Germany. And in addition to the market, the town is just filled with Christmas spirit. Some of the available activities include horse-drawn carriage rides, a Bethlehem by Night bus tour, a walking Christmas City Stroll, and of course all the decorated trees of Historic Bethlehem.

Branson, MO
Branson is a great destination any time of year, but it really pulls out all the stops for the holidays - definitely earning its nickname "America’s Christmas Tree City". A visit here includes legendary live music holiday shows, hundreds of decorated trees, Christmas light displays, parades, and a not-to-be-missed Polar Express Train ride through the Ozark Mountains. Even Branson's Silver Dollar City theme park joins the festivities, with over 6 million Christmas lights throughout the park.

Cape May, NJ
If you love Victorian architecture, then you will love Cape May - especially at Christmas time. This quaint little seaside town looks like it is straight out of a Dickens tale. Enjoy a trolley ride to see the Christmas lights or take part in the candlelight holiday house tours to view the historic homes and inns.

Durango, CO
The historic mining town of Durango becomes the most picture-perfect town during the holiday season. In addition to the usual winter sports, the town has a long list of family-oriented Christmas activities. The downtown area is beautifully decorated with thousands of lights, and activities include a tree lighting ceremony, an arts and crafts fair, and unique shopping opportunities. And, not one, but two holiday themed train rides - the Polar Express ride to the North Pole where every child on board gets a gift from Santa himself - and the Cascade Canyon Winter Train ride through the San Juan Mountains that takes you to a Christmas Tree farm where you can cut down your own tree and bring it back to town with you.

Frankenmuth, MI
Frankenmuth, also known as Michigan's Little Bavaria, is known for it's German influenced architecture which is especially enchanting during the Christmas season. There are horse drawn carriage rides, a traditional German Christkindlmarkt, gorgeous light displays, over 150 trees decorated with white lights, as well as many quaint boutiques for shopping. And the star attraction is probably the world's largest Christmas store - Bronner's. Of course, that store makes Frankenmuth the perfect Christmas destination any time of year!

Franklin, TN
Franklin just may have one of the best small-town Christmas experiences. The festivities start in early December and run throughout the month. An annual Christmas parade with over 100 entries, the weekend long "Dickens of a Christmas Festival", the annual tree lighting ceremony in the square, and a spectacular drive through "Festival of Lights" Christmas light display. And in between the holiday activities, you can stroll along the cobblestone sidewalks of their historic Main Street taking in the lights, delicious food and drinks, and some last minute Christmas shopping.

Helen, GA
This former logging town on the banks of the Chattahoochee River in the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains has transformed itself into one of the most picturesque small towns in the country. If you're looking for the most realistic Bavarian Christmas, this is the spot. It's all here in this quaint mountain town - the Christkindlmarkt, the Festival of Trees, a Christmas parade, Santa arriving on a Bavarian sleigh, the tree lighting ceremony, and plenty of lights, decorations, music, food, drinks, and shopping.

Leavenworth, WA
This Bavarian style village feels special any time of year, but as Christmas approaches, it becomes a must-see destination. The month of December is filled with holiday activities - a traditional Christkindlmarkt, a weekly festival with carolers, sleigh rides, a gingerbread house competition, the spectacular Christmas Lighting Festival, and their very own reindeer farm. Leavenworth is about as close as you can get to an old-world Christmas, and snowfall is almost guaranteed.

McAdenville, NC
This small town not far from Charlotte becomes Christmas Town, USA every December. McAdenville has been voted one of the Top 10 Best Holiday Lights Displays in the country. Most of the homes are beautifully decorated for the holidays, and over 265 evergreens are covered with more than a half million red, green, and white lights. The annual festivities include the Tree Lighting Ceremony and the Yule Log Ceremony. Visitors can drive along the 1.3 mile route, or even better, park your car and walk through the lights. Walking is the best way to see all of the lights and decorated homes, and that will also let you hear the seasonal music played from the Historical McAden Mills Bell Tower. This spectacular light display attracts over 600,000 visitors during the season.

Santa Claus, IN
Santa Claus Indiana is a wonderful Christmas town any time of year, but they pull out all the stops when the holidays are near. The local festivities include a parade, live music and entertainment, live reindeer, lots of great holiday shopping in the many Christmas-themed boutiques, Santa’s Candy Castle, Santa Claus Museum and Village, and Santa's Land of Lights - a 1.2-mile drive-through holiday light show. And if you get a chance, stay at the Christmas themed Santa's Lodge. This hotel is on a beautiful property overlooking the lake, and is decorated for Christmas year-round.

Stockbridge, MA
If you are looking for a Norman Rockwell Christmas, there is no better place than Stockbridge. That's because this quaint New England town is actually the setting for the 1967 Rockwell painting "Stockbridge Main Street at Christmas (Home for Christmas)". Each year the town re-creates the painting by lining the streets with vintage cars and covering buildings and trees with sparkling lights. In addition to the trip down memory lane, visitors can enjoy holiday shopping and decorations, a holiday marketplace at the Berkshire Botanical Gardens, several outdoor light displays, and tours of historic homes decorated for the holidays.

As you can see, not all of the towns on the list are in cold or snowy locations. While some snow certainly adds to the ambiance, it's really more about the spirit of the season.

If you're planning on visiting any of these towns this year, please check their websites or Facebook pages. Many times activities and events change from one year to the next, so it's always best to check first if there is a particular event you are really interested in.