For decades the community of Alexandria has been celebrating the start of the holiday season on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Now called Christmas in Alexandria is includes many different ways to ring in the holidays.
The original elements of the event are part of Christmas in the Fort, held outdoors on the Runestone Museum property on the north end of Broadway (near Big Ole). It includes Mr. and Mrs. Claus, warm beverages, cookies, caroling, and a chance to visit. The event culminates with the annual turning on of the downtown Christmas lights at 5:15pm. Join in on the countdown, right on Broadway Street (between The Runestone Museum, Copper Trail Brewing Company, Alexandria Downtown Liquor and Counselor Realty). The Clauses will stay in the Fort until 6:00pm.
Just the west at the Legacy of the Lakes Museum Gardens, the Parade of Trees will be showcased in the Legacy of the Lakes BoatHouse and Legacy Gardens from 2-6pm. The Friends of Christmas organization will host their 3rd annual Garden of Lights walking tour starting at 5:15pm on Nov. 28th through December 28th each Friday-Sunday from 5-8pm. There is a free will donation opportunity accepted to help continue and grow the event for years to come.
Lastly the evening continues out onto Broadway with the annual “Lights on Broadway” Holiday Lighted Parade. Expect more than 50 floats cruising down Broadway from 4th to 10th Avenue, starting at 5:30pm. With cool temps forecast, be sure to bundle up to enjoy the full half-hour parade. If you can’t make it to the event, with help from Leighton Media, Gardonville Cooperative and the Andria Theatre we plan to present a simple broadcast of the parade on the Voice of Alexandria YouTube page.
Speaking of downtown, there will be all kinds of great Black Friday specials throughout the day on Friday, and on Small Business Saturday. To help people find those perfect holiday gifts, many stores will be open late on Thursdays in December. As a special treat on Saturday, December 6th Downtown Alexandria will host a Holiday Extravaganza that includes free gift wrapping on items bought downtown and more.
