Northern Virginia Tree Lighting Ceremonies
System - Tuesday, November 10, 2015
It seems like every year the holiday season starts earlier than the year before and this year is no exception. Believe it or not, if you want to go to a tree lighting ceremony and weren’t lucky enough to win tickets to see the National Tree, there are many other choices, some starting as early as this weekend!
Fairfax Corner is kicking off its holiday season on Friday, November 13th from 6-9pm at the Plaza with their annual tree lighting celebration. There will be holiday entertainment, balloon twisters, horse and carriage rides, and appearances by Mr. and Mrs. Claus. This is a free event.
National Harbor has a full day of events planned for Saturday, November 14th. From 12-6pm there will be tons of activities and entertainments available, ending with the tree lighting at 6pm followed by fireworks and a holiday concert!
Tysons Corner Center will host their tree lighting ceremony on November 20th, at 6:00pm, on The Plaza. This event will be emceed by Alison Victoria of HGTV’s Kitchen Crashers and American Idol’s, Elliot Yamin will perform from 6:30-7:30pm. Pre-concert, Alison and Elliot light the 51 foot tree. At the end of the show, Santa Claus and his reindeer will make an appearance.
The Village at Leesburg will have its tree lighting on November 21st, from 3-5pm. Santa will arrive by horse-drawn carriage to light a 5-story tall tree. The festivities include horse-drawn carriage rides, caroling, holiday characters, fire pits with treats and more. This is a free event, Toys for Tots donations are encouraged. If you miss the lighting ceremony, the musical tree with a snowfall topper and more than 15,000 lights performs daily music and light shows.
On Friday, November 27th The Reston Town Center has a full day of activities, starting at 8am with a Gingerbread Man Mile Race for the kids, followed by ice skating in the Pavilion, the 25th Annual Reston Holiday Parade at 11am, and the tree lighting at 6pm. There will be additional events and activities throughout the day.
The City of Alexandria will have its tree lighting on the evening of Friday, November 27th, from 6-8pm. The mayor and Santa Claus will light the city tree in Market Square. Entertainment features a visits from Santa, live performances, caroling and a community sing-along.
The Village at Shirlington will have its annual Shirlie Lights up the Village event on Tuesday December 1st from 6-8:30pm. There will be a Signature Theatre holiday production at 6, followed by the tree lighting at 6:30. There will be tons of activities for visitors of all ages including horse and carriage rides, balloon twisting, face painting, and live entertainment. This event is free but non-perishable food donations are requested to benefit the Arlington Food Assistance Center.
