41st Annual Festival of Trees and Traditions – Wadsworth Antheneum – Hartford – December 4 – December 14 - 10:00am – 5:00pm
Festival of Trees & Traditions is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Sunday, Dec. 14 (closed Monday and Tuesday, Dec. 8 and 9.)
This is the first opportunity for the public to purchase a tree or wreath. Throughout the week there will be live music in Avery Court and in Aetna Theater performed by over 30 local choirs, bands
and orchestras. Mr. and Mrs. Claus will make a return appearance along with the balloon artist, Bella the Clown. Docent-guided tours will be offered daily.
Other programs taking place during Festival include:
CONNetic Dance, "The Nutcracker Suite & Spicy," Dec. 12-14
Sam and Cody, our Percheron team, will take holiday revelers on a wagon ride through the woods to a festive campfire gathering. We will then warm by the fire, sip hot cocoa and sing carols.
Come early to meet the animals of Ray of Light, including rescues and horses available for adoption. $8 per person ages 2-80, free to guests under 2 or over 80!
At 4:00pm, a professional photographer will be available for outdoor family photos. There is a price for taking photos, one to five people in the picture will cost $10, first come first
served. Santa Claus will arrive at 5:30pm. Parking is always FREE even if you have a tree attached.
Ray of Light Website
Connecticut Trolley Museum Winterfestival – East Windsor – December 13 – 14
Families can enjoy trolley rides, Christmas Caroling, model trains, decorations, entertainment and Santa Claus.
www.ct-trolley.org
The Shore Line Trolley Museum’s Santa’s Trolley Winter Wonderland – 17 River Street - East Haven - December 13 – 14 - 10:30am – 7:00pm
A National Historic District – The oldest continuously running suburban trolley line in the USA.
Come and enjoy a living, breathing experience riding historic, restored trolleys through scenic surroundings.
Santa’s Trolley Winter Wonderland rings in the spirit of the holiday with rides on the country’s oldest continuously running trolley cars, a model train, antique trolley cars, a model train
display, photos with Santa Claus and hot chocolate and cookies.
www.shorelinetrolley.org
Holiday Light Fantasia – Goodwin Park – Hartford - November 27 – January 1 - 5:00pm
The city-wide celebration captures the true spirit of the holiday season! We hope our festive show offers an enchanting evening of fun for family and friends while providing a much needed break
from the hectic holiday season. $15 per car (up to 10 passengers) www.holidaylightfantasia.org/
Sunday - Thursday 5:00pm - 9:00pm
Friday - Saturday 5:00pm - 10:00pm
Winterfest Hartford – Free Ice Skating - Bushnell Park – Hartford – November 29 – February 1 – 11:00am – 8:00pm
Skate for free 7-days-a-week at the Winterfest ice rink on the east side of Bushnell Park near the Pump House. Come after work, on your lunch break or as a part of a trip downtown to see some of the city’s cultural
treasures. Don’t have your own skates? There are free skate rentals, too. Winterfest is brought to you by the iQuilt Partnership and the City of Hartford.
http://www.hartford.com/venue/winterfest
3rd Annual Lake Compounce Holiday Lights – Bristol – December 12 – December 21 – (Fridays- 5:00pm – 9:00pm - Saturdays- Sundays 4:00pm – 9:00pm)
Festive activities includes a spectacular light show every half hour at the main gate, featuring tens of thousands of dancing lights set to holiday music. Kiddieland rides and family-themed
rides, the train is transformed into the North Pole Railway and operated by a very special train conductor with a magical holiday story to tell. There will be strolling carolers, ice carvings and festive entertainment including clowns and lots of holiday characters.
Indoor activities include cookie decorating and gingerbread house making. Children can create their letter to Santa and enjoys story time with Mrs. Claus.
https://www.lakecompounce.com/holidaylights
20th Annual Fantasy of Lights - New Haven’s Lighthouse Point Park – New Haven - November 28 – January 6.
Check out over 60 attractions that include animated and LED light displays! While you're there, share your experience with your friends on social media using
#fantasyoflights. You can show off your favorite displays all while participating in a great cause. So whether it's your first or twentieth year enjoying the Fantasy of Lights, get ready
to be dazzled by over 100,000 lights! $10 per car.
http://www.eastersealsgoodwill.org/events
Sunday - Thursday 5:00pm - 9:00pm
Friday - Saturday 5:00pm - 10:00pm
Lantern Light Tours – Mystic Seaport – Mystic – November 29 – December 27 – 5:00pm (leaves every 15 minutes)
Experience a New England holiday tradition at Mystic Seaport and step back in time of Christmas Eve 1876 for a guided tour of Greenmanville. Both young and old will enjoy seasonal delights during
this 70-minute progressive play that features a traditional tavern dance, a horse-drawn carriage ride and the beautiful glow of hundred of lanterns that light the way. Lantern Light Tours require a special ticket in lieu of admission.
http://www.mysticseaport.org/
59th Annual Mystic Seaport Carol Sing – Mystic – December 21 - 3:00pm
The museum is open
FREE all day to everyone with the donations of a canned food item or cash donation.
http://www.mysticseaport.org/
Bob Chudy
Program Director
International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS)
Office of Global Affairs
University of Connecticut
Rowe Center Room 126
Storrs, CT 06269
phone: 860-486-6653
email: [log in to unmask]
web: www.isss.uconn.edu