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The Nights Before Christmas

100 Miles of Lights

Virginia

Seven Virginia cities — Richmond, Williamsburg, Newport News, Hampton, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach — glow with Christmas festivities during 100 Miles of Lights. Lighted boat parades, city illuminations, festivals, living-history re-enactments, caroling, music and dance are among the many activities throughout the region. Dining events and shopping round out a group visit.

Holiday parades in Williamsburg, Hampton, Norfolk and Virginia Beach feature floats, marching bands, clowns, horses and, of course, Santa. Portsmouth’s “Winter Wonderland: The Coleman Collection” exhibit features Victorian scenes of animated skaters and carolers, an enchanted forest, a candy store and a bakery. Celebration in Lights, Virginia’s first drive-through holiday light show, boasts more than 1 million lights in hundreds of displays that create fanciful scenes along a two-mile drive through Newport News Park. Colonial Williamsburg’s Grand Illumination features three spectacular fireworks shows.

“Each city of the seven cities has its own holiday event schedule, and so there’s a lot of variety for groups,” said Rebecca Cutchins, media relations manager for Newport News Tourism. “Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve, groups can catch numerous holiday events in one or all seven cities.”

Decked out for the holidays, historic homes open their doors. Groups can tour Richmond’s lavishly decorated Maymont Mansion or see the elegance of a mid
19th-century Christmas at the Lee Hall Mansion and the 1861 decorations at Endview Plantation, both in Newport News. For a nautical light show, a festive flotilla of vessels participates in the Downtown Hampton lighted boat parade.

www.100milesoflights.com

Holiday FantaSea and More

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

In Myrtle Beach, the holidays get underway the first week of November and don’t slow down until the end of December. Holiday FantaSea, a free event for motorcoach groups, takes place November 6 and 13. Giveaways include two $250 Tanger Outlet gift cards and approximately 50 door prizes. Everyone receives a welcome bag and refreshments. An Elvis Presley impersonator emcees the event, and the Carolina Master Chorale, an award-winning high school group, performs carols at Beach Church.

“Groups come for the holiday shows in our seven live theaters, but the added bonus is our mild temperatures during November and December,” said Sandy Haines, group tour sales manager for the Myrtle Beach Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. “In November, we average 69 degrees, and December averages 60 degrees.”

There’s plenty of holiday entertainment, including matinee performances. At the Carolina Opry Theater, “The Christmas Show of the South” will enjoy its 33rd season this year. The theater transforms into a winter wonderland for a musical celebration; Moses Braxton returns with his smooth baritone alongside three other talented performers. “Motor City Musical — Motown Tribute Show,” journeys though the history of Motown and Christmas melodies at the GTS Theatre. And the Pirates Voyage Dinner and Show retells “A Christmas Carol” with  swashbuckling action, live animals, battles and acrobatics above an indoor lagoon.

Historic Brookgreen Gardens glows in December during Nights of a Thousand Candles, when more than 4,500 hand-lit candles and countless lights sparkle throughout the grounds. Groups can stroll the paths with a warm cup of cider, enjoy carolers and hear the many diverse sounds of holiday music ranging from a brass quintet, a jazz band and a concert pianist.

www.visitmyrtlebeach.com

Elizabeth Hey

Elizabeth Hey is a member of Midwest Travel Journalists Association and has received numerous awards for her writing and photography. Follow her on Instagram and Facebook @travelbyfork.