Dahlonega to Host 2010 Capitol Christmas Tree With Grand Celebration

Georgia will play a key role in one of the nation’s most cherished holiday traditions when Dahlonega hosts the Capitol Christmas Tree November 24-26, 2010 on its route from Wyoming to the west front lawn of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Dahlonega’s connection extends further as the 75-foot tree is being transported by Jeff Underwood Trucking of Dahlonega.

To commemorate the occasion, Dahlonega is planning a two-day special celebration during the tree’s only official stop before arriving on the Capitol lawn. The public is invited to welcome the tree to Dahlonega with a Grand Holiday Celebration on Wednesday, November 24th. The event will be held on the historic square and will feature musical entertainment by Freddie Way, holiday performances, and appearances by state dignitaries. People will also have the opportunity to send their holiday wishes to the nation’s Capitol by signing a huge banner, which will decorate the truck. The town will be trimmed in full holiday dress, with twinkling lights, holiday garlands, bows and décor from one end of the square to the other, adding to the festive atmosphere. Details are available at www.Dahlonega.org.

“Last year, the tree’s arrival in Nashville prompted streets lined with well-wishers in similar fashion to the Olympic Torch Run,” said Stephen Smith, Tourism Director for the Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber of Commerce and Convention & Visitors Bureau. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for Dahlonega and the state of Georgia to take part in one of the nation’s time-honored traditions and to see America’s most famous Christmas tree.”

The 2010 tree will be harvested from the Bridger-Teton National Forest located in Western Wyoming on November 6. The tree is set to arrive at the Capitol by November 29, 2010. People can follow the tree’s route at www.CapitolChristmasTree2010.org and check the Dahlonega Website for up to the minute notices

The tree will travel on a 115-foot long double flatbed truck. Placed on its side, it will rest in a custom cradle that supports the branches, preventing damage and maintaining the tree's perfect shape. Due to curvy roads, the truck will have to park a mile away and back all the way into Dahlonega’s town square.

A caravan of approximately 12 vehicles, including two semi-trucks, will escort the tree east, delivering not only a tree taller than a seven-story building, but nearly 10,000 handmade ornaments and 80 companion trees that will be placed in offices throughout the Capitol Complex. The 2010 Capitol Christmas Tree will travel more than 3,000 miles during its three-week journey.

Dahlonega’s Old Fashioned Christmas
The Capitol Christmas Tree’s arrival will kick-off Dahlonega’s Old Fashioned Christmas, a month-long celebration that begins on Friday, November 26, 2010 with the Lighting of the Square. Santa will arrive in a real home-town parade on Saturday, December 4th. Plenty of other festive holiday events will continue almost daily throughout December and will include caroling, entertainment, wine sampling, and live theater Christmas events.

Sleigh Bell Tour
During December, Dahlonega comes alive with numerous holiday celebrations and events. One of the most popular is the Sleigh Bell Tour, a self-guided driving tour of Dahlonega’s bed and breakfast inns. This year’s participants include Lily Creek Lodge, Mountain Top Lodge, The Historic Worley B&B Inn, Top of the Square B&B, Long Mountain Lodge, Mountain Laurel Creek Inn & Spa, and Dahlonega Spa Resort. Each is decorated with a unique holiday theme and will feature holiday music and refreshments. The inns are located around the historic square as well as right outside of town. The tour will take place on December 12 from 1-6 p.m. and will cost $12. For more information on the participating inns, please visit www.innsofdahlonega.com.

Additional information on Dahlonega’s Old Fashioned Christmas can be found at www.Dahlonega.org or by calling 800.231.5543


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Celebrate the Holidays with Family and Friends at Fantasy in Lights®

T2F Note: A perennial favorite of our staff during the holidays is to see the magic and wonder of the holiday lights. We've always found it a sure way to brighten the holiday. Callaway Gardens is a sure bet for our coveted Fayette Front Page Day Tripper Award.

Make holiday memories that last a lifetime with family and friends amongst more than eight million sparkling lights and holiday sounds at the 18th annual Fantasy In Lights® at Callaway Gardens® November 20 through December 30, 2009.

Nestled throughout the wooded landscape of the Gardens, the southeast’s largest holiday light show features 12 unique holiday scenes and a truly magical Christmas Village for family members of all ages to enjoy.

Guests celebrate the joy of the season and the wonder of nature as they travel through five miles of larger-than-life lighted scenes on either the Jolly Trolley or in their personal vehicle. Custom designed holiday scenes, such as the favored Snowflake Valley and Santa’s Workshop, are set to classic Christmas music provided by more than 400 speakers making this an experience everyone will truly remember. Two favorite scenes, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas and The Nativity, can be found on the shore of Robin Lake. Both are 10 minute presentations with spectacular animation, narration and music.

The Callaway Gardens Christmas Village is beautifully decorated with Christmas trees; a Toyland filled with classic Christmas toy treasures; and is the place for boys and girls of all ages to share their Christmas wishes with Santa. The Christmas Village also is filled with unique Christmas gifts and decor; wares made by Georgia crafters; a cookie decorating station; a candy-by-the-pound shop; a Fantasy In Lights souvenir shop and more. A food court will provide an option of food and sweet treats.

Callaway Gardens is proud to announce that Fantasy In Lights has been honored by the American Bus Association as a 2009 Top 100 Event in North America and by The Chicago Tribune as one of the Top 48 Events in the World in 2009. Since 1992, more than two million visitors have made Fantasy In Lights part of their holiday tradition. It is a wonderful way to spend quality time with family members.

Fantasy In Lights tickets start at $16 per adult and $8 per child and include same-day admission to Callaway Gardens to enjoy the beautiful holiday floral displays at the John A. Sibley Horticultural Center; the tropical warmth at the Cecil B. Day Butterfly Center and the amazing feats of the Birds Of Prey show (weather dependent). Advance ticket purchases are strongly recommended. Simply purchase online at www.callawaygardens.com/fil or call 1-800-CALLAWAY (225-5292).

Admission to Fantasy In Lights begins at 6:00 p.m. nightly. November 22nd is reserved for pedestrians only as more than 6,000 guests will stroll through the winter wonderland of Fantasy In Lights for the annual March of Dimes Night Walk.

Callaway Gardens is offering guests a special Fantasy In Lights package to provide families with an affordable and memorable holiday vacation to celebrate the season and reconnect with loved ones. Overnight packages are available at all four lodging options.

For additional information about Fantasy In Lights or to make a reservation for a special holiday experience, please go to www.callawaygardens.com/fil or call 1-800-CALLAWAY (225-5292).

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Nation’s Best Christmas Event Begins Nov. 7 with Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Presented by Humana

(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dollywood unwraps its 20th anniversary holiday season on Nov. 7 with the opening of its award-winning festival Smoky Mountain Christmas presented by Humana, which continues through Jan. 2, 2010.

Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmas festival recently won its second consecutive Golden Ticket Award for Best Christmas Event. The awards are presented annually to the “best of the best” in the amusement industry by Amusement Today magazine from an international poll.

“I just love spending the holidays with family and friends, so I hope my Smoky Mountain Christmas festival brings families closer together this time of year,” Dolly Parton said. “My wish is for everyone to be wrapped in warm holiday memories, just like the ones of my family that I cherish and hold so dear.”

The Golden Tickets also honored Dollywood for Best Shows, which includes the park’s lineup of holiday entertainment. Dollywood’s live stage shows feature Dollywood’s Babes in Toyland, Christmas in the Smokies, O’ Holy Night, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, Christmas with the Kingdom Heirs, and An Appalachian Christmas. Multiple performances are featured each day, and all shows are included with park admission.

Set amid a colorful display of four million holiday lights, Dollywood also offers guests more than 20 rides and attractions, including The Polar Express 4-D Experience™ which takes guests on a magical journey to the North Pole. Guests can enjoy the world-renowned Thunderhead and Mystery Mine coasters, as well as the Dollywood Express, a 110-ton steam engine that takes a nostalgic railroad journey into the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains.

Santa’s Workshop is Santa’s home-away-from-home at Dollywood where a larger-than-life-sized display of toys awaits visitors. Santa also appears twice each evening in the Parade of Lights, joined by a cast of fun characters and brightly colored floats. Breakfast with Santa is featured from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. each Saturday during the festival. Seating is first-come, first-served for the meal which includes bacon, sausage, eggs, sausage gravy and grits. Prices are $15.99 for adults, $7.99 for children ages 4-11. Dollywood admission is required.

Seasonal favorites and special recipes from Dollywood’s best chefs are on the menu at the park’s many restaurants. Endless buffets featuring oven-roasted turkey and dressing with all of the trimmings are holiday favorites. Each year welcomes new additions, like this year’s chicken pot pie served at Backstage restaurant, all sure to become classic dishes offered for years to come.

Dollywood is a 150-acre family adventure park in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. For more information, call 1-800-DOLLYWOOD or visit dollywood.com. Operating days and hours vary.

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Washington's 1776 Christmas

T2F Note: What a great way to remember American Revolution patriots at the annual reenactment of Washington Crossing the Delaware on Christmas Day. The event is set to start around 1 pm.

The annual memorial recreation of Washington Crossing the Delaware River is a great event for the entire family. Come and reflect on the historic activities of 1776 and witness this great commemorative event. Speeches and activities for this event are sponsored by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.....More

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New York City May Have a Lock on East Coast Christmas Celebrations, But Southern California Boasts the Oldest Holiday Boat Parade in the U.S.

/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- New York City can proudly boast of such holiday traditions as the Christmas tree and ice rink at Rockefeller Center and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. However, in Southern California the season may not be snowy and white but, to paraphrase Irving Berlin, it is always merry and bright thanks in part to the annual Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade, the oldest holiday boat parade in the U.S., celebrating its centennial with the theme of "100 Years of Christmas Cheer" this holiday season.

In "The OC" where trends and fads come and go as quickly as jets at LAX, the fashionable resort destination of Newport Beach is ready to mark the 2008 holiday season with the centennial of its impressive procession, adding a uniquely west coast twist to the array of annual holiday traditions in the U.S. Called "One of the top holiday happenings in the nation" by The New York Times, the annual Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade is the most elaborate on-the-water holiday spectacle in the country, delighting generations since 1908.

There are well over 20 holiday boat parades from coast to coast across the nation but the Newport Beach water-borne pageant trumps them all for remaining popular over the past ten decades. The parade has been described as the aquatic equivalent to the Pasadena Tournament of Roses.

The 100th edition of this iconic Southern California holiday event kicks off on Wednesday, December 17 (with an inaugural fireworks display) and continues through Sunday, December 21 at 6:30pm each evening in Newport Harbor. The procession winds its way 14 miles around the harbor (one of the largest small yacht harbors in the world) to give viewers in restaurants, yacht clubs, on public beaches, and in private homes an incredible sight. The parade is expected to again attract an audience of over one million spectators during the five consecutive evenings. For more information on where to find the best views of the parade, go to www.visitnewportbeach.com or www.christmasboatparade.com.

The colorful, twinkling parade features an armada of nearly 100 kayaks, canoes, impressive yachts and other watercrafts. Many of the yachts are decorated with whimsical animated scenes accompanied by music and costumed carolers, plus every conceivable lighting fixture or illuminated decoration.

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More Than a Million Sparkling Lights Illuminate New Holiday Celebration at Wild Adventures Theme Park

/PRNewswire/ -- It's a bigger, better, brighter Christmas season in Valdosta, Georgia, this year as Wild Adventures unwrapped its new Festival of Lights holiday celebration, November 15.

More than A MILLION sparkling lights welcome visitors to the theme park, creating a holiday glow families will not forget. Plus, there are all new holiday stage shows, new holiday foods, a one-of-a-kind live nativity, great gift shopping, Santa Claus and even St. Nick's favorite reindeer, Rudolph.

"Our new Festival of Lights celebration is the most spectacular holiday event in the entire South Georgia and Northern Florida region - there's nothing else like it!" said Wild Adventures' General Manager Bob Montgomery. "Families are not going to want to miss all of the lights, decorations and fun activities awaiting them at Wild Adventures."

Holiday Lights, Decorations and Food Fill the Senses

Entering the park, visitors are immediately transported to a storybook- like winter wonderland with a million lights and holiday music. Visitors can sample a mouth-watering array of holiday foods, including homemade fudge, Christmas cookies, fresh cinnamon rolls, delicious warm soups served in fresh baked bread bowls and even yummy s'mores that guests make themselves around a holiday campfire.

Holiday entertainment abounds at the Festival of Lights. Not to be missed is the amazing Lake of Lights show in the Lagoon area of the park, a spectacular giant Christmas tree and other amazing decorations with lights that blink and dance in synch with stirring holiday music. There are several other great shows, too!

So Much To See And Do!

The fun never stops at the Festival of Lights. Among other things, children can visit with Santa Claus (until Dec. 23), hop aboard the Wonderland Express train ride, a relaxing and leisurely way to take in the true beauty of the decorations and lights. A limited selection of other rides will be open, too. Of course, there is fun holiday gift-shopping in the park's gift shops.

Festival of Lights is open selected days November 15 - December 31. Please visit the website www.wildadventures.com for dates and times.

Adult admission $29.99. Children $14.99.

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Eight Million Lights Stretching More Than Five Miles

(NAPSI)-Let it glow. Let it glow. Let it glow. No, that's not the lyrics to a song. But it is a pretty good description of the 8 million lights stretching for more than five miles marking the 17th Annual Fantasy in Lights® at Callaway Gardens. The spectacle creates more than a dozen larger-than-life holiday scenes.

The holiday glow begins November 14 through December 30 in Pine Mountain, Ga. What's even more enlightening is that Callaway Gardens recently became the first resort in the Southeast to offset 100 percent of its electricity use by purchasing wind power credits. Every kilowatt of power is compensated with "green" power.

Known as the brightest light show in the South, the area offers a number of interesting holiday packages.

What To Expect

Visitors embark on the "Jolly Trolley" or drive through the lighted scenes in their vehicles to enjoy more than a dozen vistas including Snowflake Valley, a winter wonderland filled with enormous snowflakes and thousands of white lights; Magical Christmas Garden, with a 24-foot wreath entrance; and Santa's Workshop, showcasing animated lighted versions of Santa's elves working the night shift. Two spectacular scenes are set apart from the drivable route and incorporate narration, music and choreographed lights to tell the story of "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" and The Nativity on Robin Lake Beach. Ninety-nine percent of the frames used to create the scenes in Fantasy in Lights are custom designed, taking 3,900 man-hours to install.

Christmas Village

Families return every year to experience the Christmas Village, an indoor shopping and dining venue that includes visiting Santa Claus and roaming Fantasy In Lights characters. Inside the Christmas Village guests shop for specialty items with an array of Georgia crafters on hand, making and selling their wares.

For more information, call (800) CALLAWAY (225-5292) or visit www.callawaygardens.com.

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Dollywood Claims Best Christmas Event at 2008 Golden Ticket Awards

T2F Note: As the fall approaches, trips to the mountains increase. Gathering apples, admiring the leaves changing color, and visiting Dollywood all make a great weekend getaway from Fayette, Coweta and the rest of Georgia.

BUSINESS WIRE --Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmas festival won Best Christmas Event during the 2008 Golden Ticket Awards on Sept. 3, 2008, at the Give Kids the World Village, in Kissimmee, Fla.

Dollywood was a finalist in eight categories, more than any other park in the world.

Dollywood received 38 percent of the votes in this new category created for the 2008 Golden Tickets. Dollywood’s Thunderhead, twice named the number one wooden coaster in the world, placed second in the rankings of Top 50 Wooden Roller Coasters in the World. Dollywood also captured second place for honors for Best Food, Best Shows and Friendliest Park. Dollywood took third place honors for Cleanest Park 9 (a tie with Magic Kingdom), and fourth place for Best Landscaping. In the Best Park category, Dollywood ranked tenth place.

“We commend the Golden Ticket Award winners and all of the finalists for their varied achievements,” says Gary Slade, publisher and editor-in-chief of Amusement Today. “These awards are the pinnacle of honors in the amusement industry, and it is nice to recognize parks and attractions around the world who are striving for excellence each and every day.”

The Golden Ticket Awards are presented to the “best of the best” in the amusement industry and calculated from an international poll conducted by Amusement Today magazine. Surveys were sent to a database of experienced and well-traveled amusement park fans around the world–in balanced geographical regions–asking them to rate the “bests” in 25 categories such as amusement parks, roller coasters, shows, friendliest staff and water rides.

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