Here Are The 10 Most Enchanting, Magical Christmas Towns In Nebraska
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Delana Lefevers
Author
Spending Christmas in Nebraska is such a wonderful experience. Everywhere you go, bright lights and festive decorations welcome the season. Each town and city has its own way to celebrate, and these are some of the sweetest and most jolly Christmas towns you’ll find in Nebraska.
Also be sure to take a look at last year’s list, which contains a couple of the towns featured below. The following towns are listed in no particular order.
Although Minden was on last year's list, there's no way we could leave out Nebraska's official Christmas City. Minden has been putting on their impressive holiday light show for more than 100 years now. From late November through December, the town puts on tons of fun activities like a 5K, a parade, a family festival, and a pageant.
Located in Bruce Park, SantaLand is Creighton's delightful annual celebration. The town goes all out with outdoor displays, animated decorations, and Santa's Workshop. Local businesses, organizations, and individuals come together to make this feat of Christmas magic come to life every year.
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The theme of Alliance's 2016 Christmas parade is "Celebrating 150 years of Winter Wonderland." Come out on November 29th from 5:30 to 6:30 pm for the parade, and be sure to stroll down Alliance's historic main street district for beautiful wintry scenes like the one above. There are also plenty of seasonal events planned at the Knight Museum and Sandhills Center in Alliance.
The city of Valentine is most often associated with Valentine's Day, but as of 2015 they've also got a pretty solid Christmas festival. Known as the Heart of Valentine Parade of Lights, the event takes place on the Saturday following Thanksgiving (November 26th this year). Last year the event included a sidewalk s'mores bar, a delightful parade, and a visit from Santa. We can't wait to see what happens this year.
Beatrice pulls out all the stops for their special Christmas decorations and celebration. This year's courthouse lighting ceremony was on November 20th, and the beautiful historic building is now lit up with more than 30,000 lights. Come out on December 3rd for the town's Holiday Lighted Parade; this year's theme is "Sounds of the Season."
The little village of Hemingford has a big claim to fame every Christmas. The town pulls together to create a Christmas-themed outdoor diorama that stretches out to the length of about 2.5 football fields (read about its interesting history here). There will also be a fun Christmas market at the Hemingford fairgrounds on December 3rd.
There are decorations and events at Boys Town all through the holiday season, but the main event is the Boys Town Christmas Family Festival on Saturday, December 10th. You can meet Santa, make your own ornament, visit with Santa's reindeer, and explore the beautifully decorated campus.
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Dannebrog, the Danish Capital of Nebraska, celebrates an Old Fashioned Danish Christmas each year. Over the weekend of December 3rd and 4th, there are so many activities happening in Dannebrog that you'll wonder how you're going to fit them all in. Check out their flyer (PDF) for a list of events.
This tiny Gage County village of less than 500 people brings out big numbers of visitors for their annual Christmas celebration. This year they're putting on a Renaissance Christmas, with fun activities and demonstrations to show what the holiday was like centuries ago. The festival, which is scheduled for December 17th from 9:00 am to 11:00 am, will also have some more modern activities and a visit from Santa.
Rounding out our list is another town that appeared on last year's list. In 2015, Seward was named Nebraska’s Hometown Christmas City by the governor - an impressive feat considering that Seward is already Nebraska's 4th Of July City. The 2016 Seward Christmas Festival Lighted Parade is scheduled for November 26th at 5:30 pm, but there are special events planned for the entire day; see the full schedule of events here.
Every town in Nebraska has its own special holiday traditions. Where do you love to spend Christmas in Nebraska?
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