As the sunlight disappears early in the evening, the city begins to light up with a seasonal favorite, holiday lights. From the decorative pine trees in both the Boston Common and Seaport, to holiday festivals and light installations. It is obvious to the average eye that winter holiday festivities have taken hold of Boston.
Snowport winter market has been open since Nov. 7 in Seaport with over 130 different vendors from the Greater Boston Area. With free admission, it gives locals and visitors a chance to begin their holiday preparations in style, before the inevitable cold weather kicks in. The market has grown considerably in its popularity, having only started around five years ago.
If an outdoor market is a little too cold, Sowa’s Winter Festival started Nov. 28 with over 125 local vendors and is fully indoors with only a $10 admission fee. The festival has been around since 2016, and is celebrating 10 years of operation. Notably, it turns the historical SoWa Power Station into New England’s largest holiday market.
Besides winter markets, there are a lot of different sightseeing events that have started popping up all throughout the city.
The Prudential Center began a light installation Dec. 4, transforming the South Garden into a “Winter Garden,” created by local artist group MASARY studios. The exhibit features a mixture of lights and sound to create celestial choreography that shimmers and shifts with each passing moment.
Decorative lights appear all throughout the city, bringing festivities to another level. Areas like Newbury Street now adorn themselves in various arrangements of lights, and homes in Beacon Hill are decorated for the holidays.
The Boston Commons annual Christmas tree lighting took place Dec. 4, which for many, signifies the official beginning of the holiday season.
Boston’s Seaport also lit its Christmas tree Dec. 5. The event had performances from Boston City Singers, Hill House the Band, The Gracenotes, Lourde Childs and Bermuda Search Party. Local celebrity “Betty the Yeti” made an appearance after returning from her vacation in the Himalayas.
If outdoor events are not that intriguing, Citizens’ Opera House is hosting the Boston Ballet and their production of a holiday classic, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker.” The show’s runtime is approximately two hours with one intermission between the two acts. The Boston Ballet has also introduced the option to rush tickets to “The Nutcracker” this year, at $50 each for some performances. Boston Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” will run until Dec. 28.
Holiday festivities are in full swing in Boston, and with the first official snow Dec. 6 it seems as though everything is getting more festive.
