The Hudson Valley is full of holiday cheer. Get in on it! / Janel Bladow
Lights are lit. Trees are decorated. Let’s get into the festive fun of the holiday season.
There’s something for everyone this December in the Hudson Valley, young and old, and even cheerfully grumpy!
We love getting into the spirit of Christmas. Take the family on an outdoor stroll. Visit Santa’s workshop. Make your own wooden decorations. Celebrate with songs of the seasons. Or dare to definitely be different.
Hudson Valley Happenings has searched far and near to give you a guide to some of the joyfully best around our area. From pop-up shopping marts to the performing arts here are a few of our favorite things (to do)! Happy Holidays!
FESTIVE FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY!
Museum Village
1010 Route 17M
Monroe, NY 10950
Walk through a very special Christmas in the Village event by day or early nightfall. Christmas Village is colorfully decorated by day and brightly lit up by night.
Pop into the Playhouse to see Mr. and Mrs. Claus and their merry elves. Get a socially distanced photo taken with jolly Santa and his Mrs. There’s a garden maze to explore, kids games and scavenger hunts, an art show with specialty boutique items and a snack bar stocked with yummy treats. Be entertained with live Christmasy music on Sunday. Dates: Saturday & Sunday, Dec. 12 & 13, 1 pm - 6 pm. Tickets $5
LOVE FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Darlene Love Sings Christmas
1351 Kings Highway
Sugarloaf, NY 10981
845 610-3485
Who doesn’t LOVE a little rocking around the Christmas Tree? Get your party started with none other than Grammy winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Darlene Love when she sings and swings at the Sugarloaf Performing Arts Center. The crystal clear sound of this amazing diva (“He’s A Rebel”) will ring out with joy when she blasts her holiday hit, “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)”, and more Yuletide tunes. Joining her on tour is a grand orchestra led by the brilliant Paul Shaffer. What a great way to kick up your holiday spirit! One show, Thursday, Dec. 9, 8 pm, tickets ($35 and up) are still available.
HOLIDAY MARKET & CHEER @
99 South 3rd St.
Hudson, NY 12534
518 697-5400
Hoist a cold one for this holiday market. It showcases 10 Hudson Valley artisans. River Valley Guild, a collective of creatives, hosts this as one of their many markets and events around New York. Based in the Hudson Valley they are bringing some of their favorite local artists and their projects and goods for you to stuff your stockings - food, beverages and many, many holiday gift ideas await. Bring a designated driver, or ask Santa if you can borrow Rudolph! Saturday, Dec. 12, noon - 7 pm, free.
HOLIDAY WOOD SIGN WORKSHOP
17 East Market St.
Red Hook, NY 12571
845 758-6006
Hudson Valley Vintage, a unique antique shop in quaint Red Hook, is hosting a make-your-own holiday sign party! Select from the charming projects to create your own Santa, Christmas Tree or Sled design. Refreshments and little snacks are included! Registration is required since space is limited. Full for you and friends, partners and kids alike. Saturday, Dec. 11, 11 am - 1 pm. Price: $50. Or ask about their private workshops which they’ll schedule for you and yours, minimum of four people. A fun way to spend a couple hours and have something to brag about!
HOLIDAY PUPPET SHOW
117 Harry Howard Ave.
Hudson, NY 12534
518 822-1875
Take the kiddies or even a childish adult to the FASNY Firefighters Museum a morning of old-fashioned fun at a fun-filled free in-person Holiday Puppet Show. Presented by the Catskill Puppet Theater the show, “The Town That Fought Hate,” features original music and almost life-sized puppets. It sends gentle messages and timely life lessons including why it’s important to stand up to bullies, the power behind a community and the power within each of us, children included, to make a difference. It’s sure to bring smiles to even the grouchiest Grinch. An after show scavenger hunt for the children to find all the holiday scenes on the fire trucks. Every kid goes home a winner with a prize just for trying. And who can resist a big red firetruck at Christmas? Saturday, Dec. 11, 10:30 am, free. This event is made possible by a grant from Hudson River Bank & Trust Co., the Museum’s Super Saturdays sponsor.
VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS
45 W. Clinton Ave.
Irvington, NY 10533
914 817-5763
Take a leap into the past with a lovely “Victorian Christmas” at The Octagon House Irvington. Celebrate the 2021 holiday season in the style of Victorian splendor. This eight-sided beauty will be decked and decorated with all the glam of a 1872 Christmas - wreaths, garlands, and a grand Christmas Tree inside the salon. Runs from Sunday, Dec. 12 - 27, 10 am - 5 pm, $30, reservations.
BEARY MERRY CHRISTMAS
Inside Bear Mountain State Park
Tomkins Cove, NY 10986
845 786-2701
Off to the woods we go! Everyone loves presents, even wild and zoo animals. Come to the Beary Merry Christmas event at Bear Mountain State Park’s Trailside Museum & Zoo and make some treats for those furry friends. Then watch them gobble up their delish holiday snacks. Give yourself 20 minutes to walk from the parking lot to the bear den. And dress warmly. Saturday, Dec. 18, starting at 10:30 am, suggested donation $1, parking $8.
2021 HOLIDAY CRAFTS FAIR
14 Civic Center Plaza
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
845 454-5800
The big annual gathering and selling of locally made crafts and more hits the Mid-Hudson Civic Center. Finish up or start your Christmas gift shopping. The event highlights Hudson Valley handmade products including scarves, jewelry, hair accessories, fleece blankets, handcrafted rope dog toys and more. For your spa lovers indulge them in handmade scrubs, balms, soaps and candles. Foodies fest on gifts for the table from honey to trivets. CBD creams and gummies too. Saturday, Dec. 18, 10 am - 4 pm, free.
PAIGE TURNER’S CHRISTMAS IS A DRAG!
10 NY - 17K
Newburgh, NY 12550
845 565-8200
The Showbiz Spitfire heads north to Newburgh to make one Christmas night merry and hoho bright! Paige Turner, oversized Barbie also known as Daniel Frank Kelley, fills her show with jokes, songs and yuletide cheer. Expect over-the-moon live & sung parodies and holiday classics by the likes of Mariah Carey and Bing Crosby. She’s naughty and nice, all rolled into one. The two-time Glam Award winner holds title to NYC’s longest running drag show, “Slurp” (it played 10 yeas at Therapy Bar). Friday, Dec. 10, 8:30 - 10 pm, $30-$35.
THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
601 Broadway
Kingston, NY 12401
845 339-6088
This 1993 film has become a holiday classic. You’ll want to get your jollies on with the characters of “The Nightmare Before Christmas” no matter if you’re a Grinch, Ghoul, or Santa’s Baby. In Producer Tim Burton’s wacky world, Jack Skellington, leader of Halloweentown, schemes to celebrate Christmas in a very different style! In the lobby, Lambe Lambe, a multiple stage production by Paperheart Puppets, greets ticket holders to another mind blowing treat. Friday, Dec. 17, 7:30-11:30 pm, $6.
ATHENS VICTORIAN STROLL
24 Second St.
Athens, NY 12015
518 945-2136
Bring the family and friends for an old-fashioned stroll around town. The little Hudson River hamlet of Athens presents its annual daylong extravaganza of holiday fun. The folks dress up in their finest holiday duds and become wandering carolers. Enjoy horse-drawn trolley and hay wagon rides, local craft sidewalk peddlers, live music performances and snap a photo of yourselves at the vintage photo booth. For adult Yule imbibers, there are tours at Crossroads Brewery, Irish dancing, and more. Saturday, Dec. 11, 1- 5 pm, free.
JESSICA LYNN - A VERY MERRY COUNTRY CHRISTMAS
1008 Brown St.
Peekskill, NY 10566
914 739-0039, ext. 2
The Hudson Valley’s own country singer, Jessica Lynn (okay, she was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Westchester County - that counts!) returns to her old stomping grounds with a traveling minstrel show: “Jessica Lynn - A Very Merry Country Christmas.” Full of holiday cheer, boot-banging, hip-wagging, back slapping down home Christmas music. The Valley Country Girl has two original Yule tunes out on most digital streaming platforms: “It’s Just Not Christmas,” and “Santa You Can Skip Our House!” And betcha she even belts out a bar or two of her latest hits “Runaway Car” and “Roadhouse.” A fun night for country music lovers and anyone out for a really hoedown holiday. Woohoo! Saturday, Dec. 18, 8 pm, tickets $25- $35.
