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'Tis The Season

Celebrate The Holidays – South Florida Style – With 15 Festive Activities

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During the holidays in South Florida, there are no chestnuts roasting on an open fire.

Jack Frost isn’t nipping at your nose (that’s a mosquito). Sleigh rides are replaced with bike rides, and there’s not a speck of snow in the sky.

Even though the holidays here don’t usher in the traditional festivities and customs we dream about – or remember fondly from our childhoods in colder climes – our corner of paradise has its own way of celebrating. And it’s just as special.

We think you’ll agree after perusing our list of festive activities for you to enjoy this season. Add these ideas to your “must” list to keep your holiday glow going right up until the new year. Now, go and make merry!

Cheer On This Parade

Boca Raton kicks off the season with its 49th Holiday Street Parade. The old-fashioned spectacle dazzles the crowd with more than 70 festive floats, marching civic groups, bands, local dance troupes, stunning lights and musical interludes galore. 

Indulge In A Sweet Musical Treat

Music lovers of all ages enjoy Lynn Philharmonia’s Annual Gingerbread Holiday Concert of seasonal music, packed with all your favorite songs. The concert – now in its 17th year – raises money for scholarships for student musicians at the university’s conservatory. While we don’t have a set list, we can guarantee tunes that will have you singing along.

Watch The Tree Light Up

Join the cheering crowd when Santa lights the 100-foot Christmas tree adorned with 30,000 ornaments and thousands of lights at the 26th annual tree lighting in Delray Beach. Then take a walk through the tree to enjoy merry scenes, including Santa’s Workshop, the ’Twas the Night Before Christmas House and the Train House. Stick around for ice skating, a carousel ride and entertainment.

Be Dazzled By Boats

The flotilla of brightly illuminated boats in the 48th annual Holiday Boat Parade, hosted by the Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency and the City of Delray Beach, travels along the Intracoastal from north of the Boynton Beach Inlet to the C-15 canal (the border between Delray and Boca Raton). Each boat has its own character – and merry crew of revelers. 

Revel In Balanchine’s “The Nutcracker”

Surround yourself in the beauty and magic of George Balanchine’s “The Nutcracker,” performed by the Miami City Ballet. The classic production is set to Tchaikovsky’s enchanting music, and the ornate costumes were designed by fashion-world icons Isabel and Ruben Toledo. You’ll dream of sugar plum fairies long after the final curtain falls. 

Photo by Alexander Iziliaev

Board The Polar Express

Delight in this live re-creation of “The Polar Express” in an hour-long immersive experience onboard Brightline as dancing chefs serve hot chocolate, carolers delight and narrators offer a special reading of the classic children’s story. Santa’s in on the action, too, with a special Christmas gift for travelers. But he has a special request (and it’s not milk and cookies): Wear pajamas on this magical trip, just as they did in the movie and book.

Reimagine A Christmas Classic

Actor Timur Kocak energizes the Charles Dickens holiday classic “A Christmas Carol” with his one-man show of the same name, becoming 25 different characters using just the contents of a single steamer trunk. How will he perform Ebenezer Scrooge, Tiny Tim and all the ghosts? Seeing is believing. 

Honor Kwanzaa

This event is a tribute to the past – and a celebration of the present. Stop by the Kwanzaa Celebration at the Spady Museum, where the values of ancient African cultures will be honored. Participants light the kinara candles and bring food, fruit and gifts to share. The family-oriented indoor-outdoor event includes crafts, a discussion, music, a ceremony and a feast.

Pop Into This Pop-Up Bar

At Santa’s Workshop’s Elfed Up pop-up bar at The Ritz-Carlton Fort Lauderdale, warm your spirits with a Hot Toddy, virgin or spiked; a ruby red Hibiscus Senses; or a Coquito, the rich Latin version of eggnog. The Rum Room will be transformed into a holiday wonderland with entertainment and other festivities designed to get you in the yuletide mood. 

Rock In The New Year

Out with the old, in with the new – and in with the Jonas Brothers. The pop stars will headline Fontainebleau Miami Beach’s New Year’s Eve party, counting down the seconds as 2019 comes to a close and performing on the resort’s oceanfront poolscape. Also on tap: a buffet dinner, drinks and other festivities. A special family-friendly experience is offered, too.

Photo by Peggy Sirota

Light The Menorah

Join in a celebration of the Hanukkah miracle during a special menorah lighting in Palm Beach Gardens. Designed to unite Jewish organizations and salute the religious freedom of the holiday, it will also include latkes, children’s activities, music and a police honor guard. Community leaders and dignitaries are expected to attend. 

Jazz It Up

The Klezmer Company Jazz Orchestra will be mixing it up during The Kultur Festival: A Very Jewish Concert, hosted by the Levis JCC. The event, set for Christmas Day, features accordionist and music director Aaron Kula, who will lead the acclaimed nine-member orchestra in a concert filled with songs; stories; and jazzed-up arrangements of classic Yiddish, Israeli and Hasidic melodies.

Take Time For Tea

Tea for two – or more – is the perfect way to usher in the holidays. Luxuriate with a cuppa at the posh HMF Restaurant at The Breakers Palm Beach, where you can choose from a curated selection of teas. Plus, nibble handcrafted tea sandwiches; pastries; and warm buttermilk scones with Devonshire cream, rose petal jam and fresh fruit preserves.  

Party At The MatzoBall

Don’t let this ball drop. You don’t want to miss what USA Today calls “the No. 1 holiday party of the year.” At MatzoBall – the nation’s leading Jewish singles event – guests mix, mingle and network. It’s the 32nd year for this event, held on Christmas Eve in multiple locations around the country, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Delray Beach.

Start The New Year Right

Kick off 2020 in a positive way by joining fellow health enthusiasts at Something Big, an outdoor community yoga class in Boca Raton. Yoga teacher Leslie Glickman will lead thousands of participants through poses, set to live music. A marketplace and food trucks complete the chill vibe at this free event designed to begin the new year with “a healthy dose of love and inspiration.”

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