Well, jack-o-lanterns and goblins are a thing of the past near your beach house Charleston. Orange and black décor is marked down 80%, and it’s time to think about red and green. If you listen closely, you can hear the faint jingle of bells. Before you know it, the holidays will be here in full force. One of the surest signs around here that Christmas is upon us, is the annual Holiday Festival of Lights. It will be happening every evening starting this Friday, November 10th through New Year’s Day. FYI, there’s a special sneak peek this week. More about that in a bit. This year marks the 28th annual installment of the festival. What started out in 1990 with 18 light displays, now has over 700. You’ll be dazzled by more than two million colorful lights set in very creative, imaginative and animated displays. Honestly, the first time I decided to go, I wasn’t expecting much. But much to my surprise, I left feeling enchanted and filled with the holiday spirit. Now I look forward to it each year and hope to go when I can. It’s a terrific place to people of all ages staying in your Charleston beach house. Here are some ranking and kudos for the festival:
- Coastal Living - one of the top ten holiday celebrations in America;
- The American Bus Association - one of the top 100 events in the nation;
- The Southeast Tourism Society - one of the top 20 events in the Southeast;
- USA Today - one of the “10 Best Holiday Light Show in America;”
- The only event in the United States that made Moscow’s Festival of Festivals list.
It’s particularly fun because you can go with a whole bunch of friends and family. They charge admission by the carload, and you can take in most of the lights while driving through in your vehicle. So bring along everybody in your luxury house on Isle of Palms or Folly Beach house Charleston. It’s something that all ages can enjoy. I have a very fond memory of Rusty taking me and Philip Simmons, the gifted blacksmith who made many of the beautiful gates and ironworks in Charleston, through the park to see the lights, along with our little Jack Russell, Theo. It was so cool and beautiful, and the four of us had a great time together, gazing out at the grand illuminations. In the Holiday Festival of Lights it’s nice to park and walk around as well, since there’s a lot more to see and experience. There’s a professionally crafted holiday-themed sand sculpture made from 50 tons of sand, as well as interactive light displays. You can drink hot chocolate and roast marshmallows in Santa’s Village, ride the holiday train through the woods and lighted trails, enjoy goodies from Santa’s Sweet Shoppe, find holiday gifts and ornaments, see handmade gingerbread houses, giant greeting cards made by local students, or ride a Victorian carousel. As you can imagine, it takes a ton of work to pull it all together, by both staff and volunteers. Basically, there is someone working on it all year long - either taking it all down, maintaining the displays, creating new ones, or setting them all up. The actual installation -- stringing up two million lights - started approximately 45 days before opening night. It all takes place at James Island County Park, an easy drive from all our SC vacation rentals, either Isle of Palms luxury rentals or especially a Folly Beach rentals Charleston. Boeing is a primary sponsor.
Hours are:
Sunday – Thursday evenings: 5:30 – 10:00 p.m.
Friday & Saturday evenings: 5:30 – 11:00 p.m.
ADMISSION:
1 – 15 guests: $20 per vehicle
16 – 30 guests: $40 per vehicle Mon-Thurs, or $50 Fri-Sun
31+ guests: $100 per vehicle Mon-Thurs, or $150 Fri-Sun
Every Monday through Thursday evenings, you can get $5 off the $20 admission with the donation of a non-perishable food item or dog or cat food. It will be donated to the Lowcountry Food Bank. So that’s just $15 for a vehicle of up to 15 people - plus you are helping out the community at the same time. Here’s the official website, with all the details: https://www.holidayfestivaloflights.com/ 
A fun sneak peek this week if you're in a beach house Charleston
There’s an especially fun way to get an early sneak peek at the lights. It’s the Holiday Festival of Lights Fun Run and Walk - a non-competitive two-mile evening run or walk through the colorful light displays. It will take place this Wednesday and Thursday, November 8th and 9th at 6:30 p.m. each night. Afterwards, you are encouraged to linger and take in all the sights and festivities. This is a wildly popular pre-festival event, and last I checked both nights are already sold out. Hopefully you already reserved a place. The run/walk starts promptly at 6:30, and the gate will be closed from 6:30 till 8:30. You are urged to get there early in order to park and take your place before the gates close for the run/walk). For your GPS, James Island County Park is located at 871 Riverland Drive in Charleston, SC.
Book your holiday beach house Charleston now...
A beach house Charleston is a terrific place to spend the holidays with friends and family. It’s a pretty good bet you won’t have to deal with the hassles of snow and sleet if you spend Christmas in one of our luxury beach house rentals SC. You’ll have a wonderful kitchen to cook up holiday goodies, plenty of bedrooms for everyone to have sweet dreams where visions of sugarplums dance in their heads. Oh - and the beach is nearby, where kids can go and play with their new toys. If you are interested in one of our beach house rentals Charleston SC for the holidays, especially one of our Isle of Palms vacation rentals, call as soon as you can. Our luxury beach house rentals SC are getting all the more popular with each passing year. So when you are interested in rental homes South Carolina - most especially a beach house Charleston - just call us at Exclusive Properties. All best, Lowcountry Lisa your Isle of Palms vacation blogger