(Russ Brown Photography/Courtesy of Christmas Village in Philadelphia)
For the 15th straight year, the Christmas Village in Philadelphia is open for the holiday season.
Center City has been transformed into an open-air German market that includes food, drinks, and trinkets on sale from local and international vendors. The Christmas spirit is in the air with plenty of activities for families, including a two-tier carousel, a ferris wheel, and German cuisine for all to enjoy. Admission into the event area is free.
More than 110 vendors both local and international will be stationed in booths spread out between Love Park, City Hall, and Broad Street.
For children, story time events offered by the Free Library of Philadelphia are scheduled every Tuesday at 11 a.m., and for the adults, wine and spirit tastings are happening every Tuesday and Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Organizers say the Christmas Village is nearly back to pre-pandemic standards, after dealing with COVID-19 restrictions the last two years. Plans are now in the works to expand the annual pop-up event in the future, according to PR and Social Media Manager Lisa Leonhardi.
“It just keeps growing every year because people love it around here,” Leonhardi said. “Like everywhere I go, people know of [the] Christmas Village and Philadelphia, like it’s just part of the city at this point.”
Leonhardi said thousands of people are expected to attend this year.
“We had our like official opening weekend this weekend, and it’s been a crazy amount of people visiting. It’s just so nice to see that again, and see everybody come together for Christmas.” Leonhardi said.
Sunday’s Christkind Ceremony was postponed due to inclement weather; it will now take place Monday at 5 p.m.
Dog adoption events will take place Dec. 2 and 16 at 5 p.m., in conjunction with the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society (PAWS).
German-American Weekend will be held Dec. 3 and 4.
On Dec. 4, the German Games will be held from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., including Beerstein holding and Bratwurst eating competitions.
Family Day is Dec. 10 with kids activities planned for the entire day.
The Christmas Village will be open every day, rain or shine, until Christmas Eve.