Holiday Checklist: sights and activities that are a must this season

Emily Lutai, Lion's Roar Staff

 

     The holiday season is partly known for its cheerful decorations, neighborhoods, and cities worldwide decorate for Christmas. In Rhode Island, there are many places one can visit to see the magnificent decorations. The shimmering decor can easily cheer up anyone’s day and bring brightness to everyone, no matter what age. This article will talk about the most highly rated and beautiful sights, families and friends can visit close to home.

     Let’s start with the Newport Mansions, these beautiful historic buildings are available to visit all year round. During Christmas, the mansions are even more stunning, because people take their time and put in so much effort to decorate the mansions. Christmas trees, candles, red bows, extravagant lights, and much more are carefully placed and ornamented inside and outside of the mansions. There are 10 mansions in total, but only 3 of them will be garnished with lavish decor, The Breakers, The Marble House, and The Elms. Everyone is welcome to visit these mansions, Thursday to Sunday evenings, from November 19th to December 23rd, and starting December 26th, these mansions will be viewable daily until January 1st of 2023. The Breakers mansions specifically include a half-mile-long path decorated with dazzling and spectacular Christmas lights. These mansions are definitely worth anyone’s time during the holiday season.

     The next location is the Pawtucket Winter Wonderland, which takes place in Slate Memorial Park in Pawtucket. This includes a walk-through of glittering Christmas lights along with 650 Christmas trees on display along the path. This memorial park inhabits 20 Victorian houses, which are also included in the tour and all are welcome to come to view their historic beauty. There are many more sites, including photo opportunities and hayrides included in the park during the festivities. The celebration starts on December 4th and takes place until January 1st. Viewers are welcome to drive by and view the light from a vehicle but are encouraged to come to walk through and visit the different fun opportunities that are not available by driving. This event is very family oriented and the perfect spot for kids but recommended for all ages.

     The third spot is the play A Christmas Carol, a play taking place every day from November 3rd until January 1st, 2023 at Trinity Repertory in Providence RI. Even though this event takes place every day the times will vary depending on the day, if interested make sure to visit their website and purchase tickets. In this play, Ebenezer Scrooge is strongly against Christmas, when sitting in his cold dark apartment, he gets a visit from a ghost from his past, the present, and the future. After experiencing many different types of events and findings with these ghosts, he learned to appreciate and love Christmas. This play is another event perfect for all ages and definitely worth the visit. 

     The last winter activity is Ice Skating, there are many different rinks one can go to. One specific rink, located in Providence, The Providence Rink, is an outdoor ice skating rink that includes an ice bumper car game which is lots of fun. This also includes a big red heart made out of string lights perfect for photos. This activity is perfect for family and friends of all ages and is a winter must-activity.