Looking for Christmas/holiday family fun in the Southeast...

June 17, 2007 8:44 AM

Southern Christmas/winter holiday traditions for families with kids -- point me to some good things to see, places to go, eat, etc in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama especially (GA, Arkansas, TN also welcome)....

Bonus points for Thanksgiving fun, and if you have a few items to appeal to people of other faiths/nationalities, that would be fantastic.

posted by mdiskin to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (10 answers total)

Drive around and look at people's yard/house decorations from the car. Ask around / look for newspaper stories for ideas about where to drive.

Decorating cookies with frosting and little candy thingies (look in the baking aisle at the grocery store). The cookies are usually rolled butter cookies, cut into various thematic shapes. You can pick the shapes (you should be able to order some interesting cookie cutters off the net). For varying faiths/nationalities, you can pick different cookie shapes, or even just stick with round ones. For vegans (or other people who don't want to eat butter/milk), use soy milk and soy butter [or margarine as a last resort]).

If this isn't an appropriate suggestion, it will at least help clarify the question...
posted by amtho at 8:57 AM on June 17, 2007

Response by poster: thanks -- this is more about destinations, parades, productions -- for a parenting magazine. Does that make sense? (Stuff people would like to put on their calendars or take time to visit, as opposed the home holiday traditions.)
posted by mdiskin at 9:44 AM on June 17, 2007

If you get around Lafayette LA, look into the Blue Moon Guesthouse. The people that run it are really wonderful folks and know lots of interesting things to do around the area. You might email them and ask about kid-friendly stuff.
posted by dog food sugar at 10:21 AM on June 17, 2007

Ah, well, then you should know about the Pink Pig in Atlanta. I don't know that it will be back for the 2007 holiday season, but it probably will be, and it's a venerable Atlanta tradition. And right by a major shopping destination.
posted by amtho at 10:51 AM on June 17, 2007 [1 favorite]

Many Christmases in the South for me included visiting the Fantasy In Lights at Callaway Gardens. It is a drive-through Christmas light show, very well done. Bring your own hot chocolate!
posted by FuzzyVerde at 11:34 AM on June 17, 2007 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I live in Atlanta, and the PP is definitely on my list. Callaway and Lake Lanier both have great light shows, and Stone Mountain is going to have a winter "snow mountain" attraction sponsored by Coca-cola starting in November. But I'm really, really looking for stuff outside my home state. Either historical fun or cheesy fun, anything that someone in that state would have fun going to.
posted by mdiskin at 2:23 PM on June 17, 2007

If you hit Nashville, the Opryland Hotel usually goes all out for the season - the huge indoor gardens are decorated, cruises on the General Jackson riverboat, the Grand Ole Opry is there if you're into that, and Opry Mills is right next door for shopping. Plus, you can find all sorts of other attractions in the area - there are tons of antebellum home tours, etc.
posted by pupdog at 2:47 PM on June 17, 2007

It's a little east of the area you mention, but Christmas at the Biltmore is a good southern holiday tradition.
posted by frobozz at 6:45 PM on June 17, 2007

Response by poster: I'd forgotten about the Biltmore. And thanks for the Opry goodness.
posted by mdiskin at 7:30 PM on June 17, 2007

The Christmas Lights festival in Natchitoches. Parades, lights, quaint small southern town...you can't lose!
posted by pyjammy at 10:49 AM on June 18, 2007