The Greenbrier lights up during the holiday season. (Photo courtesy The Greenbrier)
With the ever-shrinking number of days for three generations to celebrate Christmas together, I began looking, several years ago for a Christmas Eve and Day venue that was not at our Midlothian home or at the homes of either of our children. No one was going to have to work on of those days if I could help it — and, best of all, the entire group could enjoy new experiences together as a family.
Scouring the internet, I realized the five-star Fairmont’s Chateau Frontenac in Old Quebec City — where Tom and I once enjoyed a summer lunch “B.K.” (before kids) — was hard to top for those two Christmas days: Hotel staff give children carrots and milk on Christmas Eve to put in their rooms — and, of course, the items disappear during the night. On Christmas Day, Santa arrives in a horse-driven carriage (don’t know what happened to reindeer — perhaps they were carrot intolerant) at the main entrance of the hotel and delivers presents for children (parents provide the gifts to hotel staff on Christmas Eve).
Alas, Quebec was a bit too far and too pricey for us — as was cozying up on a San Diego beach with Santa hats, beach chairs and a private holiday bonfire in front of Hotel del Coronado with fireside franks and Jingle s’mores on the menu from Dec. 15 to Dec. 26 ($125 per hour for the fire pit and accessories, not including food). Tom and I had enjoyed lunch sans kids here, too, once upon an early summer.
I knew I could find very good options close to Richmond, and I wasn’t disappointed. All of the venues covered below offer an assortment of holiday programs. Check websites to learn what’s new for this year’s holidays in general — such as a life-size gingerbread house at the Williamsburg Lodge — because I focus only on Christmas Eve and Day.
At the Williamsburg Inn, chefs make a seasonal cake as a gift to guests in each room during Christmas Eve “turndown” along with a note from the manager and recipe for the seasonal cake (which can range from butter cake to gingerbread pound cake to Christmas stollen). A bit less pricey than the Inn, The Woodlands Hotel & Suites at Colonial Williamsburg — where our three generations have stayed twice during Christmas — hangs small stockings on all guest doors Christmas Eve; a holiday note accompanies candy and holiday craft kits for the kids.
Wintergreen Resort in Nelson County surprises families with Santa on the slopes on Christmas Eve.
Holiday decorations in the lobby of the lodge at Primland (Photo courtesy Primland)
In Southwest Virginia’s Meadows of Dan, Primland resort offers Tracking Santa in the Observatory for guests on Christmas Eve. The resort’s astronomer magically makes a sleigh appear on the screens that broadcast the telescope feed, so young guests can follow Santa as he travels the world delivering presents. There’s also a free horse-drawn carriage trip around the top of the mountain on Christmas Day.
The Omni Homestead Resort & Spa in Hot Springs offers Christmas-themed hayrides on Christmas Eve, and guests go to the Mountain Lodge, about a mile away, to make s’mores — for a fee of $20 each. A tractor pulls the wagon for the hayride, but you can book a carriage ride if you prefer horses. If you’re looking for your family to learn a new skill over the two days, consider a Homestead falconry lesson, $99 per adult, $89 per child.
Just across the state line from the Homestead — at The Greenbrier in West Virginia, families, children and guests have celebrated Christmas Eve at the resort’s Gingerbread Ball since 1991. It’s $89 per adult and $45 per child aged 4 to 12, which includes being in the presence of the guests of honor — Santa and Mrs. Claus, a band and an excerpt performance from “The Nutcracker” ballet (yes, real ballerinas). Along with this tradition, Santa gives each child a commemorative Gingerbread Ball ornament, which is not sold in the gift shop — a true keepsake.
A favorite spot of ours, Tides Inn in the Northern Neck, is one at which we’ve only spent time in warmer weather, but its Christmas Eve tradition is well known for having a gift tailored to each guest under the inn’s tree (staff keep a file of guests’ hobbies and what’s been given to returning guests). The resort, unfortunately, will be closing for renovations after Thanksgiving until early spring — so check back for Christmas 2019.
