Getting in the Christmas spirit? Here are the festivities happening around Merced County
As Thanksgiving tables are cleared and autumn turns to winter, that means it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Merced County. Here’s a few holiday happenings to mark on the calendar after Thursday’s festivities:
Merced
The City of Merced is hosting three events in December to carry residents’ holiday spirit through until Christmastime.
To kick it all off, a Christmas Tree Lane “reverse parade” will be held on Main Street in downtown Merced on Dec. 4 from 5 to 8:30 p.m.
Unlike past years before the COVID-19 pandemic, when attendees lined Main Street to watch floats and performances make their way through downtown, the reverse parade stations participants and floats in set spots. Parade-goers drive by the spectacle in their vehicles, entering at M and 18th streets.
Applications to enter the parade can be submitted through Nov. 29.
Santa’s Workshop is coming to the Applegate Park Zoo on Dec. 15 from 4:45 to 7:30 p.m. Kids age 2 to 10 are welcome, although masks are required at the event. The cost per child attending is $10. Families can pre-register at 632 W 18th St. or by calling (209) 385-6235.
The Applegate Park Zoo is also the place to be Dec. 16 through 19 for the city’s Lights Before Christmas. The community is invited to gather for holiday music, hot cocoa and photo booths from 5 to 7:30 p.m. during the three-day event.
Atwater
Atwater too is ringing in the holidays with several festive community events.
The city’s annual Christmas parade, themed Holidays on Ice, starts its march at 7 p.m. on Dec. 3. The parade route kicks off at Winton Way and Grove Avenue, takes a left on Broadway Avenue and finishes off at the historic Bloss Mansion at 1020 Cedar Avenue.
Community members can submit parade entry applications through Nov. 29, available on the Atwater Chamber of Commerce’s website.
Bloss Mansion will also be a local holiday hub from Dec. 17 through 19. Music, shows, live animals, Christmas trees and a snow land play area are free to the public from 5 to 9 p.m.
Atwater’s first outdoor ice rink is also open for the holiday season through mid-January.
Los Banos
Los Banos’s annual downtown Christmas parade is also slated for Dec. 3. Themed Rocking Around A Community Strong Christmas, the parade will leave from 4th and H streets at 6 p.m., serenaded to the tune of choir music.
The route finishes at Henry Miller Plaza where the Christmas tree will be lit and 10 parade awards presented.
Parade applications are available at the Los Banos Chamber office at 932 Sixth St and can be submitted until Nov. 29.
Livingston
Downtown Livingston will light up with its Court of Trees on Dec. 3.
Featuring up to 106 Christmas trees, community members can register for $40 to decorate their tree as early as Nov. 30. Once the trees are illuminated on Dec. 3, they’ll shine through the end of Christmas on Dec. 25.
Residents can call (209) 394-8830 for more information.
The city’s annual Christmas parade will take place on Dec. 10, weaving through a neighborhood route between Livingston Middle School and Campus Park Elementary School. Homes along the parade’s path are encouraged to decorate.
Community members can register for the Christmas Kitchen themed parade online or at City Hall.
Dos Palos
The City of Dos Palos is getting an early start celebrating the holidays, with its Christmas parade scheduled for Dec. 2. The annual holiday event is title the Dos Palos Grinchmas Who-liday Parade this year.
Marching starts at 6 p.m. at Blossom and Mitchell streets and ends at the Boy Scout hut for a tree lighting ceremony, pictures with Santa Claus and other events. Kids can mail their wish lists off to Santa in the North Pole, too.
For the first time this year, the annual parade will feature a contest judging floats on theme, most lights, float enthusiasm and best farm equipment. Floats, quads, tractors and walking entries are welcome in the parade.
Gustine
Gustine’s festivities are slated for a day of celebration on Nov. 27, according to the Gustine Chamber of Commerce.
The morning will begin with breakfast with Santa from 8 to 11 a.m. at Gustine Pentecost Society Hall. Then, the community is invited to shop a craft fair at 5th Street from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. A Santa’s Workshop will also be set up that morning from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 367 5th St.
Gustine residents will have another opportunity to get photos with Santa in the afternoon from 3:30 to 5 p.m. at 498 5th St.
A Christmas tree lighting and entertainment is also scheduled for 6 p.m. at the intersection of 5th St. and 4th Ave.
The festive day will end with a lighted Christmas parade immediately following the tree lighting.
This story was originally published November 29, 2021 at 12:49 PM.
