NEWS See the light this Christmas Santa OF THE WEEK
Travis Lupick
Santa Claus lives at the North Pole, but there’s no reason for Vancouver residents to travel thousands of kilometres to find a winter wonderland. This holiday season, there are a number of dazzling displays that the family can visit around Metro Vancouver and beyond.
“The lights of the Aurora Borealis are about to appear, and with them, our magical world for a season of holiday splendour,” teases a description of the Aurora Winter Festival, which is holding its inaugural run at Concord Pacific Place (811 Carrall Street). Visitors can ride a Ferris wheel, slide down a tube park, or simply stroll through the Mystical World light display.
Just outside Vancouver’s downtown core is Vandusen Botanical Garden’s annual Festival of Lights. A long-time Christmas tradition for people across the Lower Mainland, the six-hectare park (5251 Oak Street) is large enough to reveal new treasures every year.
Across Burrard Inlet in North Vancouver, Capilano Suspension Bridge Park’s Canyon Lights winter festival literally takes attendees up into the trees. It’s a uniquely West Coast attraction (3735 Capilano Road, North Vancouver), featuring Douglas firs that are more than 250 years old. The trees are decorated for the holidays with brilliant lights and connected by suspended walkways that carry visitors 110 feet above the forest floor.
For families looking for an afternoon escape from southwestern B.C.’S four-month winter deluge, Langley hosts a holiday celebration that is consistently dryer than most other holiday events taking place across Metro Vancouver. Christmas Glow (6690 216th Street, Langley) offers a massive lights display, a holiday market, live entertainment, visits with Santa Claus, and a playground for little kids, and it all happens indoors, where it’s perfectly warm and dry even through the Fraser Valley’s darkest days of December.
Finally, if you’re looking for an activity that can keep the family busy for longer than a single afternoon, Harrison Hot Springs hosts a holiday event that doubles as a great reason to get out of town for a weekend. Lights by the Lake is a free display that’s visible from just about anywhere along the town’s waterfront. It also includes story times for children and Christmas trees spread out among Harrison Hot Springs’ shops and restaurants.