Category Archives: Holiday Shopping Guide

BY JILL NAGY

November and December will be a busy months for holiday celebrations in Saratoga and Glens Falls. In Saratoga Springs, the Victorian Street Walk will be back in its previous format from 6 to 9 p.m. November 30. Glens Falls has renamed its outdoor holiday market, scheduled for December 1-3, the Adirondack Holiday Festival. Glens Falls also plans a holiday decorating contest open to homeowners, apartment dwellers, and business owners. The Festival of Trees returns to the Saratoga City Center November 20 to December 4. And there are rumors of a holiday parade in South Glens Falls. 

This is the 37th year for the Saratoga Springs Victorian Street Walk, an event that has evolved from a street festival largely sponsored by local business owners as “a great way for businesses to welcome people and thank them for their support,” according to Deann Devitt, board president of the Saratoga Springs  Business Association, the main organization running the event. Over the years, it has grown to a night of entertainment in downtown businesses and on the streets. During the height of the Covid pandemic, the event was changed from a weekday evening to a full weekend, in order to minimize crowds. This year, it returns to its previous format. Before the pandemic, close to 10,000 people would crowd Broadway for the walk. In between, “It’s been a couple of weird years,” Devitt said. This year, with people still shy of crowds, she expects some 5,000 walkers.

The evening will begin with the lighting of a holiday tree. City employees from the Department of Public Works will bring the tree and set it up. Munter Enterprises, another of the tree sponsors, will lend a lift to get the tree onto its stand. Rena Fine Flowers, a Saratoga Springs florist, was hired to decorate the tree.

Once the tree is lit, “this kicks off the season for Santa.” Devitt reports. He will be in his Santa Cottage to welcome children with their wish lists and letters. Weather permitting, Mrs. Santa will accompany him but, Devitt explained, Mrs. Santa is getting on in years (“aren’t we all?”) and cannot always sit in the cold for long periods of time. An elf or two will fill in, if necessary. 

The Glens Falls Collaborative’s Hometown Holiday/Adirondack Christkindlmarkt will take place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 2, 3 and 4  in Glens Falls City Park.

The event will begin with a parade to escort Santa Claus to town. The parade will begin at Crandall Park at 5:15 p.m. head south on Glen Street to City Park. Santa and Mayor Bill Collins will light the tree at 6:15 p.m.

After the tree lighting Santa will be available to visit with children in the Glens Falls National Bank Wealth Management office on Glen Street. 

Glen Street will not be closed for this year’s event, but a roped off path will direct families to the bank. Those crossing Glen Street  will be asked to do so in the crosswalk by Spot Coffee where there will be a crossing guard on duty.

In City Park there will be two tents full of vendors. More than 35 have signed up for the event. 

There will also be an entertainment tent and there will be strolling carolers in the area. Entertainers will include North County Fair, a Celtic band from Cranberry Lake area. There will also be a polka band performing on Sunday afternoon. 

The Christmas tree that will stand in Rockefeller  Center in midtown Manhattan for the 2022-23 holiday season is one that was grown in Queensbury.

Standing at 82 feet tall, 50 feet wide and weighing in at 14 tons, the approximately 90-year-old Norway Spruce was selected from a private property, not a tree stand.

It is arriving at Rockefeller Center in New York City on Nov. 12, according to center officials.

They said last year’s tree, from Maryland, was only 79 feet tall and weighed 12 tons, but was decked out with 50,000 lights and topped with a star weighing 900 pounds.

This year’s spruce will be topped with a star made from 3 million Swarovski crystals, designed by architect Daniel Libeskind in 2018.

The iconic Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree tradition dates back to 1933 and has endured for eight decades as a catalyst for some metropolis holiday spirit.

Events to a T reprises its successful Holiday Festival of Lights along Canada Street in Lake George, from Nov. 27 to Dec. 31.

Visitors and locals alike can see decorated storefronts on Canada Street and a huge light display in Shepard’s Park in Lake George. There is no cost for the event.

“The lights are best enjoyed when it’s dark out, after 5 p.m.,” said organizer Letizia Mastrantoni, owner of Events to a T. “Many businesses have pledged to remain open for extended hours this December and especially on weekends. Several area hotels are offering packages for overnight stays at family-friendly pricing. You can enjoy the lights by walking or driving by.”

The festival also features several standout events which are ticketed: the Royal Snow Sisters Holiday Princess Show, the Ha-Ha-Holiday Comedy Show and a Holiday Artisan Market. Advance tickets for those are required. Tickets can be purchased and information can be found at www.eventstoat.net.

Family-friendly live music, dance performances, entertainment can be found Saturdays, Dec. 4, 11 and 18, in Shepard’s Park from noon to 4 p.m., free to attend.

The Royal Snow Sisters Holiday Princess Show is Saturday, Dec. 4, at the Holiday Inn, featuring holiday music favorites. There will be time for photos and autographs, crafts, singing and dancing. Showtimes are at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 per person.

The Royal Snow Sisters Holiday Princess dinner theater and meet and greet on Saturday, Dec. 4, at 5:30 p.m. at the Holiday Inn. The $30 ticket price includes an entree, dessert, and non-alcoholic beverage.

The Arts District of Glens Falls has completed the most visible piece of its Arts Trail to date, with seven electrical boxes along the trail featuring painted murals by artists.

A call went out in September and the projects were completed in October. This piece of the Arts Trail is made possible by the Touba Family Foundation.

“This is only the beginning,” said spokesperson Chad Rabinovitz, former artistic director of Adirondack Theatre Festival and co-owner of The Candy Space in Lake George. “We have major plans for public art, from large-scale murals on buildings to statement sculptures. You won’t be able to come to Glens Falls without knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is a place that loves the arts.”

Artists chosen for the electrical box project were Hannah Williams, Shelley Fairbanks, Rodney Allen Bentley, Olga Aleksandrova, Kevin Clark, Stephanie Vaus and Leah Hofgesang.

Also in the works is a Rain Art public art project—quotes from literature, chosen by the Teen Center at Crandall Public Library, spray painted onto the sidewalk outside the library with clear paint so the quotes are only visible when it rains.

Other components of the project to establish an Arts District, seven years in the making, include banners demarking the border of the Arts District, a website at www.artsdistrictgf.com, both of which are already completed. Coming soon, people can expect to see sidewalk stamps around the border of the Arts District, and bike racks that will soon be installed at the 10 arts destinations representing 14 arts organizations within walking distance from one another.

The 2020 holiday season is already a year like no other, which is why Aviation Mall is announcing new hours and initiatives to make the season safe and memorable for everyone, mall officials said.
Earlier this year, retail marketing experts accurately predicted that retailers would encourage consumers to start holiday shopping earlier by extending exclusive deals throughout the season in lieu of the traditional high-trafficked Thanksgiving/Black Friday kickoff. Aviation Mall’s Marketing Director Teresa Hanley said many of Aviation Mall’s tenants are following the trend.

Andrea Harwood Palmer
The gift-giving season has arrived and area businesses are gearing up.
James Joseph, owner of Sharp Presents in Queensbury, has seen an increased interest in shipped and hand-delivered gifts during the pandemic.
“It can be as non-touch process as people want it to be. You don’t have to come into the shop to order something. I text my clients photos to validate, change or approve the design. I send email invoices. The product can be hand-delivered or shipped. It’s always how I’ve done a lot of business, and it has certainly increased this year,” said Joseph.
The company specializes in curated gift boxes and crates.
Jeff Strief, owner of Rude Betty in Glens Falls and Happy Jack in Bolton Landing, said about product trends, “We’re seeing that candy, candles, small consumables and clever household items are doing well. Small gifts are continuing to do well. They’re a cheap and cheerful way to improve someone’s mood or disposition.”

Charles R. Wood Park on West Brook Road in Lake George will be the site of the second annual Adirondack Christkindlmarkt event Dec. 6-8.
Last year, the inaugural event welcomed more than 5,000 people from as far away as New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Montreal, included 30 artisans and vendors and horse-drawn carriage rides, according to organizers.
The name translates to Christmas Market in English. These markets originated in Germany centuries ago. Other countries and cities have adopted the tradition throughout the years, organizers said.

Hometown Holidays is a popular, family-friendly event in Glens Falls, celebrating the arrival of the Holiday season.
The event this year is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, Dec. 6-7.
The event is free for collaborative members and non-members.
The Glens Falls Collaborative asked local businesses to join in the fun of Hometown Holidays. Friday evening will be a community event with a tree lighting in City Park. It will also feature the arrival of Santa Claus, and carols by sung by members of the Glens Falls Community Theater.