“Dressing for the Occasion” offers visitors a window into the style, culture, and feel of mid-century America. The family’s clothing and accessories weave together the roles of Carl Sandburg as a prominent writer, celebrity, father, and husband. This temporary exhibit offers an exciting opportunity for the public to view objects that are normally in storage or in the possession of Sandburg family members. Tours of the Sandburg Home are offered daily from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. Tickets are available first come, first served, each day from the visitor information area in the ground level of the Sandburg Home.

Nearly every room in the historically furnished house museum will be included in the exhibit. Visitors will see the characteristic scarves Carl Sandburg wore as he played his guitar and sang folk songs to entertain his family and guests, the dress Lilian Sandburg wore to meet President Lyndon B. Johnson, and many other mid-century pieces worn by the Sandburgs and their daughters. Historic photographs, paired with the clothing, will provide context.

The Appalachian Christmas craft show brings together vendors from across the Appalachian region to sell their unique and beautiful crafts. The show is hosted by the Junaluska Woman’s Club and all profits go toward charitable organizations. The show is open to the public.

CURVE Holiday Market!

CURVE Studios & Garden is hosting a Holiday Market on Second Saturday December 14, 2019!

CURVE will be decorated for the festivities… our 10 artist elves will be in the studios working away… with refreshments served all day from 10am to 5pm

3, 5 & 7 River Arts Place in Asheville’s River Arts District

“Bringing People to Art and Art to Life in Asheville’s River Arts District” for over 30 years!

Let us know if you can make it on Facebook!: https://www.facebook.com/events/513341212787358/

November 16 through December 24, 2019

11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday, Sundays, 12 p.m. – 6 p.m. and Christmas Eve, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. inside Food Court

FREE Santa Photos are back! From November 16th through December 24th, every family who visits Santa will receive two FREE 4”x6” Santa photo prints and a digital download of a single image. Additional photos and Christmas merchandise are available for purchase. FREE Santa Photo is located inside the Food Court and is sponsored by N.C. Arboretum Winter Lights.

December 7 & 14 | 10:00a-4:00p

The Holiday Makers SALE is a chance to shop fine craft at a discounted rate. Over 30 of our makers gather their leftover stock from 2019, and give a peak at their 2020 designs! Choose from a variety of gift items including ceramic tableware, fine jewelry, hand-woven and dyed wearables, bound journals and etched cards, blown vases and ornaments, turned wooden bowls and more. Shop local!

Show & Tell Pop Up Shop is back this holiday season in one of our favorite Asheville venues, The Asheville Social Hall! Shop our 3-week pop up shop featuring some of the area’s best in handmade and vintage. We’ve curated goods featuring over 125 independent vendors of handmade and vintage goods including clothing, jewelry, decor, greeting cards, and more. HOLIDAY POP UP SHOP November 29 – December 21.Open 10am-8pm daily. Asheville Social Hall, 81 Broadway St, Asheville, NC 28801. For more details and a full list of vendors visit: https://www.showandtellpopupshop.com/

Join us on Saturday, December 14th for our Holiday Seconds Sale and Open House from 10am-6pm! Enjoy complimentary refreshments, free kids activities from 11-2pm AND one of our truly epic holiday seconds sales with 50-80% off overstock and seconds! Be sure to arrive early for the best selection. This event is free and open to the public.

Join us for the Nature Center’s annual holiday celebration. There will be festive arts and crafts, games, educational programs, animal encounters and of course an appearance from SANTA! Get your child’s photo taken with Santa from 12-4pm.

Regular admission rates apply. As always, Friends members get in free!

Just hear those sleigh bells jingling all the way to Asheville Mall! Santa Claus is on his way to Asheville, and we’re celebrating his arrival on Saturday, November 16. Your little elves-in-training are invited to visit Santa at Center Court, near Barnes & Noble and ULTA, to share their Christmas lists and holiday wishes.

Santa will be available from November 16^th to December 24^th, when he begins his holiday trek around the world. Your elves-in-training can visit with Santa Monday through Saturday from 10am to 1pm, 2pm to 5pm, and 6pm to 9pm; and Sundays from noon to 3pm and 4pm to 6pm.

During the first two Saturdays in December, over 30 Guild members* will fill the auditorium of the Folk Art Center for our annual Holiday Makers Sales on December 7th & 14th, from 10am-4pm.

Choose from a variety of gift items including ceramic tableware, fine jewelry, hand-woven and dyed wearables, bound journals and etched cards, blown vases and ornaments, turned wooden bowls and more. Buying from artisans supports the local economy and promotes the Guild’s mission to cultivate the crafts and makers of the Southern Highlands for the purpose of shared resources, education, marketing and conservation.

A three part pop-up series featuring the work of eighteen local artists. This event is a great opportunity to find unique, locally made art for yourself or your loved ones. A portion of each sale will help to underwrite social movement space and grassroots community programming at our co-op. Different artists will be featured on each date, so plan to attend all three! Hours will be 11am to 4pm.???️ December 14th: Including Abacus Corvus Artwork, Bear Dog Designs, Ell’s Nalbinding, Plants and Knits, Running Rabbit Stickers, Sam Davis, and Waymaker Creations??? December 15th: Including Analog Adornments, Chrysalis Earth Farm, The Dicey Dungeon, Weedlady Herbals and Punkcraft, and Talia Scarpelli??? December 21st: Including Emily Eagan Art, Eva Leach, Harvest Gap Forge, Phlox Design, .retool., and Sleepybowie.

Come enjoy our warm, cozy studio to shop jewelry creations made by talented local artists. Our studio will be filled to the brim with work made by specially invited guest jewelers. Support small business and buy local this holiday season!

Some of the artists on display include: Deb Karash, Matthew Smith Studios, Gayle Weiss, Meredith Tibjash, Netty DiSunno, Susan McDonough, Priscilla Frake, and Una Barrett – just to name a few.

Hot beverages and snacks will be provided.

About This Trip

Over 90,000 guests rode THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in 2018 and we hope to see you in 2019! The 1¼ hour round-trip excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the North Pole to find Santa Claus waiting. Santa will board THE POLAR EXPRESS™, greeting each child and presenting them with a special gift as in the story, their own silver sleigh bell. Christmas carols will be sung as they return back to the Bryson City Depot.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ begins November 8, 2019, and operates through December 31, 2019.

Join us at Open Hearts Art Center for our Holiday Pop-Up Market! Shop local at the opening party on November 30th from noon to 5PM, and enjoy Hi-Wire Brewing beer, treats, and live music, along with make ‘n take ornaments. If you can’t make it for our opening day, the market will run through December 20th from 10AM to 4PM, and we’ll feature ceramics, cards, gifts, original art, and a 50% off sale on selected items each day. Give the gift of original, local art this holiday season! Open Hearts Art Center is a supportive studio and gallery dedicated to representing and empowering adults with varied abilities to connect to and reach their full potential through the arts. Our website: www.openheartsartcenter.orgarts.people.empowerment

About This Trip

Over 90,000 guests rode THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in 2018 and we hope to see you in 2019! The 1¼ hour round-trip excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the North Pole to find Santa Claus waiting. Santa will board THE POLAR EXPRESS™, greeting each child and presenting them with a special gift as in the story, their own silver sleigh bell. Christmas carols will be sung as they return back to the Bryson City Depot.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ begins November 8, 2019, and operates through December 31, 2019.

Saturday, Dec. 14 at 2 p.m.
Benedict Cumberbatch as The Grinch? Yes, please! Your holiday season isn’t complete unless you’ve spent time with this beloved curmudgeon. What will happen in this exciting, suspenseful, and, quite possibly, joyful holiday caper? Join us on Saturday, December 14th at 2pm to find out! This free film is rated PG and runs 90 minutes.

“In this bilingual romantic comedy, circumstances both hilarious and tragic bring together a young Israeli woman, who has little command of English, and a young American man, who has little command of romance. Is their inevitable love an accident … or is it destiny, generations in the making?”

“a hilarious and heartwarming romantic comedy” – The New York Times

Holiday Concert and Market

Get your photo with Santa Paws at Southern Appalachian from 2pm-4pm on Saturday, December 14! Photos are available for donation to BRHS.

Enter the holiday vegan dessert contest for the chance to become the best vegan baker of them all! More details coming soon!

Carolina Ballet Theatre proudly presents The Nutcracker: Once Upon A Time in Greenville– a European inspired production that brings all of Clara’s adventures and excitement home to Greenville. Continuing our reinvented holiday classic, the production highlights Victorian societal expectations and prosperity while Clara and her beloved Nutcracker dance their way through the cherished landmarks and stunning scenery of Greenville and into the hearts of the audience.

The libretto is adapted from E.T. A. Hoffmann’s classic story, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. Choreographed by Herman Justo, the refreshed ballet is based on the original Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov ballet.

Welcome to the annual pre-flight holiday party at the North Pole! All of your favorite holiday friends will be joining us… the Grinch, Crackers the Elf, Cindy Lou Who, Frosty the Snowman, Jack Frost and of course the Little Drummer Boy.

Santa and his reindeer are preparing the sleigh and await Mrs. Claus to deliver her magical cookies, which launch Santa on his trek around the world. But Mrs. Claus and her cookies are missing!?

Now we need your help as a holiday detective.

Follow the crumbs, find Mrs. Claus, and save Christmas!

Bring a new unwrapped toy for Santa’s Bag and you could earn a secret clue. It is the annual pre-flight holiday party at the North Pole. All of your favorite holiday friends are there…Grinch, Crackers the Elf, Cindy Lou Who, Frosty the Snowman, Jack Frost and of course The Little Drummer Boy. Santa and his reindeer are preparing the sleigh and await  Mrs. Claus to deliver her magic cookies…the ones that launch Santa’s trek around the world. And they wait…and wait.  But Mrs. Claus and her cookies are missing.

Following the crumbs!  You are the detective!

Kris Kringle, an old man living in a retirement home, gets a job working as Santa for Macy’s where he surprises employees and customers by claiming to be the real Santa Claus. Seen as deluded by Macy’s vocational counselor, he’s thrown into a court case to determine his mental health and, more importantly, his authenticity. Especially at stake is one little girl’s belief in Santa. The whole family will enjoy this funny, poignant and faithful adaptation of the classic 1947 film.

North Carolina’s oldest professional non-profit ballet company presents the full-length classical holiday tradition with stars, story, and sugarplums. Clara’s magical journey to the Lands of Snow and Sweets featuring the traditional Tchaikovsky score has become a favorite holiday family tradition.

The Holidays have never felt so magical! Get on Asheville’s homegrown purple bus tour and experience a sightseeing history tour injected with enough seasonal cheer to make your belly laugh like a bowl full of jelly. We explore Downtown, the South Slope, Historic Montford, and the River Arts District. This 90 minute holiday extravaganza only happens in December. Get your tickets now!

Our community celebrates together the most wonderful time of the year.

Whether you are observing Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, or another seasonal occasion, a musical trip around the world offers a glimpse into the traditions and customs that make holidays so special.

Plus a special Mystery Conductor and Arthur Harris’ medley of sing-a-long carols will add sparkle to the concert.

Saturday, Dec. 14 at 4 p.m.
Join us for the 1st annual Swannanoa Winterfest at Grovemont Park by the library. Celebrate the holiday season with friends. Caroling, hot drinks, tasty foods, unique gifts, crafts, fire and light all combining in a warm, fun afternoon and evening. We’ll even see Olaf the Snowman peeking in! Free admission: bring the whole family!