The holiday season is official on, and everywhere you look it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. If you want to turn the volume up the yuletide, these dazzling spots throughout California really know how to deck the halls. Cue the cocoa and sleigh bells…  

Christmas Nights at 123 Farms

Through January 8, 5-10 p.m. (Closed Tuesday)

Take a whimsical ride around Christmas Nights at 123 Farm featuring festive food and drinks, horse-drawn carriage tours, s’mores pits and Santa with a display of over one million lights.  

Cornish Christmas | Grass Valley

Through December 23, 6-9 p.m. Cornish Christmas invites you to mill around downtown, stroll with your favorite hot beverage from the GVDA and Chamber Holiday Beverage Booths and visit a Winter Festival of Cornish Christmas favorites you know and love.  Shop our “Downtown Promenade” and Main Street with extended Holiday Hours.

Downtown Grass Valley will be filled with the sights and sounds of an old-fashioned Christmas; carolers, musicians, and a fire pit to warm your hands.  Look for Santa and Mrs. Claus, Snow Queen, the Tree Lady, and other holiday characters.  The event hosts craft and food vendors, and the town shops, restaurants, wine-tasting rooms, tap houses, and bars are open.  The streets will be awash in festive holiday décor, lights, and sparkling windows.

Julefest | Solvang

Through January 1

The annual Solvang Julefest brings Old World traditions to today’s Santa Barbara wine country. With authentic Danish-style buildings and windmills for a backdrop, costumed carolers, bands, and equestrians take to the streets for the Julefest Parade. You can sample local varietals (as well as craft beers) during the two-day Julefest Wine & Beer Walk and finish your gift shopping—and get great deals—during the Shop, Mingle & Jingle event. There’s also a living nativity re-enactment. It all comes to a dramatic end with the annual Christmas Tree Burn, a bonfire outside Old Mission Santa Inés in early January. 

Check out more holiday festival ideas HERE