The holiday season has officially started in the Washington DC area and here are a few classic ways to celebrate with family and a few thousand of your closest new friends. Maybe I will see you at one of these!
Sculpture Garden Ice Rink. Attention all ice-skaters: The Sculpture Garden Ice Rink is back at the National Gallery of Art. Skaters of all skill levels can glide across the ice while taking in the gorgeous views of the artwork, the National Mall, and nighttime’s dazzling lights. Be sure to dress warmly, but if you need to warm up you can grab a hot cocoa at the cafe (Now through March 1 weather permitting, $15 for adults, $12 for ages 12 and under, $7 skate rental, National Gallery of Art).
Hillwood Museum Glamorous Greetings graces Hillwood Museum with avant-garde Christmas tree displays and glitzy decor (Now through January 4, $17 for adults, $5 for ages 6 to 18, free for children 5 and younger, Northwest DC).
Winter LIghts, Seneca Creek State Park Winter Lights Festival at Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg offers a spectacularly colorful display, a favorite of Maryland families for over twenty years. From late November through December 31 (December 25 excluded), the park turns into a winter wonderland every night. Enjoy three and a half-mile (5 km) drive through the magical forest featuring more than 450 illuminated displays and beautifully lit trees. Tickets must be purchased in advance and will not be available for purchase at the admission booth. A single ticket is required per vehicle. The cost is $15 for vehicles visiting Monday through Thursday and $25 for those arriving Friday through Sunday. For vehicles with 15 or more passengers, the ticket price is $30.
US Botanic Garden See dinosaur florals, and plant-created DC landmarks at the US Botanic Garden’s “Season’s Greenings” (Now through January 4, free, Southwest DC).
Winter Wonderfest. Nationals Park transforms into a wintry playground this season illuminated with LED seesaws, glowing curling lanes, and a Northern Lights-inspired pop-up. Inside the new frosted ballpark experience there’s a six-lane snow tubing hill, train rides, a sculpture garden displaying local artworks, and a hidden speakeasy where adults can warm up with cocktails (Fri through December 30, $29.50, Nationals Park).
The Washington Ballet’s Nutcracker. This Russian classic is reimagined with dreamlike choreography by DC’s gifted Washington Ballet. Watch as the dance troupe puts a Georgetown twist on Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s storied tale with dancing cherry blossoms, a Rat King villain, and a heroic George Washington Nutcracker to save the day (Sat through December 28, $63+).
Garden of LIghts, Brookside Garden Garden of Lights is a beautiful seasonal holiday light display at Brookside Gardens in Wheaton, MD. A magical winter wonderland features more than one million colorful lights. Displays are shaped into flowers, animals, and other elements of nature. They are all hand-made and skillfully crafted. Visitors can stroll from garden to garden, enjoying illuminated trees, sparkling fountains, and whimsical Christmas scenes. Inside the Conservatory, visitors can see how G-Scale model trains make a trip through a seasonal landscape. You can enjoy a holiday performance and sip hot cocoa at the Visitor’s Center. (Now through January 4, closed for Dec. 24-25 and New Year’s Day. Tickets $10)
For many, the best part of the Holiday Season is the Christmas Markets, patterned on the markets found all over Europe this time of year. Here are a few to put you in the holiday spirit! Whether you celebrate Christmas, Kwanza or Hanukkah, Festus or Ramadan, I am sure that there will be unique gifts that you will fall in love with for giving throughout 2026!
DOWNTOWN DC HOLIDAY MARKET
The DowntownDC Holiday Market takes place this year on the street and sidewalk on F Street between 7th and 9th Streets, NW. Its bright lights bring Penn Quarter and Chinatown to life, providing a holiday spark to the neighborhood. The spacious, open-air village is free and open to the public, closing for the season on Dec. 23.
After you peruse the market, you can check out the free-to-enter Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery, both housed in the same building nearby. Dinner and cocktails can be enjoyed at nearby restaurants like Jaleo, Zaytinya, Clyde’s of Gallery Place and Carmine’s, or you can get your food to-go.
DC HOLIDAY MARKET AT DUPONT CIRCLE
Another DC Holiday Market is open in Dupont Circle on New Hampshire Ave, NW – just north of Dupont Circle park. The DC Holiday Market features 35 plus small businesses with artisans, boutique brands, worldwide handcrafts and unique gift items. The market brings its signature style, bright festive décor and premier exhibitors to an iconic location adjacent to Dupont Circle and renown Kramer’s Books & Café.
HEURICH CHRISTMAS MARKT
Since 2013, the Heurich House Museum has curated a Christmas Markt in its Castle Garden, making it DC’s only multi-day holiday market featuring exclusively local makers. Inspired by traditional German Christmas markets but highlighting DMV-based artisans, the event brings together 40-50 vendors each year. Christmas Markt is also the museum’s largest annual fundraiser, supporting its Heurich Urban Manufacturing Incubator programs, which in 2024 assisted more than 300 local small-scale manufacturing businesses. This is ideal if you prefer a boutique market experience rather than big crowds.
- Location: 1307 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington, DC
- Dates: Dec. 4-7, 2025
- Hours: 4-8 p.m. Thursday-Friday; noon-8 p.m. Saturday; noon-6 p.m. Sunday.
CAN I HELP?
All these things to do during the holiday season are a perfect example of why I love Washington DC, Bethesda, Old Town and more! If you are considering a move to the DC area, let’s talk! There are beautiful homes all around the DC area that will be perfect for you so that next year will find you right here in the middle of all the holiday spirit! Please reach out to me!
Call or text: 240-401-5577
Email: lise@lisehowe.com
Explore Bethesda real estate: www.theLiseHowegroup.com
Let’s navigate this together.