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The best places in New England to visit around Christmas
These destinations are brimming with holiday cheer.
For New Englanders who want to remain close to home this holiday season — but still enjoy the benefits of travel — many festive cities and towns are worth exploring.
The following New England destinations are bursting with Christmas spirit, according to local and national travel experts.
Shop a Christmas market in Boston
Snowport has transformed the Seaport neighborhood into a winter wonderland for the seventh straight year. Folks can shop for art, clothing, jewelry, gourmet food, and more at 125 businesses and enjoy 20 different dining experiences in the 10,000-square-foot dining space during the event, which kicked off Nov. 7 and continues through Dec. 29. Outdoor activities include iceless curling, a Christmas tree market, and the lighting of the Christmas tree on Dec. 6 and menorah on Dec. 28. What’s more, guests can enjoy a drink at the Jingle Bar, take photos beneath a 10-foot Mistletoe Archway, and share their holiday wishes on a Winter Wish Wall.
Go on Nantucket’s annual Christmas Stroll
The island of Nantucket, well known as a summer getaway, is an excellent place to spend the holidays, according to Travel + Leisure magazine, which named it among the best Christmas towns in the U.S. The island’s annual Christmas Stroll, taking place Dec. 5-7, brings shopping at Santa’s Village Marketplace, home tours, decorated Christmas trees, craft shows, wine tastings, and more.
Step into a Norman Rockwell painting in Stockbridge
You can stroll the same Main Street depicted by Norman Rockwell in his 1967 painting “Stockbridge Main Street at Christmas (Home for Christmas)” when you visit Stockbridge, which Country Living called one of the most “magical” Christmas towns in America. The town reenacts the painting every December during its annual Stockbridge Main Street at Christmas, taking place Dec. 6-7. Visitors can explore the boutiques, galleries, and restaurants along Main Street, see vintage cars, listen to the Berkshire Victorian Carolers, take a horse-drawn wagon ride, see Santa, and check out the nearby Norman Rockwell Museum. Check out what the experience was like during last year’s event.
Drive through hundreds of light exhibits in Springfield
At Bright Nights at Forest Park in Springfield, named among the most spectacular winter light displays in the U.S. by Frommer’s, guests will see more than 750,000 lights depicting festive scenes, iconic characters, and peaceful gardens along a three-mile drive. The display includes Winter Woods, Toy Land, and Jurassic Park, complete with a gift shop. Guests can also take a horse-drawn wagon or carriage ride through the lights. Santa visits on select days ahead of Christmas, and the event runs Nov. 26 through Jan. 4, 2024. Find out about discounted tickets on Tuesday nights.
Glow Hartford at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, Conn.
Attend an indoor light festival in Hartford, Conn.
The whole family will enjoy Glow Hartford, named among the best Christmas light displays of 2024 by U.S. News & World Report. Billed as “a dazzling Christmas wonderland,” the indoor light festival and garden at the Connecticut Convention Center offers glowing activities, seasonal treats, and live entertainment. There are various food and drink offerings, including alcoholic beverages for guests 21 and older. Visitors can get a free photo with Santa and ride a trackless “Glow-comotive” train. The event began Nov. 21 and runs through Dec. 23.
Get your Christmas cards postmarked in Bethlehem, N.H.
There’s plenty of holiday spirit in Bethlehem, N.H., where folks seek postmarks for their Christmas cards at Christmastime each year, according to Lori Harnois, the former director of travel and tourism for New Hampshire. “The mere mention of the little town of Bethlehem is sure to conjure up visions of the holiday season,” wrote Harnois in an email. Still need a tree? You can pick one up at Rocks Estate or Finnegan’s Fine Firs, she said.
Dine, shop, and take in the history of Portland, Maine
You’ll find “old world charm” in Portland, Maine, this holiday season, Steve Lyons, former director of the Maine Office of Tourism, said in an email. While there, don’t forget to check out the Old Port Holiday Historic Walking Tour,” a 2 1/2 hour tour of Portland with more than 50 historic stops, and the annual Maker’s Market at Thompson’s Point. The market offers fresh farm products, handmade items, craft food and beverages, and more. Portland was recently named among the best U.S. cities for a weekend trip by Thrillist.
Stroll an open air mall in Burlington, Vermont
You’ll feel festive while shopping at Church Street Marketplace in Burlington, Vermont, an open-air mall full of lights and decorations and a large Christmas tree “meticulously decorated for the holiday season,” according to the Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing. The destination was named the No. 1 public square in America by USA Today, and Thrillist called Burlington one of the best mountain towns in the country.
Wander through mansions in Newport, R.I.
Bring decadence to your holiday season by visiting a Gilded Age mansion decked out for the holidays. Newport, R.I., which ranked among the best Christmas towns in the nation by Travel + Leisure magazine and among the most spectacular light displays in the U.S. by Frommer’s, is hosting its annual Holidays at the Newport Mansions Nov. 22 through Jan. 1, 2026. The Breakers, Marble House, The Elms, and Chateau-sur-Mer are chock full of ornately decorated Christmas trees, wreaths, and fresh floral arrangements. The Breakers features a 15-foot poinsettia tree in the Great Hall as well as an outdoor light display.
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