Old World Wisconsin’s family-favorite Christmas & holiday event returns this December

Enlarge

EAGLE, Wis. – Returning this December for three consecutive weekends of holiday cheer and family fun is Old World Wisconsin’s Home for the Holidays event featuring plenty of NEW activities along with seasonal favorites from wagon rides to craft-making opportunities! Tickets are on sale now and selling fast for this annual favorite event.

Home for the Holidays at Old World Wisconsin: Dec. 2, 3, 9, 10, 16, 17 | 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Wisconsin’s largest living history museum will charm guests with festive greenery, cheerful décor, and plenty of opportunities to make memories with the whole family at Home for the Holidays this year. Explore the 19th-century Crossroads Village bustling with the sights, sounds, and smells of the holiday season as you move between hands-on activities and memorable NEW highlights:

• Experience St. Lucia’s Celebration: take part in old-world traditions honoring St. Lucia including a special procession taking place daily, beginning at the 1910s Finnish Farm at 2:30 p.m. Drawing on Finnish and other Scandinavian traditions, a costumed staff member dressed as the saint in white robes, a red sash and candle-lit wreath crown will lead the celebration with festive songs. Guests follow the candlelit procession and have the opportunity to meet live goats, a nod to the Scandinavian Yule Goat tradition.
• Eat & Make Merry at the Winter Cheer Garden: step inside the heated Clausing Barn and feast on seasonal goodies like fresh Kringle or a piping-hot cup of cocoa or warm Wassail. Wisconsin staples including beer and brats will also be available for purchase. Several food trucks will be onsite with additional fare for sale.
• Gather for Fireside Stories: gather around the bonfire at the 1880s horse stable to hear a few holiday tales of yesterday. Children and adults alike will enjoy live readings of traditional favorites such as “The Nutcracker” and “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.”
• Drop in at the Holiday Craft Tent: pay a visit to the craft tent to make a Victorian paper ornament or pen a letter to Santa. At another craft station elsewhere on site, guests can also create a keepsake leather ornament to take home.
• Sneak in Last Minute Holiday Shopping: pop into the Crossroads Christmas Shoppe to indulge in European baked goods and browse for unique holiday gifts, like our new collectible Old World Wisconsin Holiday Village Collection.

Last entry is at 1:00 p.m. each day. Click here to view the photo gallery.

About Old World Wisconsin

Old World Wisconsin is one of the Wisconsin Historical Society’s 12 historic sites and museums. Rated as one of the top attractions to take kids in the Milwaukee area, Old World Wisconsin is a 600-acre regional history attraction that features interactive environments and immersive stories of 19th-and early 20th-century Midwestern immigrant farm and rural life. The museum offers guests family-friendly, hands-on activities as they visit a crossroads village and eight working farmsteads, explore heirloom gardens, experience beer brewing traditions, meet heritage animal breeds and try historic crafts and skills. Old World Wisconsin is located on Highway 67 just south of Eagle, Wisconsin, within daytrip distance of Milwaukee, Chicago and Madison. For more information and a list of upcoming events visit oldworldwisconsin.org or call (262) 594-6301. Wisconsin Historical Society members receive free general admission to this site during regular operating hours.

About the Wisconsin Historical Society

The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active, and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs, and services. For more information, visit www.wisconsinhistory.org.