Nantucket Official Guide 2014-2015 | Page 51

Nantucket Noel, November 28, 2014 - January 1, 2015
Featuring Christmas Stroll Weekend, December 5-7, 2014

©Katie Kaizer

If you could conjure the quintessential Yuletide experience... cobblestone streets lined with
glittering fir trees, strolling carolers in Victorian garb, the scent of wood smoke wafting through
a bustling European-style marketplace, Santa greeting wide-eyed children beside a glowing
hearth... this picture-perfect backdrop is what makes Nantucket’s annual Christmas Stroll
Weekend a truly enchanting experience.

Nantucket Noel begins Thanksgiving
weekend with the annual Christmas Tree
Lighting and Community Caroling ceremony
on Friday, November 28. Main Street – closed
to vehicular traffic – teems with locals and
visitors alike who gather in anxious
expectation as the Town Crier leads the
“countdown” and over 150 Christmas trees
magically come alive in a blaze of colored
light. Joyous caroling fills the air, and the mood
is set for a traditional holiday experience.
School children, youth groups and local
non-profit organizations band together to
decorate the trees lining Main Street and
surrounding side streets in preparation for the
grand events of the following weekend.
Now in its 41st year, Christmas Stroll
Weekend takes place on December 5-7. Just
before noon on December 6, the Town Crier
rings in the Stroll at the top of Main Street
before heading down to Straight Wharf to meet
Santa, arriving with much fanfare aboard a
Coast Guard vessel in lieu of the traditional
sleigh. A jubilant parade transports the beloved
gent to the Jared Coffin House on Broad Street,
where he greets eagerly-awaiting children –
lists in hand – in a cozy parlor beside a glowing
fireplace.
Outside, the Town continues to bustle with
activity. At the head of Main Street, the Magical

Talking Tree entertains children of all ages
while strolling Victorian carolers in period
costume fill the air with familiar songs of the
season. A charming European-style Christmas
Marketplace entices one and all, with
mouth-watering aromas and a variety of
eclectic wares.
While “Strolling”, stop to admire the
uniquely decorated windows a