Old Orchard Beach Tree

Red Hat Ladies

It doesn’t feel like Christmas in Old Orchard Beach Maine until Santa and Mrs. Claus arrive at the Chamber of Commerce by Fire Engine. The parade will make its way down Old Orchard Street on the first Sunday in December. The Parade includes Jameson Singers, The salvation Army Brass Band, OOB Loranger Middle School Band, Pets on Parade, the Red Hat Society, local Cub Scouts  and Girl Scouts , floats, Rudolph and Frosty and the grand arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus by Fire Engine at the Chamber of Commerce. 

OOB365 Float

Enjoy free horse drawn hay wagon rides or take a Holiday trolley ride after the parade. Visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus and have your picture taken, Have free popcorn, cookies, coffee, cocoa and cider and other goodies such as  tattoos,  face painting and free balloons at the Chamber of Commerce Open House and be welcomed by holiday music at the door.

Bonfire on The Beach

Enjoy the bonfire on the beach and remember to bring your own camera to capture the fun and excitement! Please join us to kick off the holiday season with the annual tree lighting in the town square at 3:30pm

For some families – like ours – visiting a local snow covered Christmas tree farm to choose and cut or select your own fresh cut Christmas tree is a yearly quintessential New England tradition that my wife, daughter and I look forward to with great anticipation each year.  

Maine’s fragrant balsam firs and Currier and Ives-like wintry landscape draw people from all over New England when it comes to picking out your Christmas tree at a classic New England Maine Tree Farm with its rolling hillsides and sometimes rocky terrains.  The first thing you will want to do is to make sure that everyone bundles up well and has gloves, coats  hats and boots because you don’t want  to get sick. You will not need to bring along your own saw, the farm you are going to should provide you with one. If you don’t feel like cutting down your own tree you can always purchase one that has already been cut down which should be located around the barnyard. Some of the barns offer fun winter activities, like sleigh rides, hayrides and wagon rides and will also have a shop filled with fresh handmade pine wreaths, garland, bows, tree stands, maple syrup,  pinecones,  wines from local wineries, holiday keepsake ornaments, and a harvest kitchen Christmas canteen serving mulled cider, hot chocolate, coffee, fresh made donuts, homemade pies and fudge

You want to make sure that everyone in your party sticks together so that nobody gets lost. Some places will have horse draw wagons or tractors to drag your tree back to the barn where they will bale it and tie it up on your car for the trip home.  You need to make sure you water your tree at least twice per day. If you do not, the needles will dry out and cause a fire hazard.

Below we have listed some of the best local Christmas Tree Farms and Tree Lots in the Southern and Mid Coast Maine area.

View Atlantic Birches Inn – Old Orchard Beach Local U-Cut Christmas Tree Farms in a larger map

Our love for the beach and sand need not be packed away in our trunk or closet for the winter along with the shorts, tee-shirts, bathing suits, sandals, flip- flops and memories of the past summer.  We need only to layer ourselves in comfortable soft layers of wool, fleece and down, with hot chocolate or mulled cider in hand while we make our way down to the beach just slightly within the smell and reach of the salty ocean spray of the Atlantic Ocean.  We can also keep warm by the Bonfire while caroling waiting for the Christmas Tree Lighting and the start of the Christmas Holiday Madness.  

The month of November begins slowly, but Thanksgiving weekend is usually the start of Christmas Holiday Madness that is filled with activities that mark the beginning of the Holiday Season here in Maine. Tree lighting ceremonies, Cape Neddick Nubble Light-House lighting, Rockland Lobster Trap Tree Lighting Ceremonies, Ogunquit chowder chocolate fest, holiday craft fairs, and Christmas shopping events, begin to take place in many towns and cities in Maine.  When December rolls in more Christmas fairs and bazaars, old fashioned carriage rides, holiday food and craft fair shows, Holiday Mansion tours, frosty and Rudolph figures, Historic Homes, Santa parades, face-painting and holiday plays, musicals, concerts are among the annual December activities and events in Maine.

Capture the spirit and feel of Christmas while attending some of Maine’s wonderful Christmas Holiday Events

Portland Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony – November 26, 5:30PM, Monument Square

Rockland Festival of Lights Celebration – Nov 26 thru Nov 28 2010 Downtown Rockland

Saco Museum Festival of Trees – Nov 26 thru Dec 31, 2010   Saco Museum and Dyer Library Saco

Cape Neddick Lighting of the Nubble Light  – Nov 27, 2010 – Dec 31 Cape Neddick

Christmas in Kennebunk Celebration – Nov 27, 2010. Kennebunk’s Downtown Plaza..

Caribou Tree Lighting & Santa Parade – Nov 27, 2010 Downtown Caribou

Gorham Tree Lighting and Light Parade – Nov 28, 2010 Main Street Gorham

Christmas Prelude in Kennebunkport Dec 02 thru Dec 12, 2010 Kennebunkport

Freeport Sparkle Weekend – Dec 03 thru Dec 05, 2010 Downtown Freeport

Old Orchard Beach Christmas by the Sea – Dec 05, 2010 Town Square

Ogunquit Christmas by the Sea Celebration – Dec 10 thru Dec 12, 2010 Downtown Ogunquit