WPB neighborhoods open their doors for their annual historic holiday home tours this Christmas season
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There’s nothing better than Christmas lights and holiday cheer. December marks the return of a beloved South Florida holiday tradition, as popular historic home tours resume. Visitors from near and far can get a peek inside some of the region's oldest residences and sample a few holiday treats along the way.
Flamingo Park Holiday Home Tour
Flamingo Park's home tour makes its comeback this year after a two-year break due to COVID-19. Residents will open their doors to welcome their neighbors to indulge in the holiday festivities.
The 27th annual Holiday Historic Home Tour returns Dec.11, with 11 participating homeowners letting visitors tour their decked-out halls ... and kitchens, and dining rooms and more.
Debuting in 1991, the tour highlights various architecture styles found in the neighborhood established 101 years ago. The event allows Flamingo Park to continue the tradition of “preserving the natural beauty and historic significance of our neighborhood “says Tatianna Lewick, the tour's 2022 chairwoman.
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This is the largest fundraising event for the historic West Palm Beach neighborhood's nonprofit group. Proceeds from the tours will be dedicated to preserving the beauty of the Flamingo Park area.
In addition to enjoying a feast for eyes, visitors will be treated to free food provided by 13 local restaurants.
If you go:
Where: Flamingo Park, West Palm Beach; Meet at 720 Ardmore Road.
When: 5-8 p.m. Dec. 11
Tickets: $60 in advance, $65 at the door
Info: flamingopark.org
Old Northwood Candlelight Home Tour
Flamingo Park is not the only one pulling out the jingle bells this holiday season. The Old Northwood Neighborhood Association is also coming on strong with holiday spirit by hosting their 34th Annual Candlelight Home Tour on Dec. 18.
This three-hour event will showcase 10 historical homes that are both renovated and historically accurate. Guests will see a real Northwood Christmas as they tour the inside of these delightfully decorated homes.
Proceeds from the event will go to preserving the Old Northwood area, and helping those in need during the holiday. Assistance will include gift cards for families, bikes and toys for children, and help for elderly residents as well.
Guest are welcomed to shop at an artisan market located across the street from the neighborhoods clubhouse after concluding the tours and participate in a silent auction before they leave.
Participants are asked to bring an unwrapped toy to donate to children in need this season in a partnership with the West Palm Beach fire and police departments.
If you go:
Where: Old Northwood Historic District, West Palm Beach; Meet at 3510 Spruce Ave.
When: Check in begins at 2 p.m. Dec. 18, VIP admission is 3-5 p.m. , and general admission is 5-9 p.m.
Tickets: $40 in advance, $45 at the door. VIP tickets are $75 and include a private tent with special food and drinks, live entertainment, and front-of-the-line passes
Info: www.eventbrite.com
Flagler Museum's Christmas at Whitehall
Tree lighting
Flagler Museum is bringing Christmas to Whitehall this year with tours of its own. The Christmas spectacle begins with a Christmas tree lighting at noon Dec. 4 in the grand hall. Henry Flagler’s youngest descendants light the tree to kick off the festivities. Santa will be making an appearance during the ceremony and guests will be able to enjoy live music and holiday treats.
This event is free to all museum visitors and includes a holiday lecture by author and journalist Gary Hoover on the history of the National Biscuit Company and how animal crackers became recognized as Christmas tree ornaments. Lecture tickets are $15 for members and $40 for non-museum members.
Tour
Flagler Museum will also be offer its own historic home tour, at 6:30 nightly from Dec. 19 to 22. Whitehall, built in Palm Beach in 1902 by railroad mogul Henry Flagler for his third wife Mary Lily Kenan, is a 100,000-square-foot Gilded Age mansion with 75 rooms. Located in Palm Beach Florida, the house became open to the public and turned into a museum in the 1960s by Flagler's granddaughter Jean Flagler Matthews. Guests will discover the glamour of a Gilded Age Christmas by touring Whitehall at night.
Tours will be led by museum staff and the halls will be ablaze with the original 1902 light fixtures inside Whitehall, complemented by sparkly fairy lights. The night will end with guest being serenaded by Christmas carolers in the Cocoanut Grove and receiving a traditional Christmas cracker as a gift.
If you go:
Where: Henry Morrison Flagler Museum, One Whitehall Way, Palm Beach
When: Tree lighting ceremony will be from noon to 5 p.m. Dec. 4; Whitehall holiday evening tours start at 6:30 nightly, Dec. 19-22
Tickets: Legacy levels members, Visionary level members, and Whitehall Society members receive two tickets to the holiday tours. Tickets for non-members are $50 for adults, $30 for ages 17 and younger
Info: 561-655-2833 or flaglermuseum.us
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Christmas cheer returns with WPB annual neighborhood holiday home tours
