Castle Christmas in Muskogee Worth the Trip
CHEERFUL EVENING: The Castle of Muskogee’s Christmas Kingdom is the largest display of holiday spirit in northeastern Oklahoma.
The largest display of Holiday Spirit in Northeast Oklahoma can be found in Muskogee. At the Castle Christmas, visitors can take a slow drive through a Christmas wonderland filled with thousands of lights plus more than 2,000 lighted inflatable displays with new ones for 2012. In nearby Honor Heights Park, the Garden of Lights has been a popular event, attracting thousands of viewers to enjoy over a million lights displayed throughout the park. Both events are free.
For a change of pace, visitors can choose to tour the Christmas Kingdom in a hayride or from a horse-drawn carriage, which travels through a very special part of the village that is not accessible to cars. The Garden Room is open nightly from 6 to 10 p.m. where people can find those one-of-a-kind holiday ornaments for one’s own display. Soups, sandwiches, cookies, hot chocolate and more are available nightly from 6 to 10 p.m. in the Royal Garden Café. Some of the area’s finest artisans will be showing unique, handmade gifts.
The 2012 Castle Christmas displays range from four feet in height to a towering 20 feet tall. Visitors see all of their favorite Christmas characters including Santa, elves, snowmen, reindeer, penguins, polar bears, and more. Also, visitors will see many of their favorite fun characters including Mickey Mouse, Snoopy, Scooby Doo, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, the Grinch, Elmo, Frosty the Snowman, and Homer and Bart Simpson. This is thought to be the world’s largest display of inflatables
The Garden of Lights celebration includes a free drive-through display of over a million shimmering lights displayed throughout the park. Honor Heights Park, internationally known for its Azalea Festival, draws up to a half million visitors annually. The park’s 122 acres are planted with more than 30,000 azalea bushes and thousands of trees, beautifully situated among the park’s scenic hilltop drive. Christmas lights are placed on trees, bushes and structures throughout the park to enhance the natural beauty of the gardens, waterfalls and ponds. Gates open at 5:30 nightly.
Event hours and prices:
admission, donations accepted. Both drive-through events are open nightly from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve: 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. The Castle’s inside events are open Nov. 24, 25, 26, 27, Dec. 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11 and the 15th through the 31st.
Updated 12-21-2012
READER COMMENTS
