December in the High Country: Small-Town Christmas Lights, Tree Farms, and a Cozy Cabin to Come Home To
There's something about December in the mountains that just slows you right down — in the best way. The lights come on early, the air smells like woodsmoke and pine, and every little town has its own way of celebrating. If you've been thinking about a December getaway, this is your sign to start planning it.
Here's a look at what's happening around the Boone area this December — and how to make a whole weekend of it.
Start with Tweetsie Christmas
If you only do one big holiday outing, make it Tweetsie Christmas. On select December evenings — December 4–6, 11–13, 18–23, and 26–30, from 5:00 to 9:30 p.m. — Tweetsie Railroad turns into a Wild West Christmas town, all lit up for the season. There's a nighttime train ride, Santa in his Gingerbread House (through December 23), amusement rides, a Christmas show, carolers, and s'mores by the fire.
A couple of practical tips: tickets are date- and train-ride-time specific, and popular nights sell out, so book ahead. And bring a warm layer — that open-air train ride is magical, but it is a December night in the mountains.
A December weekend, town by town
One of my favorite things about staying here is that you don't have to pick just one town. You can wander a different one each day, and each one feels a little different.
Start a Friday in downtown Boone. On Friday, December 4, from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m., Boone's Festive First Friday and Solar Tree Lighting brings carriage rides, carolers, holiday treats, food trucks, and even "snowball" fights to King Street. It's the kind of evening where you end up staying out longer than you planned, just because everybody's in a good mood.
That same weekend, Banner Elk is celebrating its Small Town Christmas, December 4–6, with train rides, a synchronized light show, a movie, hot cocoa, and kids' activities, plus the lighting of the town at 6:30 p.m. on December 6. And over in West Jefferson, the Christmas Crawl on Friday, December 4, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., has galleries and shops decorated for the season and open late, with local artwork, refreshments, and live holiday music.
Come back the next weekend for a real small-town parade night: the Boone Christmas Parade is Saturday, December 12, at 6:00 p.m. along King Street — and this year it's a nighttime parade, which makes the lights and floats shine that much brighter.
An evening that costs nothing: lights around the lake
Some of the best holiday moments don't need a ticket at all. At Chetola Resort in Blowing Rock, the Festival of Lights lights up the lake daily at dusk, with tens of thousands of lights reflected on the water. It's free to the public. Pair it with dinner in downtown Blowing Rock and you've got an easy evening that still feels special.
Make a day of finding your tree
Here's a December tradition worth building a trip around: the choose-and-cut tree farms. This corner of North Carolina is known as the choose-and-cut capital, and there's nothing quite like walking the rows on a real farm, cocoa in hand, hunting for just the right Fraser fir.
The Watauga County Christmas Tree Association is a good place to start your search for farms in the Boone and Blowing Rock area. Miller's Choose and Cut in Boone is a family-owned farm that's been serving the High Country since 2000, and Frosty's Choose and Cut in West Jefferson makes a whole family outing of it, with a covered hayride, live music, a Christmas shop, and a fire pit to sit by. Farms keep their own hours and the season runs into mid-December, so check the farm's website before you head out — and measure your space (and your car) first.
Then come home to the cabin
After a day of lights, parades, and tree farms, this is the part I love most: coming back to Rich Summit View. It's a cozy log cabin in the Boone area that sleeps 6, with two queen bedrooms plus a queen sleeper sofa — plenty of room for family or a couple of couples traveling together. It's dog-friendly, so your four-legged family member doesn't have to miss the trip, and it has a private hot tub, a gas fireplace, sunrise views over Rich Mountain, and fiber WiFi if you need to check in with work or family back home.
My favorite December ritual? Hot tub under the stars after everyone else is tucked in, then cocoa by the fireplace. One honest winter note: mountain roads can turn wintry fast, so winter visits need 4WD/AWD plus chains.
Plan your December weekend
December weekends fill up fast around here, between the festivals, the parades, and the tree farms — so if a December trip is calling your name, don't wait too long. Pick your weekend, check the event pages linked above for the latest details, and then check availability at www.myboonecabin.com and book direct.