Downtown Candlelit Christmas 2024

 The Downtown Hattiesburg Association, in partnership with the Hattiesburg Historic Neighborhood Association, invites you to celebrate the holiday season on Saturday, December 14, 2024, for Downtown Candlelit Christmas. Downtown Candlelit Christmas includes a variety of events taking place throughout the weekend, all centered in and around Downtown Hattiesburg. Weekend festivities include one of the longest-running holiday traditions in Hattiesburg, the 48th Annual Victorian Candlelit Christmas, hosted by and taking place in the Hattiesburg Historic Neighborhood, along with the continuation of luminaries and other traditional activities expanded into the greater downtown district. This year’s Downtown Candlelit Christmas event will include past favorite events such as sip & shop retail events, caroling, and historic home tours. There will also be new things to enjoy such as the sing-a-long holiday movie showings at the Saenger Theater. The 58th Annual Victorian Candlelit Christmas event, put on by the Historic Neighborhood Association, is a two-day holiday-favorite event lasting December 14-15, 2024, that draws hundreds of visitors from across the region to explore the spectacle of 18,000 white bags with flickering candles, lining the sidewalks of the Historic Neighborhood and the downtown district. Guests are invited to experience the nostalgia of a simpler time as they travel historic streets lined with luminaries alongside more than 300 homes and businesses decorated for the holidays with garlands, bows, and twinkling lights. Carriage rides will be available around the neighborhood and various homes will be open for tours. Both carriage ride and home tour tickets will be sold at the Walthall Community Center located at 600 Rebecca Avenue. Other joyous activities include caroling at Sacred Heart Church and choral and at Bay Street Presbyterian Church, food trucks in the Walthall Park, and visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus on Saturday; visitors are also invited to stop in for an Open House on Sunday evening. "The streets will be illuminated, and downtown businesses will be open late for this holiday celebration. We invite participants to bring the whole family, grab a bite to eat, and stroll through our candlelit streets to enjoy the festivities," Betsy Rowell, interim executive director of the Downtown Hattiesburg Association, said. “In addition, Town Square Park will be decked out as a winter wonderland of lights and there will be Christmas music and caroling at various locations throughout downtown to get visitors in the Christmas cheer. Everywhere visitors go, they’ll find holiday activities," said Rowell. With Downtown’s "Go Cup” ordinance, adults can grab a drink and stroll through the candle lined streets, enjoying the activities throughout downtown. Shops and galleries open for evening hours include Blooms Company, Twin Forks Wine & Provisions, The Author Shoppe, The Lucky Rabbit, Savvy Pair Shoe Boutique, Honey Clothing Co., McKenzie’s on Main, and more. Patrons can also grab tasty food and cocktails at a downtown pub or restaurant like Buschman Street Café, Trattoria, Blu Jazz Café, Bourbon on Front, Nellie’s Chicken & Daiquiris, The Porter, Fairley’s Wings, Hattiesburgers and Blues, and SoPro Taproom. For more information about DHA and a complete list of Downtown Candlelit Christmas activities, visit www.downtownhattiesburg.com or on Facebook at DowntownHattiesburg. Schedule of Activities: Saturday, December 14, 2025 • 18,000 luminaries will light the sidewalks throughout the Historic Neighborhood and Downtown. • Carriage rides leaving from the Walthall (600 Rebecca Ave) starting at 5pm- 9pm and circling through the neighborhood. (carriage rides take about 15-20 minutes) Tickets $12 adult, $5 kids 2-12 years, lap riders are free. • Holiday Tour of Homes will feature three historic homes. The Tour of Homes will run Saturday and Sunday from 5:30pm until 8:30pm. Tickets available at the Walthall Community Center and at each house for $10. • Refreshments will be for sale in the Walthall- Hot Chocolate, Coffee, Chili, baked goods • Food trucks in Walthall Park • Bay Street Presbyterian Church, 202 Short Bay St., the oldest surviving church structure in the city will host an “Old Fashioned Carol Sing” on the steps, Saturday at 6 p.m. • Sacred Heart Church- Carol Sing on the steps, times 6-7:30pm • Downtown - Shops will be open late for holiday shopping; some will have live music and refreshments • Santa’s Village - photo opportunity with Santa and kid’s activities at the Walthall • Town Square Park will be decked out as a winter wonderland of lights Sunday December 15, 2024 • 18,000 luminaries will light the sidewalks throughout the Historic Neighborhood and Downtown. • Carriage rides leaving from the Walthall (600 Rebecca Ave) starting at 5pm- 9pm and circling through the neighborhood. (carriage rides take about 15-20 minutes) Tickets $12 adult, $5 kids 12 – 2yrs, lap riders are free. • Refreshments will be for sale in the Walthall- Hot Chocolate, Coffee, Chili, baked goods • FREE Grove Transit Shuttle between various marked parking lots, Walthall, Open Houses and Downtown. • Holiday Tour of Homes will feature three historic homes. The Tour of Homes will run from 5:30pm until 8:30pm. Tickets will be available at the Walthall and at each house. Candlelighting began in the Hattiesburg Historic Neighborhood District in 1976 as a way to celebrate the nation’s bicentennial as well as to draw attention to the renovation going on in the district, characterized by homes built between 1884 and 1930. The neighborhood has changed from a declining section populated mostly by older residents to a lively, attractive neighborhood that is home to a vibrant mix of families with young children to retirees and everything in between. This celebration has grown from a one-day display of a few thousand candles to a two-day event with about 18,000 luminaries and other activities. Each year as dusk falls and the candles are lit, hundreds of local and out-of-town visitors flow into the neighborhood, strolling or driving along the streets lined with the glowing candles. Neighborhood residents and visitors walk from house to house, stopping to chat and admire decorations. Many house parties are held to celebrate the season in the glow of thousands of candles.