Weekend picks for families in and around Washington, DC

Head up to Tenleytown and catch the remaining few days of WinterFest!

Holly TrolleyFest at The National Capital Trolley Museum. Holly TrolleyFest celebrates the season with toy trains and Santa aboard the streetcars Saturday & Sunday (and other weekends) from 12:30pm-4:30pm. 

Nationals Winterfest is coming home – to Nationals Park – for the holidays! The annual weekend-long festival is a celebration of baseball and the holidays with presents and Presidents. This year’s Nat-ivity scene includes both indoor and outdoor programs so fans can enjoy many of your favorite activities from last year along with several new additions only available at Nationals Park.

Other holiday events (not highlighted below, because there are just SO many) can be found here:
Holiday shows, ballets & concerts

Ice skating, holiday light displays and outdoor fun

Holiday tea

Zoo Lights

Saturday

Historic Dupont Circle Main Street presents the second annual holiday pop-up on Saturday, December 1^st from 12:00-5:00 p.m. to promote shopping in greater Dupont Circle.  This unique Holiday Pop-up event pairs artists and makers who co-locate in retail shops around Dupont Circle.  The pop-up will also include the Heurich House’s Christkindlmarkt (Christmas Market, which starts Friday night at 4:00 p.m.) and the Art Rave market at 15^th and P Streets, NW.

10:00am-1:00pm: Glen Echo: Saturday Art Explorers
Drop in for an art activity and play in the Candy Corner Studio for $5, no need to pre-register. Play on the playground afterwards, look around the Glen Echo Park Aquarium or see a show at the Puppet Co.

10:00am-12:00pm: Michael’s Kids Club
They craft, you shop! Kids 3 and up can enjoy making various crafts. Sign up in store or online, or just drop in. Parent or guardian must remain on premises during the event.

10:30am-11:15am: Saturday Song Circle at Imagination Stage
You and your child are invited to a fun, interactive musical experience! An Early Childhood Teaching Artist explores a popular children’s book with your family through song and musical instruments, and you will receive a list of all the songs to practice at home. Ages 1-5. Featured story: We’re Going on a Bear Hunt

11:00am-3:00pm: Holiday Stamp at National Postal Museum
Come have hot cocoa and cookies, see stamp displays, collect your own canceled Holiday stamps and learn more about philately with members of Christmas Philatelic Club and Christmas Seal and Charity Stamp Society

11:30am-3:00pm: Holiday Ballet Family Day at Smithsonian American Art Museum
Celebrate the holidays with SAAM and The Washington Ballet. Acclaimed Artistic Director Julie Kent gives an introduction of how the ballet of the nation’s capital puts on their annual performance of The Nutcracker before dancers perform excerpts from the charming holiday classic. Enjoy making festive, wintry crafts such as waterless snow globes and snowflake ballerinas and explore the museum with a special scavenger hunt. Get your photo taken with a Washington Ballet dancer in their full Nutcracker costume and try a free Barre class with professional dancer Sarah Steele. Stay warm by enjoying the Courtyard Café’s hot chocolate bar and their winter food offerings.

12:00pm-4:00pm: Santa Fly-In at College Park Aviation Museum 
Watch Santa fly into historic College Park Airport with some help from a local pilot! Make holiday arts and crafts before having your picture taken with Santa. $5 includes museum admission

1:00pm-4:00pm: Deck the Halls: A Family Christmas
Kids and parents will enjoy an interactive open house with 1918-style Christmas decor. Join carolers, make a stocking ornament, send cheer to a servicemember and sample sweets popular in 1918. Bring new, men’s crew socks that So Others Can Keep Striding will distribute to the homeless. Cost is $3-$10. Plan ahead: On December 30 Tudor Place has a pre-New Year’s Eve for little ones ages 2-4 and parents/caregivers.

6:00pm-9:00pm: Holiday Boat Parade at the Wharf
Celebrate the holidays and see the beautifully decorated boats pass by. Get into the spirit as you decorate ornaments. Warm up by the fire pit and visit the lighted Christmas Tree. Go ice skating and sample winter drinks at the Waterfront Beer and Wine Garden. And bring the whole family to meet Santa and make memories during this annual DC tradition. Download the flyer here.

6:30pm-7:30pm: Chanukah Havdalah in Pajamas
Celebrate Chanukah AND Havdalah in your pajamas with a festive singalong Havdalah service led by Rabbi Uri Topolosky, followed by stories, de-light-ful activities, crafts and snacks.  Please bring a NEW pair of warm socks or gloves to be donated to people experiencing homelessness.  They can be adult or child-sized.  This program is a collaboration of PJ Library, Berman Hebrew Academy and Kehilat Pardes.  Good for all ages.

Sunday

10:30am-12:00pm: Make Room for Latkes
Chanukah is coming and with it, eight nights of family fun! Join PJ Library, the Edlavitch DCJCC, the Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital, Federation’s Jewish Food Experience and the interfaith program, Love and Religion, for hands-on Chanukah activities including crafts, cooking, singing, candle lighting, latkes, a mitzvah (good deed) project and take-home goodies.  It’s a perfect morning for Jewish and interfaith families with children ages 3 and older.

11:00am-11:45am: Sunday Funday at Imagination Stage
Your child’s favorite stories will come to life through dramatic play activities, music, movement, and visual art. Each session you leave with a special take-home item we used or created that day, as well as a Parent Pack to extend the experience at home. These popular workshops are themed around beloved children’s books. Roaring Rockets is the theme!

4:00pm-5:30pm: Tot Sized Taste of Chanukah
Join with Shaare Torah and PJ Library for an awesome fun afternoon learning and celebrating Hanukkah! This program is designed for children aged 0-6 and will feature crafts, treats and a special reading of Queen of the Hanukkah Dosas by author Pamela Ehrenberg. Open to the full community! Registration is free but requested in advance.

Giveaways for you to enter: 

Port Discovery Children’s Museum
B&O’s Magical Holiday Express