Holiday Traditions in Pennsylvania

Holiday Lights in Pennsylvania

Celebrate the holidays with a visit to beautiful eastern Pennsylvania, where you will experience holiday traditions including Longwood Gardens, the Moravian Lights of Bethlehem and Hershey, the sweetest place on earth! This six-day tour will provide you with great holiday memories that you will cherish for a lifetime.

Day 1- Today you will arrive in beautiful Brandywine Valley and transfer to your hotel. Once at the hotel, you will be treated to a welcome reception with warm cider and local Pennsylvania treats. After your dinner at Historic Vickers Tavern, the rest of the evening is yours as you rest up for the days to come.

Day 2- After breakfast at the hotel you will visit QVC where you will tour the studio that is behind the number one televised shopping service in the US. Following the tour, be sure to look around the QVC shop, where you might find the perfect Christmas present. This afternoon you will head to Winterthur, an American Country Estate and former home of Henry Francis du Pont. You will be immersed in another time and place as you discover America's heritage with unparalleled collections of antiques and artifacts that are decorated for the holiday season. You will also visit Longwood Gardens, where you will see beautiful floral displays, trees, holiday music, 500,000 holiday lights, dancing fountains and ice skating under the stars that creates a Christmas fantasy. This evening you will enjoy the Yuletide Buffet at Longwood Gardens.

Day 3- After another great breakfast, you will leave Brandywine and travel the short distance to Philadelphia, the Birthplace of Independence. Upon arriving you will enjoy a guided tour of Philadelphia which will include historical sites. Lunch today will be at the Reading Terminal Market, where you will be able to have all the local favorites including Philadelphia Cheese Steaks, South Philly Hot Pretzels or a fresh baked Canoli made fresh at an Italian bakery. This afternoon you will enjoy visits to the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and the Constitution Center. Then you will eat an included dinner at the Cracker Barrel. You will then check into your Bethlehem accommodations for the next two evenings. If you would like, you may be taken to the Brand New Sands Casino.

Day 4- Following breakfast you will begin a full day of touring. Your first stop will be Nazareth, the oldest town in the Lehigh Valley. Settled in 1740 by a group of Moravian Missionaries, Nazareth became the first settlement in this region and the home for the Moravian Religion in America. Your first stop in Nazareth will be at the Martin Guitar Factory, where guitars have been handmade since 1883. After a great hands-on tour of the factory, you will get a chance to see the Martin Museum and see the history of the Martin guitar, as well as the famous musicians who play no other guitar. Next you will travel four miles to the Christmas City of Bethlehem where you will have lunch at one of the many restaurants on Historic Main Street. While in Bethlehem don't forget to visit the Moravian Book Store, the oldest bookstore in America, or one of the many shops along main street. This afternoon you will be given a Bethlehem Museum pass, which will allow you to visit the Kemerer Museum, the Moravian Museum, The Smithy Shop and the Old Water Works. After dinner you meet your local guide for a Moravian Night Light Tour of Bethlehem.

Day 5- After breakfast you will partake in two other special Christmas Traditions in Bethlehem. You will first experience a Moravian Putz, a seasonal Moravian tradition that depicts the story of Mary and Joseph traveling from Nazareth to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus through a diorama featuring lights and audio. Later this morning you will celebrate Christmas at Christkindlmarkt. Christkindlmarkt Bethlehem features aisles of beautiful handmade works by the nation's finest artisans, the heart-warming sounds of live holiday music, authentic German and Austrian food and much more. After lunch you will leave Bethlehem behind and head to Hershey, Pennsylvania, the “Sweetest Spot on Earth.” Your first stop is Hershey's Chocolate World. This interactive chocolate experience is just right for the whole family and is a shopper's paradise for anything and everything chocolate. Then you will check into your hotel for the evening and prepare for a night of food, entertainment and lights! This evening you are off to the Hershey Lodge for the wonderful Hershey Holiday Musical. Get in the holiday spirit with Christmas in Chocolate Town. This nonstop seasonal revue includes Top 40 holiday songs as well as traditional favorites. The evening begins with caroling, punch and light hors d'oeuvres and continues with a Christmas-inspired dinner and wonderful dessert. There is no better way to end your memorable time in Pennsylvania!

Day 6- After breakfast, you will depart Pennsylvania with great memories and wonderful stories.