Between next Friday and Sunday, Dec. 5-7, Harford and Cecil County residents and visitors can enjoy Christmas festivities in one of five local municipalities.
They can check out parades, community festivals, tree lightings and even historic homes and museums filled with Christmas cheer.
Havre de Grace
Visitors to Havre de Grace's annual Light Up Night and Christmas Parade can see Santa and Mrs. Claus, take in a parade through the city's downtown shopping district and see a Christmas tree light up in Rochambeau Plaza.
The event, which is sponsored by the Winter Wonderland Committee, will be held from 6 to 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 5, and it is part of Havre de Grace's final First Fridays celebration for 2014, according to the Havre de Grace Office of Tourism.
The parade begins at 6 p.m.; the route runs down Washington Street to Rochambeau Plaza at the intersection of Washington and St. John streets. The tree-lighting ceremony will then kick off.
Visitors can also see Mr. and Mrs. Claus at Santa Land at 115 N. Washington St.
Aberdeen
Visitors to Aberdeen can spend a full day taking in Christmas cheer in the city during the annual Aberdeen Christmas Street Celebration, which is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 6.
The centerpiece of Aberdeen Christmas Street, which has been celebrated in the city since 1977, will be the parade, which begins at 3 p.m. through downtown. Special parade guests include Santa and Mrs. Claus.
"It's a lot of fun," Mayor Mike Bennett said. "We always enjoy the parades and everything associated with that."
This year's theme is "A Christmas to Remember."
The day begins early at 7 a.m. with Breakfast with Santa at Grace United Methodist Church. The church, at 110 W. Bel Air Ave., will be open for breakfast through 11 a.m.
A nativity scene will also be at the church from 1 to 2 p.m.
Visitors can also take in the Christmas craft fair at the Aberdeen Fire Department's fire hall on Rogers Street from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and the Aberdeen Room Museum and Archives at 18 Howard St. will be open from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Before the parade, check out street entertainment along West Bel Air Avenue beginning at 2 p.m. with the winners of the window contest, in which decorations in the windows of businesses downtown are judged.
The parade begins at Law Street, then turns down West Bel Air Avenue and heads toward Howard Street. The parade route ends at Festival Park, and parade-goers can then take part in a Christmas tree lighting ceremony and visit with Santa in the park.
Bennett said the route stretches for about one and a half to two miles, and the route is usually packed with spectators and vendors.
"It is always well-attended, packed with folks," he said.
Bennett said he will kick off the celebration at Festival Park after the parade.
"It's a lot of fun, especially if it's a little bit warmer than colder," the mayor said of Christmas Street
Bel Air
The annual Town of Bel Air Christmas Celebration is scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 7, weather permitting, according to the town website.
Festivities begin at 2:30 p.m. with a concert by the Route 66 band on Main Street in front of the Harford County Courthouse.
The parade, narrated by radio personality Tracy Hart, begins at 3:30 p.m., with a route down Main Street to Lee Street and ending in Shamrock Park at the intersection of Lee Street and North Hickory Avenue.
Scheduled to appear in the parade are local high school bands from Bel Air High School, C. Milton Wright High School,Edgewood High School,Fallston High School,John Carroll School, Joppatowne High School and Patterson Mill High School. The parade also features dancers, twirlers, jugglers, stilts-walkers, floats, miniature horses and beauty queens including Miss Maryland and Miss Bel Air.
A community bonfire and sing-a-long, hosted by James "Capt'n Jim" McMahan, is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. in the park, where the Bel Air Community Band will be playing, and there will be free hot chocolate and cookies.
A tree-lighting ceremony will be held in the park at 5 p.m.
In addition to The Living Christmas Tree and Santa and Mrs. Claus, visitors can see acrobats, high school marching bands, local beauty queens, dancing, music and mascots.
Cecil County
Perryville's annual Holly Tree lighting is scheduled for 4 to 6 p.m Saturday, Dec. 6.
The event, which has been a Perryville tradition for decades, includes visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus, a program with musical performances and the lighting of the B&O Railroad Travelers Christmas Tree, a live holly tree in Holly Tree Park, Kimberly Gallaher of Cecil County Parks and Recreation said.
The tree was planted in the 1870s.
The event is being put on in partnership between Parks and Recreation and the Cecil County Holly Tree Corporation, a community group, Gallaher said.
The celebration takes place at 1 Holly Tree Lane, off Jackson Station Road in Perryville.
Cecil residents and visitors can also make their way through Port Deposit for the town's Holiday House Tour, scheduled for noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, according to the town's Facebook page.
Tickets are $15, and they are available at the Paw Paw Museum. Email pawpawmuseum@gmail.com for more information.