With 3 wild ones of my own, my family loves finding holiday events in the DC area for kids. We’ve tried quite a few activities over the years and have a few favorites that I will share here.

Christmas feels even more magical as a parent to me, and my family just loves the opportunity to spend time together to celebrate the season.

There are an abundance of holiday events in the DC area for kids, but these are my favorites!

Holiday Events in the DC Area for Kids

Watkins Lights Regional Park Festival of Lights

Watkins Regional Park has a drive-through light display that my family LOVES! It’s the perfect length, and we love spotting some of our favorite displays like the Wizard of Oz characters or Santa on a motorcycle. We’ll get the kids in their PJ’s, pour some hot chocolate in thermals, and have a great time driving through the display! I personally love being inside a warm car enjoying holiday lights, so I love the drive-thru lights.

The light display usually begins the last weekend in November and runs until New Years. You can purchase your tickets here.

US Botanic Gardens Train Display

The US Botanic Gardens has a model train display every year, and it really is so neat! They set the train display up outside. Wander around the gardens admiring the detail and observe the trains simmering past! Although this activity is outside, I like that it doesn’t take too terribly long, and they usually do have hot chocolate for sale. You can walk into the Botanic Gardens when you’re done to warm up and look at all their beautiful poinsettias! It does get quite crowded on weekends, so we usually try to venture over during the days between Christmas and New Years.

Baltimore Polar Express Ride

Okay, full disclosure – we are actually doing this activity for the first time this year, but I did a lot of research looking up options. My husband and I have talked about doing the Polar Express ride for years, but the options are pretty far out from the DMV, and this activity is definitely on the more expensive side.

There are a couple of Polar Express train ride options in Western Maryland and Pennsylvania that actually get better reviews, but we’re opting for the Baltimore option for convenience and because we want to hop over to the Baltimore holiday markets when we’re finished. The train rides in Western Maryland and Pennsylvania actually go to and from a location, whereas the Baltimore one stays stationary – which is one of the downsides of the Baltimore location. However, from what I’ve read from reviews and friends’ experiences, it’s still a good time had by all! I’ll send an update once we’ve completed it!

There you have it! Those are my favorite holiday events in the DC area for kids. Feel free to comment your favorites below!

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