Lights to shine again this year at Silverton Christmas Market

The warm glow of seeing twinkling Christmas lights in Silverton has become as much a holiday tradition in Oregon as the yule steam train in Portland, boats parading their lights along the Willamette River, and any number of Nutcracker ballet performances.

This year, with pandemic precautions eased a bit, the beloved family light festival formerly known as Christmas in the Garden is back. But now, it has been renamed the Silverton Christmas Market and it has relocated to the grounds of the Oregon Garden Resort.

Actually, it was held at the Oregon Garden Resort last year (the hotel at the Oregon Garden), but because of the pandemic, it was restricted to hotel guests only.

Now, the event is open to the public, is bigger than ever before, has a clear walking path which has been made one-way to ease the flow of foot traffic and allow for social distancing, and the number of lights has been increased to more than 1 million to make the event even more spectacular.

The light display starts at the resort’s main lodge, winds along Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA accessible) paths next to the building, goes through the Wedding Garden and beyond.

Back are some of the display’s enduring favorites such as the tunnel of lights (a popular photo opportunity) and snowless tubing. There won’t be any ice skating at this year’s market however. Carolers will roam throughout the grounds performing and musicians will be featured in the family friendly Biergarten to round out the experience. Santa Claus helpers and Frosty the Snowman also are expected to make appearances for picture-taking opportunities. 

Families don’t have to travel more than an hour north to Portland any longer to take part in festive holiday events. They can start or continue holiday traditions right here in the valley, said Brittney Hatteberg, director of marketing and communications for Moonstone Hotel Properties, which owns the Oregon Garden Resort.

The Silverton Christmas Market has been redesigned to help families create their own magical holiday memories close to home.

“We look forward to providing a fun place for families and are delighted we are able to open the event to the general public,” Hatteberg said.

Because of the pandemic, the event is cashless, and no general admission or snowless tubing tickets will be available at the door. All tickets must be purchased online in advance. Ticket sales will close two hours prior to the event, which is at 3 p.m. daily. All food, drink, and vendor booths will accept only debit or credit cards for those purchases as well.

Tickets for the Silverton Christmas Market are always free for children five and younger
$15 for adults 13 and older Monday through Wednesday
$18 Thursday through Sunday
$5 any day for children ages 6 through 12.
Special rates are available for Silverton residents 13 and older with proof of local residence.

Snowless Tubing:
$3 for a single ride
$8 for 3 rides

There will be beer, hot cocoa (with optional mix-in spirits for adults), water, soda, and the  resort’s signature Gluhwein (warm, mulled wine popular in Germany) as well as multiple food options including some traditional German fare such as bratwurst as well as fondue.

Handmade crafts and other gift items will be sold by local artisan vendors.   

VIP parking will be offered at the Oregon Garden Resort for $15 and is based on availability. General parking is $10 (cash and QR code payment is accepted here) at the door and includes complimentary shuttle service to and from the offsite parking lots. Shuttles run on continuous loops between the parking lots and the event. The first shuttle departs at 4:45 p.m. and the last shuttle leaves the resort at 9 p.m. Hotel guests can park at the Oregon Garden Resort for free as part of their overnight package. Several restrooms are available on-site.

Well-behaved pets are allowed at the event, but the complimentary shuttles are not pet-friendly. Hotel guests who book a pet-friendly room, folks who have purchased VIP parking, or General Parking, are welcome to bring their pet on a leash. Please be considerate and clean up pet waste to keep the event pet friendly.

 

Hatteberg said the resort believes it is important to give back to the local community, especially during the holiday season, so it is partnering with the following local organizations to make the holidays a little bit brighter for them. It encourages the public to support these programs whenever possible:

  • Silverton Area Community Aid (SACA) through donations accepted on site at the event and through its food drive from Dec. 1-23. Bring canned food to the food drive and enter to win a free night’s stay at the Oregon Garden Resort.
  • Support of the KEX Kids Fund and Oregon Lion’s Sight & Hearing Foundation.
  • The Brew’s “Breaking and Entering Christmas” family sponsorship.

*Donations accepted on site at Silverton Christmas Market

Making yuletide memories to last a lifetime is important, so make plans to attend the Silverton Christmas Market soon.

For tickets, go to silvertonchristmasmarket.com and select “tickets” from the pull-down menu at the top of the page.  

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