This past weekend we took our daughter to the annual
Celebration in the Oaks, at City Park in New Orleans. It has become an annual tradition for our family.
Celebration in the Oaks is a wonderful family event to usher in the holiday season! It starts the weekend after Thanksgiving and goes til New Year’s weekend (last night is Dec. 30th). There used to be a driving tour that encompassed most of the light displays, but Hurricane Katrina literally did a whole lot of damage to the displays. In order to come back with what they had, a chance was made to make it all a walking tour inside the gardens and kiddie amusement park. Personally I really like the chance. While driving has it’s advantages (warmth from the car heater!), there is something much more magical about walking around and under the light displays!
The gardens (New Orleans Botanical Gardens) are gorgeous by day, but by night with the light displays they are unique and give you a sense of being elsewhere. The fountains and statues are eerie sentinels guarding their realms. Beware the pond waters- they are VERY cold- they are made for viewing, not dipping fingers into!
One of the highlights has ALWAYS been the Cajun Night before Christmas display that is spoken, and accompanied by coordinating light displays. Kids ADORE the display and for many families it is an annual tradition to sit and watch the whole story unfold. Unfortunately this year it was MOVED from it’s place just in from the old entrance (you now enter at the Kiddie area, and exit at the old entrance). There was plenty of places to sit and watch, or to place the stroller, where the kids could watch. This year it has been smushed into a small side area just down from the conservatory, and only about 10 people can get by it to watch it. As it is on the grass, strollers get bogged down, and it is hard to navigate even with the best of strollers. I don’t know why they moved it, but it was a BAD decision, and one we are not happy about-my daughter didn’t even want to watch it, as it was too hard to see! As the area where it was was replaced by only a cone tree lighted sculpture, there doesn’t seem to be much reason there….
Also in the garden area is in the Conservatory of Two Sisters with it’s twenty foot Christmas tree center rotunda display. Usually the tree is made of poinsettias, but when we went it was just multiple Christmas trees in red (hopefully that will change, as the poinsettia tree is breathtaking!-see pix from last year-website says they will have it up- probably by this coming weekend!). An unique side exhibit is the Amazon rain forest area, with a fake waterfall that you can walk behind (a must for all kids and kids at heart).
Near the Conservatory is the
gift shop- make sure you stop in and picked up the annual collectible ornament. The pewter ornament changed every year- this year it is the entrance castle to Fantasyland. they have wonderful art, jewelry and books related to Louisiana/New Orleans. Just outside is the laser show, set to Christmas songs that always amuses the kiddies!
The entertainment tent is close by and offers a place to warm up- your extremities, your belly and your soul! they have plenty of heaters going, lots of great food for sale (BRING CASH), and a changing lineup of singers and dancers keeping the holiday songs going through out the night!
Nearby is the excellent New Orleans Train Garden, filled with a 14,000 square foot model replica of New Orleans in the late 1800s with multiple trains running. Kids are enchanted (big kids too!).
The kiddie area has long been a fixture in New Orleans history. It is open during the week as well, all year long. The center point has always been the
Looff and Carmel hand carved carousel situated at the center of the area, as it has been since 1906. Antique carved horses enclosed in a carousel house are magical. It is one of ONLY 100 such carousels still in existence and is not to be missed!
Additional rides like the tilt-a-whirl, flying planes, ferris wheel, roller coaster, kiddie rides, bumper cars and the Himalaya ride from the old Ponchartrain beach amusement park, offer plenty of fun for kids of all ages. You can get a ‘all you can ride’ bracelet for only $15-well worth the cost of you want to ride all the rides- ! There are carnival games and goodie carts through out. The cafe opposite the art shop (jewelry and other unique Louisiana souvenirs) is enclosed and offers a respite from the cold (best buy for popcorn as well-medium tub for only $2!). The ultimate thrill is to ride the train out of the gardens and around City Park. There are various light displays set up, as well as seeing
NOMA lit up at night, as well as all the houses along City Park Avenue lit up with Christmas lights! Just be sure to bring a coat or blanket, it can get a little chilly/and windy while riding! Perfect for snuggling for mom and dad!
You can have a family portrait taken by the carousel, or have your picture made with Santa. Lakeside Photo prints the portraits on scene (after about a 15 minute wait). So you can skip the horror of the mall, and see Santa here! Make sure to have your picture taken by Mr. Kringle- the snowman who used to be outside Maison Blanche department store during the holidays on Canal St. (for more info on him, click
HERE).
The highlight (besides Santa, of course) for most kids is
Storyland. Nursery rhymes come to life with statues, small houses and climb on equipment. You can be a pirate on Capt. Hook’s ship, sit in Cinderella’s pumpkin carriage, dance with the 3 pigs (and see the houses they built), pretend to be an astronaut, sit in Pinocchio’s whales mouth, or ride down the dragon slide (warning- VERY fast and slick-and fun of course!), to name just a few. All is safe for smaller kids and it is magical at night to them. They also put on plays at the gazebo!
The entrance is lined by trees decorated by Christmas trees decorated by various elementary and secondary school, and service organizations. They are an annual event for the schools, and for those of us who attended school in New Orleans, half the fun is finding out school’s tree!
Christmas in the Oaks in a great New Orleans family event and not one that is to be missed!
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