Alexandria by Candlelight

Virginia

On Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 13 and 14, five historic sites in Old Town Alexandria will welcome visitors for the 1997 Candlelight Tours. The sites are Gadsby’s Tavern Museum, the Lyceum, Carlyle House Historic Park, the boyhood home of Robert E. Lee and the Lee-Fendall House. All will be done up in period decorations (from Colonial to Victorian), and holiday musicians and singers will perform. The tour is self-guided and the sites are within easy walking distance of one another. A shuttle will also be available. Advance tickets are recommended. Contact the Office of Historic Alexandria, P.O. Box 178, City Hall, Alexandria, VA 22313; telephone (703) 838-4994.

Louisiana

New Orleans celebrates the holidays in a two-weeklong festival, Dec. 12 to 25, with most activities taking place in the French Quarter. Every day Papa Noel, the local version of Santa Claus, will lead a musical parade. Every night gospel choruses will sing in St. Louis Cathedral on Jackson Square. Also planned: art fairs, street entertainments and food carts. The festival closes with a Christmas Day concert in the Orpheum Theatre. For more information, contact the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corp., 365 Canal St., One Canal Place, Suite 2020, New Orleans, LA 70130; tel. (504) 524-4784.

Michigan

At the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, in Dearborn, the holiday traditions of three centuries will be honored Nov. 28 through Jan. 4. All the historic buildings will be dressed in period decorations, from the 17th century English Cotswold Cottage to the 19th century Edison Homestead. Visitors can enjoy traditional holiday foods, sleigh rides through the village and the music of carolers. Also planned: a 720-square-foot gingerbread town. For more information, contact Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, 20900 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn, MI 48124; tel. (313) 271-1620.

Texas

San Antonio’s festivities this month are in high Southwest style. In addition to 70,000 twinkling lights along the Paseo del Rio during weekends in December, 2,000 luminarias will line the walkways. Carolers on river cruisers serenade visitors along the River Walk. Other events include the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Dec. 12 at Mission San Jose and La Posada, on Dec. 14 on the River Walk, commemorating the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. Also planned: holiday home tours, art fairs and concerts. For more information, contact the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau, P.O. Box 2277, San Antonio, TX 78298; tel. (800) 447-3372.

England

On weekends in December, visitors to the medieval halls of the Tower of London, decorated for the holidays, will hear costumed guides describe how Christmas was celebrated there in the past. At Hampton Court Place, on the same dates, the castle will be open for special lantern-lighted tours. Visitors will be offered mulled wine and canapes, served before a grand fireplace, and hear how kitchen staff once prepared the holiday banquets. For more information, contact the British Tourist Authority, 551 Fifth Ave., Suite 701, New York, NY 10176; tel. (800) 462-2748.

U.S. Virgin Islands

The Christmas season begins on Dec. 7 in Frederiksted on St. Croix with the annual Prince and Princess Pageant, kicking off four solid weeks of steel pan music, parades and dancing in the streets. Musicians compete for the coveted title of Calypso Monarch and the year ends with a Carnival Food Fair on Dec. 31. For more information, contact the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism, 3460 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 412, L.A., CA 90010; tel. (213) 739-0138.

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