Park City’s holiday season unfolds this week with an array of annual kick-offs, including the Snow Globe Art Stroll, Small Business Saturday and the Holiday Light Ceremony.
“Historic Park City is a must-visit destination for couples, families, and friends throughout the holidays,” said Ginger Wicks, executive director of the Historic Park City Alliance, which facilitates these events. “It’s fun to bring the community together to create this fun ski-town atmosphere so everyone can enjoy the holidays in Park City.”
The Snow Globe Art Stroll, which features a series of larger-than-life installations up and down the street, livens things from Thanksgiving until Jan. 3. Each globe features a winter wonderland scene designed by local artists, Wicks said.
“The theme this year is Silver and Snow, which plays off of our Park City heritage,” she said. “And each scene includes a hidden silver snowflake.”
This year marks the second holiday season Historic Park City Alliance has partnered with the Arts Council of Park City & Summit County to recruit local artists to design the globes, according to Wicks.
“It’s a fun way to collaborate with another local nonprofit and showcase our local artists and their creativity,” she said.
The stroll has also turned into a tradition for families to come up every year to see the globes, Wicks said.
“It’s kind of like going to see the lights at the temple or the windows in Salt Lake City, and that was the intent behind the creation of the Snow Globe Stroll,” she said. “We wanted people to start making their own traditions and draw them to Historic Main Street and get them to visit local businesses on Main Street.”
The idea to promote local Main Street businesses expands on Nov. 29 with Small Business Saturday.
“Main Street is full of small businesses,” she said. “And it is fun to showcase some of the smaller boutiques and locally owned businesses on Main Street that maybe are owned or run by your next-door neighbors.”
Wicks believes Small Business Saturday is a great way for local residents to help these businesses thrive.
“The economy has been challenging, and we need to support these businesses so they can stay open,” she said.
Saturday is also the day Historic Park City Alliance hosts the annual Holiday Lights Ceremony, which features a live DJ, tree lighting and giveaways.
Wicks said the tree lighting begins at 5 p.m., but DJ Dolph will start playing seasonal music at 4 p.m. and the first 200 attendees will receive a complimentary holiday light necklace and candy canes.
The Historic Park City Alliance also upped its game for this year’s lighting ceremony, according to Wicks.
“The city has been a great partner in my vision of transforming the street,” she said. “We wrote several grants so we could buy additional holiday decor, because all of this does cost money and is very labor-intensive to install these new additions. So, it has been great to work with the city staff.”
In addition to partnering with the city, Historic Park City Alliance worked with Deer Valley Resort for the tree that will be set up at Miners Park. The resort donated one of its 30-foot grand firs and transported it to the park from Silver Lake last week, Wicks said.
Another seasonal celebration, the Silver & Snow Holiday Window Display Contest, begins Saturday.
The contest, which runs through Christmas Eve, relies on public input.
“People can visit Main Street and explore the window displays of the participating businesses,” she said. “Each window will have a snowflake with a QR code, and people can scan the code to cast their vote for the window they like best. Prizes for first, second, and third place will be announced on Dec. 26.”
There are other holiday events scheduled before the window contest winner announcements — the Park City Santa Pub Crawl on Dec. 6, Santa’s arrival down the Town Lift on Dec. 20 and the Ski Bum on the Run from Dec. 12 to Dec. 21.
“We have something for all ages,” she said. “The Pub Crawl, that is a toy drive for the Christian Center of Park City, is for people who are 21 and older, and Santa coming down the Town Lift and the Ski Bum on the Run are for all ages.”
Santa is scheduled to arrive at the Town Lift around 6 p.m.
“Kids can drop their letters to Santa in Santa’s Mailbox at Miner’s Park, and it’s always fun to see him coming down the ski lift,” she said.
The Ski Bum on the Run is a new scavenger hunt that features Rip, the mischievous ski bum. If visitors locate him and post a picture on Instagram, tagging @historicparkcity, they will be entered for a drawing that day for a gift certificate at the business or retailer he visited.
“He is our take on the Elf on the Shelf, and every day he will create some mischief on Main Street,” Wicks said. “You will be able to find clues on our Instagram and website as to where he will be. … And anyone who participates in the event all seven days will be entered to win a larger prize from the (Historic Park City Alliance.)”
Wicks would like to see the Ski Bum on the Run become as much of a tradition as the other seasonal events.
“Rip is quite the character, and while this will be the first year he will cause some chaos, our hope is that this will grow into something larger over the coming years,” she said.
For information about the holiday season on Main Street, visit historicparkcityutah.com.