Welcome to The Complete Holiday Pilgrim, a guide to the 100 Greatest Holiday Destinations and Activities around the world. These places, chosen for their religious, historic, traditional and cultural importance, encompass the spectrum of holiday experiences. Come explore the great Christmas sites, from the Nativity to Santa Claus; from festivals and parades to the movies and music that make the season magical. Celebrate the Festival of Lights around the world from the ancient Maccabees to modern-day Dreidel competitions. Discover what treasures of the holidays can be found in your own neighborhood.
The Nativity
- Basilica of the Annunciation – Site of the Annunciation of Mary || Nazareth, Israel
- Church of the Nativity – Site of the Birth of Jesus || Bethlehem, Israel
- Church of Sts. Sergius & Bacchus – Home of the Holy Family in Exile || Cairo, Egypt
- Cathedral of Cologne – Tomb of the Three Wise Men || Cologne, Germany
- St. Peter’s Square – Vatican Nativity Scene || Rome, Italy
- Catacomb of Priscilla – Oldest Depiction of the Nativity in Art || Rome, Italy
St. Nicholas/Santa Claus
- Church of St. Nicholas – Bishopric of Myra || Demre, Turkey
- Basilica of St. Nicholas – Tomb of Nicholas || Bari, Italy
- The North Pole – Traditional Home of Santa Claus || The Arctic
- Santa Claus Village – Unofficial Home of Santa Claus in Europe || Rovaniemi, Finland
- Santa Claus House – Unofficial Home of Santa Claus in America || North Pole, Alaska
- Santa Claus Mountain – Starting Point of Annual Sleigh Ride || Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
- NORAD HQ – Santa Claus Tracker Operations Center || Colorado Springs, Colorado
Christmas Festivals & Events
- Mummer’s Festival || New Inn, Ireland
- Befana Festival || Urbania, Italy
- Boar’s Head & Yule Log Festival || Cincinnati, Ohio
- Natchitoches Christmas Festival || Natchitoches, Louisiana
- Dive for the Cross || Tarpon Springs, Florida
- Day of Goodwill Holiday & Beach Party || Cape Town, South Africa
- Santa Claus Pub Crawl || Wollongong, Australia
Christmas Pageants & Parades
- Macy’s Parade & Santaland || New York City, New York
- Santa Claus Parade || Peoria, Illinois
- Hollywood Santa Parade || Los Angeles, California
- Toronto Santa Claus Parade || Toronto, Canada
- Adelaide Christmas Parade & Magic Cave || Adelaide, Australia
Christmas Markets
- Christkindlesmarkt || Nuremberg, Germany
- Winter Wonders Festival || Brussels, Belgium
- Tivoli Gardens Christmas Market || Copenhagen, Denmark
- Christmas Markets of Central England || Several Locations, England
- Great Dickens Christmas Fair || San Francisco, California
Christmas Stores
- Kathe Wohlfahrt Christmas Store & Museum || Rothenberg, Germany
- Tregaarden’s Christmas House & Post Office || Drobak, Norway
- Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland || Frankenmuth, Michigan
- The Incredible Christmas Place || Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Christmas Performances
- Christmas in Vienna with the Vienna Boys Choir || Vienna, Austria
- Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert || Salt Lake City, Utah
- Hansel & Gretel at the German National Theater || Weimar, Germany
- NYC Performances – Messiah, the Nutcracker, the Rockettes || New York City, New York
Christmas Carols
- Coventry Mystery plays – “Coventry Carol” || Coventry, England
- Queen’s College at Oxford – “Boar’s Head Carol” || Oxford, England
- St. Vitus Cathedral – “Good King Wenceslaus” || Prague, Czech Republic
- Silent Night Chapel – “Silent Night” || Oberndorf, Austria
- Collegiate of Roquemaure – “O Holy Night” || Roquemaure, France
- PNC Bank Headquarters – “Twelve Days of Christmas” || Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Christmas Music
- George Frederic Handel Sites – “Messiah” || London, England
- Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky Sites – “The Nutcracker” || Several Locations, Russia
- James Pierpont Sites – “Jingle Bells” || Several Locations, America
- Woodlawn Cemetery – Gravesites of Victor Herbert, Irving Berlin & Johnny Marks || New York City, New York
Christmas Literature
- Charles Dickens Sites – “A Christmas Carol” || Several Locations
- Clement Clark Moore Sites – “A Visit from St. Nicholas” || New York City, New York
- Virginia O’Hanlan Sites – “Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus” || Several Locations, America
- William Porter Sites – “The Gift of the Magi” || Several Locations, America
Christmas Movies
- Snow Valley – “White Christmas” || Manchester, Vermont
- Bedford Falls – “It’s a Wonderful Life” || Seneca Falls, New York
- The Parker House & Museum – “A Christmas Story” || Cleveland, Ohio
- The McCallister House, etc. – “Home Alone” || Chicago, Illinois
- Elf Locations – “Elf” || New York City, New York
Christmas Trees
- Strasbourg Cathedral – First Christmas Tree || Strasbourg, France
- Zion Lutheran Church – First Christmas Tree in America || Cleveland, Ohio
- Clackamas County Tree Farms – Christmas Tree Capital of the World || Estacada, Oregon
Christmas Lights
- Avenue des Champs Elysees || Paris, France
- Fifth Avenue & Rockefeller Center || New York City, New York
- Syntagma Square || Athens, Greece
- Silver Dollar City || Branson, Missouri
- Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights || Orlando, Florida
- Christmas Light Drive Thrus || Several Locations, America
Christmas Ornaments & Decorations
- Lauscha Glassworks – Ornaments || Lauscha, Germany
- Murano Glassworks – Ornaments || Venice, Italy
- Santonnier’s Fair – Creches || Marseilles, France
- Krakow Nativity Scene Competition – Creches || Krakow, Poland
- Steinbach Nutcracker Woodworks – Nutcrackers || Several Locations, Germany
- Nutcracker Museum – Nutcrackers || Leavenworth, Washington
- Snow Globe Museum – Snow Globes || Vienna, Austria
Christmas Treats
- Hopcraft Bakery – Gingerbread || Market Drayton, England
- National Gingerbread House Competition – Gingerbread || Asheville, North Carolina
- Gingerbread City – Gingerbread || Bergen, Norway
- Café Niederegger – Marzipan || Lubeck, Germany
- Claxton Bakery – Fruit Cake || Claxton, Georgia
- Spangler Candy Factory – Candy Canes || Bryan, Ohio
- Kentucky Fried Chicken || Tokyo, Japan
Christmas Sporting Events
- King George VI Chase || Sunbury, England
- Boxing Day Test || Melbourne, Australia
- Hawaii Bowl || Honolulu, Hawaii
Christmas Odds & Ends
- National Christmas Center || Paradise, Pennsylvania
- Salvation Army International Heritage Center || London, England
- Toys for Tots Foundation || Triangle, Virginia
- Christmas Card Collections || London, England
- Rankin & Bass Legacy || Zelienople, Pennsylvania
- Holiday World Amusement Park || Santa Claus, Indiana
- New York Botanical Gardens Train Show || New York City, New York
- Christmas Truce Memorials of the Western Front || Several Locations
- Poinsettia Farms of Taxco || Taxco, Mexico
- Christmas Island || London, Kiribati
Hanukkah
- Modi’in Valley – Tombs of the Maccabees || Modi’in, Israel
- Budapest Festival of Lights || Budapest, Hungary
- World’s Largest Permanent Menorah || Manado, Indonesia
- World’s Oldest Hanukkah Menorah || Brooklyn, New York
- Menorah & Dreidel Collections || New York City, New York
- Temple de Hirsch Sinai – “The Dreidel Song” || Seattlw, Washington
- Major League Dreidel Annual Championships || Brooklyn, New York
