Georgia is home to one of America’s best Christmas towns — Helen.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and to celebrate the season, the dating reviews website MyDatingAdviser.com has ranked the 152 best Christmas towns in the USA.
The 1st place spot goes to Helen in Georgia, which has been a popular Christmas town for decades with warming hot cocoa, shopping, and Christmas lights. If you’re in the mood for cozy, wintry towns to get into the Christmas spirit, Helen is a great place to visit for some serious holiday cheer.
To determine the best Christmas towns in the USA, MyDatingAdviser compared 152 well-known Christmas towns across the country on 21 key metrics. They looked into festive activities, weather, dining, hotels, transport, among other indicators of a joyful Christmas break.
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Using the data points, each town has been given a ‘Christmas Town Index Score’. This represents the quality of the Christmas break you could have there.
Here are the top Christmas towns in Georgia:
1. Helen, GA
Rank: #1, Index Score: 85
Description: You may not expect to find an Alpine village along the banks of Georgia’s Chattahoochee River, but Helen, a former logging town at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, reinvented itself long ago as a Bavarian town. Visitors come to town in December to view the wreaths and artist-decorated holiday trees on auction at the Festival of Trees and to participate in the Kinderfest, the Christkindlmarkt, and tree lighting in tiny downtown Helen.
2. Blue Ridge, GA
Rank: #2, Index Score: 85
Description: A train ride with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and bona fide Southern charm? It’s almost too good to be true. All that and more are available for your family to explore in this northern Georgia town.
3. Pine Mountain, GA
Rank: #6, Index Score: 74
Description: If you’ve never heard of Christmas at Callaway, let’s talk. Callaway Gardens, which you’ll find in the small town of Pine Mountain, hosts what we like to call “the ultimate Christmas extravaganza.” Make merry in the Christmas Village, meet holiday characters up close, and ride through the dazzling illuminated forest. You’ll instantly fit right in with the rest of the sweater-swathed crowd craning their necks to catch every music-coordinated display.
4. Dahlonega, GA
Rank: #11, Index Score: 71
Description: If you’ve been sleeping, it’s time to wake up and smell the gingerbread cookies. Southerners everywhere travel from far and wide (we ran into a group of girlfriends all the way from Texas!) to catch this place during Christmastime. The North Georgia town is draped in twinkling lights and overrun with rambling horse-drawn carriages. We know what a problem to have. Its month-long celebration features everything from a hometown parade to charming tree lighting.
5. Moultrie, GA
Rank: #54, Index Score: 55
Description: Off the beaten path, this tiny South Georgia town sits with a quiet charm that perhaps feels the most authentic. Down here, folks are crazy about Christmas and celebrate the only way they know: loud and proud. Walking around the old-timey town square, centered by a courthouse, you’ll feel the small-town magic. A canopy of twinkling lights drape from the courthouse out in all directions, and the whole community gets together in the square to watch the annual lighting. (Anyone else getting Stars Hollow vibes?)
6. Thomasville, GA
Rank: #93, Index Score: 46
Description: Traverse the charming cobbled streets of Thomasville, Georgia, during the town’s classic Victorian Christmas Festival. enjoy the carolers, carousel, and ice cravings with your family in tow, grab a coffee from Grassroots Coffee Company, and don’t forget to stop into the rest of the community’s wonderful downtown shops.
Top 25 Christmas Towns in the USA:
1. Helen, Georgia
Index Score: 85
2. Blue Ridge, Georgia
Index Score: 82
3. Carmel-by-the-Sea, California
Index Score: 77
4. Leavenworth, Washington
Index Score: 76
5. New Hope, Pennsylvania
Index Score: 76
6. Pine Mountain, Georgia
Index Score: 74
7. Ligonier, Pennsylvania
Index Score: 74
8. Jacksonville, Oregon
Index Score: 73
9. Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Index Score: 71
10. McAdenville, North Carolina
Index Score: 71
11. Dahlonega, Georgia
Index Score: 71
12. Bernville, Pennsylvania
Index Score: 71
13. Valley Junction, Iowa
Index Score: 70
14. Breckenridge, Colorado
Index Score: 70
15. Williamsburg, Virginia
Index Score: 69
16. Ogunquit, Maine
Index Score: 68
17. Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Index Score: 67
18. Hershey, Pennsylvania
Index Score: 67
19. Galena, Illinois
Index Score: 67
20. Solvang, California
Index Score: 65
21. Shepherdstown, West Virginia
Index Score: 64
22. Virginia City, Nevada
Index Score: 64
23. Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Index: Score: 64
24. Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina
Index Score: 64
25. Eureka Springs, Arkansas
Index Score: 64
Here are 10 tips for surviving Christmas this year:
- Plan ahead. Many of us spend weeks worrying about Christmas shopping. Instead of worrying, start stocking up on supplies as soon as possible.
- Don’t embarrass yourself at the work Christmas party. This is of course a time to let your hair down but not at any cost! Many people go too far and then regret it.
- Don’t over-inflate your expectations. You can’t expect to create the ‘perfect’ Christmas as it will likely fall short of your expectations. Remember, the most important thing is for you and your family to have fun. But this doesn’t mean being in debt for the next year.
- Don’t try to do everything. If you have the responsibility of hosting Christmas Day this year, don’t take it all upon yourself. You can ask other family members to bring parts of the meal such as salads, snacks, and desserts. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
- Everything is in moderation. Christmas is a time of excess and indulgence. However, there is nothing enjoyable about feeling the size of a padded Santa suit or as stuffed as the festive turkey!
- Rehydrate. If you’ve had too many festive drinks, it’s a good idea to have some non-alcoholic drinks in between. Drink plenty of water to help your liver recover!
- Get active in the morning after. Get some exercise like a brisk walk, jog or swim to help work off those extra roast potatoes and all those second helpings you may have had.
- Sleep. Sleeping will help you recover from the excesses of life. Drinking and eating a lot can severely affect your sleep patterns. Also, over the festive period, late nights can become a regular occurrence.
- Take some time off. If you can, plan your holidays so you don’t have to go to work. Many burn the candle at both ends with parties and work and end up totally exhausted. Time off will help prevent you from being overworked and overstressed.
- Have fun. Christmas should be a fun time of year. If previous years have not been enjoyable, you can try something different this year. One idea is to get away from it all (maybe visit a new Christmas town) and remove the majority of the hassle from the whole festive experience.
Amy Pritchett, Managing Editor at MyDatingAdviser:
“If you’re planning a holiday getaway and looking for the best Christmas town to visit in the U.S., these Christmas villages are guaranteed to make you feel like you’re stepping inside your favorite holiday movie.
“I personally enjoy visiting Christmas villages in November and December with carolers, hot chocolate, and holiday decorations. Celebrating Christmas is an art form and small towns across America have perfected it.
“These small towns take celebrations to the next level with parades, unique trees, miles of ornate light displays, sleigh rides, and enough hot cocoa and chestnuts to send Santa’s helpers into hibernation.
“Just be sure to check for the latest updates on 2021 events, as some may still have coronavirus precautions in place, like requiring proof of vaccination.”
To view the top Christmas towns in the USA view: https://mydatingadviser.com/best-christmas-towns
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