It is that time of the year when loads of life lighten, people become more

free spirited, and more sharing.  Thanksgiving and Christmas in America! 

Dahlonega is typical of many cities over the nation, and one is somewhere near you, that really, really celebrate the holidays as a community!  Find one, get the Chamber of Commerce to give you their holiday schedule, and "take the family," or if a single person, go, and who knows? There may be another single person just looking for someone to enjoy the season with! By-the-way, Dahlonega is one of my small town fun places to be in all of America!

DAHLONEGA, GA— October 28, 2008 - Visits from that jolliest of elves on the ornament-strewn Historic Public Square. Beautiful bed and breakfast inns decked to the holiday nines. Restaurants serving up holiday dishes and live music. Mulled cider, Christmas concerts, a Holiday Art Show and shops stuffed like Christmas stockings with all your favorite things. Dahlonega gets into the fa-la-la of the season on Nov. 28 when the Square is lit up to welcome visitors for a month-long season of shopping and celebration. The next day, Nov. 29, visits with Santa Claus begin. And then, on Dec. 6 it’s official: Dahlonega kicks off its Old-Fashioned Christmas with the Lighting of the Christmas Tree and the Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade. On Dec. 14, take a Sleigh Bell Tour of Dahlonega bed and breakfast inns. Come get a taste of a Norman Rockwell-like Christmas with an Appalachian twist during this month-long event in Dahlonega; visit www.dahlonega.org for all events and activities.

Santa Claus is coming to town

Visits with Santa on the Public Square in front of the Dahlonega Welcome Center are on these dates: Every weekend, beginning Sat., Nov. 29, 1-6 p.m., and Sun., Nov. 30, 1-5 p.m., through the weekend of Dec. 20 and 21. On Fri., Dec. 5, join others on the Square as the Kiwanis Luminaries are set aglow at dusk and Father Christmas arrives. The shops lining the Square extend their evening hours for a Holiday Open House. On Sat., Dec. 6, Dahlonega pulls out the stops for a holiday parade that culminates in the Lighting of the Tree. Join the revelers for caroling, music, entertainment and more.

Sleigh bells ring

On Sun., Dec. 14, 1-6 p.m., head over the river and through the woods on a self-guided Sleigh Bell Tour of the bed and breakfast inns of Dahlonega. Traverse the North Georgia Wine Country to see one unique inn after another, each one uniquely and resplendently decorated for the holidays and all offering tours and refreshments. Tickets are $12.00 per person and may be purchased at the Dahlonega Welcome Center at 13 S. Park Street, Dahlonega, 706-864-3513, or at participating B&B Inns. Visit www.dahlonegalodging.com for more information.

Here we come a-wassailing

On each Saturday from Thanksgiving through Christmas, 1-5 p.m., the one-of-a-kind gift shop, Upstairs Downstairs, and home of the Georgia Wines Tasting Room, will welcome shoppers with complimentary mulled wine and cookies. On Sat., Dec. 6, and Sat., Dec. 20, 2-4 p.m., Upstairs Downstairs will feature live music by Tee Smith who holds a Masters Degree in Piano Performance from Georgia Southern University.  Stop by to enjoy holiday and classical selections performed by Smith on the keyboard.

Hark! The herald angels sing

On Sat., Dec. 6, The North Georgia Chamber Symphony will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary of St. Luke’s Catholic Church, known as the Carnegie Hall of Dahlonega. The symphony will perform five parts of “The Messiah” and “Panis Angelicus,” along with several other somber pieces and Christmas music, including a sing-along.

More caroling will take place on Sat., Dec. 13, 1-2 p.m., when members of the Lumpkin County High School Chorus perform seasonal favorites in front of the Visitors Center on Dahlonega’s historic Public Square. Then, at 2 p.m., join the crowd for an hour-long holiday performance by the Lumpkin County High School Jazz Band. From 5-7 p.m. on Fri., Dec 19, enjoy a Christmas Carol Sing-Along featuring Matt Carter on the keyboard in the Courtyard in front of Paul Thomas Chocolates.

Mistletoe and holly

Shop the Public Square for unique gifts for everyone on your holiday gift giving list. You’ll find shops and galleries stocked with Georgia-made regional art, gifts, crafts and collectibles, trendy fashions, freshly made edibles and more. Nip into the Holiday Art Show and Sale at the Olde Cannery Art Center on Thursdays through Sundays from Nov. 15 to Dec. 21, 11-5 p.m. And have your child’s photo take with Father Christmas who will visit the fine art studio, Frog Hollow Company, 10-5 p.m., on Nov. 29 and Dec. 5 and 6. (Appointments required for photo sessions.) Stroll the Public Square on Sun., Dec. 21, for a Gallery Walk and a chance to buy the works of regional artists, a truly special Christmas gift.

The Historic Holly Theatre will present “The 1940s Radio Hour” as its holiday musical, with performances at 8 p.m. on Dec. 4-6, 11-13 and 18-20 and at 2 p.m. on Dec. 7 and 14. Return to 1942 America during the holidays with a live broadcast of “The Mutual Manhattan Variety Cavalcade” from the Hotel Astor's Algonquin Room and get caught up in the spirit of that bygone era through pop tunes like "Strike Up the Band" and "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" while the show (hilariously) unfolds.

A sampling of new Old-Fashioned Christmas events for 2008

∙Progressive Dinner Gallery Walk with a theme of "Peace on Earth": A Celebration of World Peace in honor of National Peace Day on Sun., Dec. 21, 5 p.m., with dinner beginning at Hummingbird Lane Art Gallery and concluding at Paul Hoffman Chocolates and Upstairs Downstairs.

∙Christmas stories told by Vera LeFevre from 1-3 p.m. on Sat., Nov 29 and Sat., Dec 6, at The Dahlonega Fudge Factory.

∙Peppermint Stick Dip at Paul Thomas Chocolates: Children 10 and under are invited to come to the courtyard in front of Paul Thomas Chocolates to dip their very own peppermint stick in chocolate, 1-3 p.m., on Dec. 14. 

All this and more is happening during Dahlonega’s month-long Old Fashioned Christmas celebration. Shops will be showing off their hospitality—and special wares. Bed and breakfasts will have holiday packages and special events, cafes and restaurants holiday dishes and live music. Many events on Dahlonega’s Public Square are free.  For a detailed schedule of events and theatre fees and dates, go to www.dahlonega.org; or call the Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Convention and Visitors Bureau at 1.706.864.3711 or toll-free 1.800.231.5543. Don’t miss a chance to enjoy an Old-Fashioned Christmas in Dahlonega.

Dahlonega, the site of America’s first major gold rush in 1828, is located just off Georgia 400 in the pristine and picturesque North Georgia Mountains.  Unique shopping opportunities abound in Dahlonega, especially around its historic square that easily earned a coveted spot on the National Register of Historic Places. Now the center of a thriving music and arts scene, and the heart of the Georgia wine industry, Dahlonega provides much to see and do during every season; local innkeepers and hotels offer specials and discounted packages for couples, families and friends. For more details, contact the Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber of Commerce, Convention & Visitors Bureau by calling toll-free 1.800.231.5543 or by visiting www.dahlonega.org.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Angelia Wilson, President

Dahlonega Merchants Association

1.706.864.6333; dmapresident@yahoo.com

Secondary Contact:

Amy Booker, Membership and Marketing Director

Dahlonega Convention and Visitors Bureau

1.706.864.3711; 1.800.231.5543

 amy@dahlonega.org

Laurie Rowe Communications

News Release

LaurieRowe@LRCpr.com