Santa Claus needs to let loose before handing out all those presents.
On Christmas Eve this Wednesday, Jolly Old St. Nick is returning to the Potomac River for the 40th annual Waterskiing Santa show. The show starts at 1 p.m. outside BARCA Pier & Wine Bar at 2 Pioneer Mill Way.
How are you ringing in the new year in Alexandria?
A number of local bars and restaurants are doing it up in style on Dec. 31. From Old Town to Del Ray, Arlandria and the West End, here’s a roundup of shindigs that will send you into the early morning hours of 2026.
A popular holiday-themed bar crawl is returning to Del Ray this Saturday.
The 10th annual Candy Cane Bar Crawl will be held from 12:30 to 6 p.m., encouraging attendees to eat, drink and be merry, according to a flier posted by the hosting Del Ray Business Association. This year’s crawl includes raffles, trivia, a photo booth and costume contest, along with 18 participating restaurants promising festive libations.
The weather was crisp and cool as hundreds of revelers sang holiday carols at the annual lighting of the Del Ray Christmas Tree and Menorah on Sunday night.
The 36-foot-tall tree is the tallest ever in Del Ray. It was donated by “Mango” Mike Anderson and Bill Blackburn of the Homegrown Restaurant Group.
What a day for a parade it was in Old Town on Saturday, Dec. 6.
The wailing of bagpipes sailed through Alexandria’s historic streets as thousands of community members gathered to watch the 54th annual Scottish Christmas Walk Parade.
Hundreds of Alexandria residents gathered on Saturday to celebrate Alexandria’s annual Christmas tree lighting in Market Square.
Mayor Alyia Gaskins announced the magical arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus, who got into town on a Christmas-themed King Street Trolley. They helped city leaders count down the lighting of the 40-foot-tall plastic tree, which is adorned with some 38,000 lights.
Alexandria will celebrate its international sisterhood with Caen, France, next week during a “Bienvenue Beaujolais” wine tasting fundraiser.
Guests at the cultural, culinary evening can expect guided wine tastings and French cuisine to commemorate Beaujolais Nouveau Day, an annual celebration of the year’s first release of the red wine.
The Alexandria Police Department has a few tips for families to have a safe Halloween tomorrow (Friday).
Trick-or-treaters should wear light-colored or reflective costumes and carry flashlights or glow sticks for visibility, the department recommended. Families can also add contact cards inside their kids’ costumes in case they are separated, according to an APD flier distributed on social media this week.
Alexandria is hosting a pre-construction open house for the upcoming N. Columbus Street sanitary sewer project in Old Town West.
Construction on the $1 million project is expected to begin in December at the 600 block of N. Columbus Street and last until November 2026. City plans entail disconnecting the area’s sewer line from the combined sewer and connecting to a separated sewer line.
The staff of Alexandria Congressman Don Beyer, D-Va., are hosting an event tomorrow (Thursday) to discuss his office’s constituent services.
Beyer’s staff will host the “Congress in our Community” from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at the James M. Duncan Branch Library at 2501 Commonwealth Avenue. No appointment is necessary to attend, Beyer said in a note to the Del Ray Citizens Association.
A free kids’ event at an Alexandria elementary school next month will combine recycling, crafting and competition.
The “Recycled Royal Rumble” is happening from 1-4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 16 at Patrick Henry K-8 School’s athletic field (4653 Taney Avenue). The outdoor challenge tasks kids to create medieval-inspired armor and costumes using cardboard, recycled materials and household items.
