Solvang was voted second “Best Christmas Town” in Newsweek’s 2024 Readers’ Choice Awards.
The “Danish Capital of America” came second to Grapevine, Texas. Other towns on the festive list include Healdsburg, California and Aspen, Colorado.
There are up to 20 nominees per category in the Newsweek Readers’ Choice Awards.
Nominations are made by a panel of Newsweek editors and travel experts. Readers were able to vote online for each category.
One of the largest holiday events on the Central Coast, the annual Solvang Julefest will begin November 29, 2024 and run through January 5, 2025.
Newsweek highlighted some of Solvang’s unique Christmas traditions such as gnome hunting, candlelight city tours and the Christmas tree burn.
Solvang City Manager Randy Murphy said, “We’re less than two months away from the start of our annual Solvang Julefest holiday celebrations, and this Newsweek award win provides an extra dose of inspiration for our city as we make this year’s Julefest even more ‘Christmassy’ than the last.”
