Christmas activities - WKTV Journal

(Courtesy, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park)

By Adam Brown

WKTV Contributor

Looking for a family-friendly outing during these chilly winter days? Frederik Meijer Gardens has you covered.

What Is It?

For the 29th consecutive year, Meijer Gardens is holding the annual University of Michigan Health-West: Christmas & Holiday Traditions Exhibition. This immersive experience takes guests on a journey showcasing worldwide cultures and lifestyles through trees and displays throughout the Gardens. Each winter, as the Gardens transform into a snowy wonderland, they spotlight one unique theme. This year’s message is Gather, which highlights how people around the world come together during this special time of year.

From November 21, 2023 to January 7, 2024, Meijer Gardens transforms for the season. Guests’ favorite sculptures and exhibits are still there, just with a little extra winter flair. The Railway Garden transports guests around the park as they take in the flowers, gardens, and more than 350,000 individual lights. Each display highlights a unique tradition or cultural story from around the world. The Exhibition hasn’t left out the local community either. The Railway Garden and surrounding handcrafted buildings pay tribute to more than 40 iconic landmarks from the greater Grand Rapids area, as well as Grand Rapids’ sister cities across the globe.

The Railway Garden. (Courtesy, Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park)

What’s New This Year?

This year, Meijer Gardens has added something new. At the nearby DeVos Van Andel Piazza, guests can observe the Winter Glow lighting experience for the very first time. Surrounding The American Horse sculpture and just a short distance from the main building, this combination light-and-music show features lights dancing to a choreographed custom soundtrack while projecting winter scenes on the surrounding hills. The Gardens extend their hours for this show, which runs December 18 to 22 and 26 to 30 from 5 to 9 pm. Firepits and hot beverages are provided to warm any chilly bones.

“We are looking forward to unveiling our new ‘Winter Glow’ experience outside on the nights of December 18-22 and 26-30. These unique events will feature visuals, sound, warm beverages and fire pits and are a great way for people to gather with friends and family to celebrate the holidays,” noted John VanderHaagen, the Gardens’ communications director.

The unique lights and sounds from across the world make Meijer Gardens the perfect place to reconnect with friends and loved ones this holiday season. And to anyone worried about potential accessibility issues, the Gardens have you covered. “We are open 360 days of the year,” VanderHaagen added. “All of our pathways remain plowed and de-iced, so we do make the entire grounds inside and outside accessible for our guests during the winter.” Guests should dress for the weather, as VanderHaagen noted both the indoor and outdoor areas of the Gardens remain open.

For the Community

Meijer Gardens’ original film Joy, exploring the melting pot of cultural celebrations in the local area, runs all season long in the Hoffman Family Auditorium. It also streams for free on YouTube.

The response from the community has been one of positivity, both in the local area and beyond. “[The Holiday Traditions Exhibition] is our second busiest time, other than our butterfly exhibition in the spring,” VanderHaagen added. The Exhibition offers something for everyone, regardless of your favorite traditions. The younger patrons may enjoy visits with Santa Claus at the Welcome Center or petting a few of his reindeer at Michigan’s Farm Garden.

Wintertime Walks give the kiddos an immersive investigation of the Lena Meijer Children’s Garden. If classic Christmas carols are your thing, keep an ear open for The Original Dickens Carolers as they venture through the Gardens’ Bissell and Gunberg corridors, spreading songs and good cheer.

Bird lovers can join the Grand Rapids Audubon Club for their 124th Annual Christmas Bird Count as they share ways for everyday citizens to involve themselves in supporting birds. The local area’s Polish Heritage Society and Korean Connection offer an inside look at their culture’s holiday traditions and how they’re observed each year. Finally, various Christmas-themed classes present jolly learning opportunities for patrons of all ages. Fees for these events are all included with admission costs. The exact dates and times for events and details about the Exhibition can be found here.

Looking beyond this year, VanderHaagen noted that the Gardens will continue to expand their new offerings in 2024. “We are also excited to launch a series of new events later this winter in January called Winter Nights at Meijer Gardens. These new experimental evenings feature unique performances, food and drink specials, and fun photo opportunities in the Garden Pavilion surrounded by Jaume Plensa’s monumental Utopia sculpture.”

If one gets the opportunity to visit Frederik Meijer Gardens between now and the arrival of the New Year, don’t squander this wonderful holiday gift! There are plentiful examples of holiday cheer and unique exhibitions that request viewing before some of them disappear forever! In addition to the enchanting Railway Garden, where model trains traverse a landscape filled with models of Grand Rapids landmarks as well as those of its sister cities, they are offering a chance to tour Holiday Traditions from around the world.

A tree representing Japanese cultural traditions.

Talking to the volunteers manning the information desk yielded treasures of all sorts. Dave Pelak spoke enthusiastically of the holiday trees representing all different and diverse backgrounds in Meijer Gardens’ Holiday Exhibition. “You need to pay attention to the detail in all the ornaments and just the overall presentation on each of them.” He was particular about the German and Irish trees especially, saying that if it were up to him, “no one could leave until they find the pickle”, referring to the German tradition of hiding a pickle ornament in the trees of the Dutch.

Pelak went on to explain the great amount of care each and every piece in the exhibition is given, with ornaments and crafted decorations being transported in basically padded safes. The effort shows through as one walks through the beauteous showcase, as the meticulous setups and utterly charming atmosphere provided are near-guaranteed to lift up all Christmas and assorted holiday spirits.

To further drive home the magnetic power of the worldly pageant, the author encountered a delightfully curious happening. As I perused the various traditional settings, I heard multiple languages around and within the Holiday Showcase of trees. Not just the typical English and Spanish filled my ears, but also the words of Russian family and methinks a Korean one as well who passed through enjoying the remarkable exhibition. These exhibits are truly examples that bring out the melting pot in our culture.

Also of note was the current exhibit within the Sculpture Gallery, just inside the entrance before one enters the Holiday Exhibition. Volunteer Cathy Ezinga told of how much of the current exhibition, rare and fragile Japanese art, is so delicate that once January 4th hits, the end of the exhibition, the pieces are being shipped off to Japan to be put in a sort of final resting place, out of public viewing, for the rest of time! That’s right, for just as the infomercials always claim, these pieces are only here for a very limited time and then they’re gone forever. Come to Frederik Meijer Gardens and behold the culture before it is too late.