Let it Snow! Wine Country for Kids – Tree Lighting in Windsor, California

Traveling in Wine Country with children?  There are lots of holiday events to keep your little ones happy!  December 2nd we headed to downtown Windsor for the lighting of the 2nd Annual Charlie Brown Christmas Tree Grove on Windsor Town Green.  Windsor is located right off the 101 Freeway, in the heart of Sonoma County Wine Country.  The “Grove” is a collection of 106 trees decorated and donated by local organizations and schools.  Charles Schulz, creator of the “Peanuts” comic strip, was a long-time resident of Sonoma County and his family supported the event and sponsored a tree, which was decorated by employees of their Redwood Empire Ice Arena.  The money raised through tree sponsorship goes towards helping the Windsor Educational Foundation and the Windsor High School music department.

Along with the tree lighting of the main town tree and the 106 smaller ones, too, there were lots of different fun activities to choose from.  There were “train” rides, hay rides and horse drawn carriage rides all available ($1).  There was also a stage with carolers performing and crafts for children.  Photos with Santa were $9 with proceeds going to the Windsor Youth Action Team. 

It seems even folks who live in California dream of a “white Christmas”.  While there is definitely no snow in the forecast for Wine Country, Windsor makes it happen twice a night every night until January 7th.  At 5:30 and 7:30 they turn the snow machine on for 15 minutes each time and it “snows” in the town green. 

The event was very well attended, and parking was a bit of a nightmare.  It was also quite crowded, despite the uncertain weather (it started to rain just as we were leaving, thankfully).  Overall, we enjoyed strolling through the differently decorated trees and the snow machine was a major hit with our little one. 

We’ll definitely plan on going back next year, but may well give the actual lighting a pass.  The trees and the snow were the main draws for us, and those can be enjoyed through January 7th without the crowds or the parking challenges.  So, if you missed the tree lighting, pat yourself on the back for your excellent planning, and head on out to enjoy a little taste of a “white Christmas” and some creatively decorated trees in wine country’s Windsor, California.