Bel Air Winter Wonderland Features Carriage Rides, Santa

BEL AIR, MD — Festooned with bows and holiday swag, the town of Bel Air is decked out for the holidays. From the lampposts to the business windows, the spirit of the holidays comes through across Main Street.

Around the Bel Air Armory, more than 40,000 lights have been strung with care. And on Saturday, Santa will be there.

As part of its Winter Wonderland initiative, the town is offering free carriage rides and hot cocoa Saturdays between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day.

Related:

• Bel Air Turns Into Winter Wonderland For Holidays

This is the first year the town has hosted the array of activities marketed as "Christmas in Bel Air."

Warm lights and snowflakes create a holiday glow around the armory courtyard, where Santa's sleigh is on stage for family photos.

Tanglao Carriages, a horse-drawn carriage service based in Pasadena, has provided the horse and carriage, and rides are free.

"The carriage rides were courtesy of the Greater Bel Air Community Foundation," Parker said. "This project was a gift to our town."

Here are the Winter Wonderland activities between now and the end of the year:

Daily — Shopping On Main Street

Free metered garage parking is available in the Hickory Avenue parking garage from Nov. 25 to Dec. 31, courtesy of the Bel Air Board of Town Commissioners.

Street parking is free from Dec. 16 to 25 on Main Street.

Saturday, Dec. 21

Winter Wonderland Pop Up Shop, 20 East Lee Street

• The pop-up shop is open 11 a.m.–7 p.m. It features local vendors.

Winter Wonderland at Frederick Ward Armory Park, 37 North Main Street

• 5-8 p.m. Visit with Santa, plus cookies and hot cocoa in the courtyard
• 5-9 p.m. Carriage rides on Main Street. There are no reservations for carriage rides until the night of the event. People show up and add themselves to the list.
• 5–9 p.m. Chesapeake Cancer Alliance will wrap gifts in the Armory with proceeds benefiting the Cancer LifeNet program. Prices vary from $2 to $11.

Saturday, Dec. 28

Winter Wonderland at Frederick Ward Armory Park, 37 North Main Street

Because the "Sip and Shop" carriage rides Dec. 19 were postponed due to the cold, they will be offered Dec. 28. Carriage rides will be from 5-9 p.m., and Tanglao Carriage Driving plans to bring an additional carriage "to help ease any disappointment that this has caused," according to Bel Air Winter Wonderland organizers.

Who Makes Winter Wonderland Possible

Local organizations, businesses and community members have helped bring Bel Air's Winter Wonderland concept to fruition at no charge to the public.

Hot cocoa and cookies at the armory have been provided by local nonprofits, according to Parker.

"The coordination of this project was between the Town of Bel Air, The Greater Bel Air Community Foundation and the Bel Air Downtown Alliance," Parker said. "Between these organizations with assistance from the county, Visit Harford and Jones Junction, we were able to offer everything at no cost."

The result has been a one-of-a-kind experience.

"Seeing families together on a carriage ride on our Main Street has been its own reward," Parker said. "From start to finish this has been a holiday greeting card to Bel Air."