CHARLOTTE CELEBRATES DAD! June 16, 2016

 

Charlotte is beautiful in June and offers the perfect setting for celebrating dad! Outdoor activities abound in the Queen City on Father’s Day weekend and your dad is sure to enjoy fun with the entire family!

Every member of the family can hit the golf course at Adventure Landing mini golf! Dads play free on Sunday, June 19th. Enjoy all the fun and games offered at the Pineville location!

Lake Norman is the most popular water destination for Charlotteans! On Friday, June 17th the Charlotte Symphony will perform its Summer Spirit Series in the idyllic setting on the shores of Lake Norman. Pack a picnic, bring a blanket or enjoy the concessions as Dad sits back and enjoys movie scores as well as classical music. Boating dads can anchor in the Energy Explorium Cove. Also in the Lake Norman area, dads who love to race will have fun at the Race Pit Kart Racing.Dads race free on June 19th!

Ray’s Splash Planet offers fun in the sun while staying cool in the pool! Dads splash for free on Father’s Day at this exciting water park!

Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is offering dads and families an especially masculine day in the gardens! Along with strolling the beautiful garden paths, dads can enjoy a classic car show, beer tasting and live music! Food trucks and hands-on activities for the family will also be available!

The National Whitewater Center offers all outdoor activities Father’s Day weekend, including The Brew Stash Bash on Saturday, the 18th! The Brew Dash Competitive Heat at 9:00am, followed by the Brew Stash Breakfast at 10:00am will begin the morning’s activities. Music, and regional and national craft beer tasting begins at 1:00pm.

Take me out to the ballgame! The Charlotte Knights will be playing the Indianapolis Indians on June 19th at the BB&T Ballpark. All dads are invited to a pre game catch on the fields!

Ride, splash, run and drive your way through a fantastically fun Father’s Day! Celebrate your dad in the great outdoors of the Queen City!

wwww.southcharlotteliving.com

SANTA KEEPS THE MAGIC ALIVE IN CHARLOTTE November 30, 2012

Charlotte is welcoming Santa at several locations throughout the Queen City! Wrestle the youngsters into Granny’s hand-knitted Christmas sweaters and holiday sparkly dresses for those priceless Christmas pictures with Jolly Ole Saint Nick!

Southpark Mall, located on the corner of Fairview and Sharon Roads, has Santa cozily tucked in his Santa Village from November 7-December 24^th, 10:00a.m.-8:00p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m.-6:00p.m. www.southparkmall.com or call the Santa Village directly (720)402-9714

Also in the Southpark Mall you can head to a Santa Breakfast at Maggiano’s (December 8th or 20th, 8-11am) http://www.maggianos.com where you can enjoy great food, photos, face-painting and more, or at Brio in nearby Piedmont Row (December 8th, 9-10:30) http://www.brioitalian.com for a delicious plated meal, coloring activities, and a take-away treat bag!

Carolina Place Mall, located on Carolina Place Parkway, will have Santa visits on Saturdays 9 a.m.-9p.m. and Sundays 11 a.m.-8:00 p.m. On Christmas Eve, Santa will listen to wishes 11 a.m.-8:00 p.m. www.carolinaplace.com

Concord Mills Mall, located off I-85 at exit 49 , has Santa preparing for the great outdoors, waiting to hear holiday present requests at the Brass Pro Shop! Santa will be available Monday-Friday 5p.m.-8:00p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m.-9:00 p.m. and Sundays 2 p.m.-5:00p.m. www.concordmills.com

Blakeney Shopping Center, located at 9870 Rea Road, will be visited by Santa December 7^th-8^th, 5:30p.m.-8:30 p.m. www.shopblakeney.com

Brunch Buffet with Santa is offered at The Ballantyne Hotel & Lodge on December 2nd – call 704-248-4100 for reservations.  And later in December, don’t miss the fabulous Gingerbread Lane gingerbread house display in the grand halls of the hotel – clever and adorable!

Pancakes with Santa Saturday, December 8, 10am -1:00p.m. at SoneCrest at Piper Glen. Please bring a non-perishable food item to benefit Second Harvest Food Bank.

Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, located at 6500 New Hope Road in Belmont has holiday fun for the entire family. Holidays at the Garden ,with visits from Santa,  will be Nov. 23 – Dec. 31, Noon – 9 p.m.
www.dbsg.org

Santa has included Charlotte as one of his most important stops! Don’t miss the wonderful tradition of enjoying your child’s belief in the magic of Christmas with a visit to Santa!

Charlotte Holiday Sparkle for You! Lights and More… November 28, 2010

Maureen’s tip of the day –

Thanksgiving is over, and it’s time to set our sites on some holiday sparkle!  There are several opportunities, in and around Charlotte, to spend time (and, on occasion, a few dollars as well) checking out beautiful Christmas lights displays.

A relative newcomer to the Christmas lights and holiday fun is the display around the track and on the infield at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord.  Known as Carolina Christmas, for $20 per passenger vehicle you’ll enjoy a trail of sparkling LED lights in clever configurations, a live nativity scene, ice skating opportunity, carriage rides, snacks, music, and more!  Open 6-10 pm nightly until Jan. 2, 2011.  Check out the details (and pre-purchase tickets!) at www.visitcarolinachristmas.com.

For a wonderful and “free” south Charlotte interactive lights and music display, check out the Cook Family adventure at 10732 Honeynut Dr. in the Allyson Park subdivision – over 80,000 lights rockin’ to the beat of some of your favorite Christmas tunes!  Running from 6-10 pm nightly from Dec. 4 – Jan. 1, just drive up, dim your lights, and tune your car radio to 100.3 FM!!  Donation bucket on site with all proceeds donated to A Child’s Place – well worth it!  Thanks once again, Cook Family!  For details and directions, www.C3inet.com.

A Charlotte area standard, the McAdenville “Christmas Town” lights display is available nightly from Nov. 30 – Dec. 26 – 5:30 – 9:30 pm M-F and 5:30 – 11pm on Saturdays and Sundays.  An old-timey mill town all lit up for the holidays just for you!!  From south Charlotte, the easiest route is going to be 485 (inner loop!) to Wilkinson Blvd./Exit 9, left at the bottom of the exit ramp and head west through Gastonia – follow the traffic onto Main Street as you’ll still have plenty, but not as much as if you head into town via 85 south.  See more info at www.mcadenville-christmastown.com.

Also free and a fun experience is a trip out to the Billy Graham Library (on the Billy Graham Parkway, of course!) for another spectacular display of holiday lights, live nativity scene, carriage rides, caroling, and a tour of the library (with shopping and snacking opps!) and the original Graham home on site.  It’s open during the day for some activities, but the lights are on from 5 – 10 pm nightly from Dec. 1 – Dec. 23.  For directions and details, see http://www.billygrahamlibrary.org/pgview.aspx?pid=18&eid=7.

Ok, this is a secret for south Charlotte people in-the-know!  sssshhhhh…. but if you want to take a peaceful drive through a charming south Charlotte neighborhood on the night they are all decked out with luminary magic, check out Thornhill, off Elm Lane on Saturday, Dec. 18th!  (And if you see a house for sale that you’d like to see – call me at 704.541.2500 and I’ll give you the details!).  Great neighborhood, beautiful event.

The fun continues at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden in Belmont (about 40 -45 minute drive from south Charlotte).  A definite treat with the incredible gardens all alight with over 600,000 lights, trains, carriage rides, Santa, baked goodies, and more!  $12 adults, $11 seniors over 60, and $6 children under 12.  Runs now until Dec. 3. For directions and more info, check out the website at www.dsbg.org and enjoy!

FINALLY, one special treat for you and the kids – a must on your own holiday events calendar.  How about a ride on The Polar Express!!  Head west to Bryson City, NC (about 3 hours from Charlotte) and “All Aboard” The Polar Express train sponsored by the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad.  On board the train (jump on in your jammies of course!), there’ll be a reading of the famous Christmas story by the same name, caroling, hot cocoa, a ride to the “North Pole” complete with a chance to meet Santa and a special surprise memento (can you guess?).  I never knew about this when my children were little, but I don’t think it’s ever too late!  The memories will be worth every penny at $38 for adults and $26 per child 12 and under.  See you there!  Call 800.872.4631 for all you need to know…

Hope these ideas help to get your holiday plans in gear!  And remember…  if your holiday plans include buying or selling a home, contact us at www.southcharlotteliving.com – we’re here for you!