Lots of New England towns have fall and Christmas festivals. I keep meaning to visit some of these as they look to be filled with unique celebrations of local handiwork. My boss grew up in Kennebunk, Maine and has spoken of the Christmas Prelude on several occasions. When I saw it listed as one of the top celebrations in the nation I thought it would be worth the drive for us to see what the fuss was about.

Kennebunk and it’s neighbor across the bridge, Kennebunkport, are fishing towns, probably best known for Walker Point, the summer of home of the Bush family. The two towns combine to create a festival where people wear crazy hats and have a big parade.  Santa arrives in a lobster boat, and they have a big tree lighting festival at night. We missed those parts of the festival. But the part we saw was certainly worth seeing. Most of the summer beach shops that usually close for the winter are open during this time and sell Christmas related items. The restaurants are filled with visitors, and local crafters display their wares in tents set up in grassy areas along the inlet. Finding a parking place during Prelude is quite a feat, but we managed to find one less than a half mile from the main area. A great big Christmas tree made was decorated with lobster pot buoys and stood in the middle of the town center. The local gallery had a great Women in the Arts exhibition that we toured. It was a little off the main drag so it was good to get away from so many people.

We browsed through the shops, always looking out for a unique animal ornament to hang on our Christmas tree. We had window seats for lunch at a popular seafood restaurant on the waters edge. This was a far cry from the tour of 5th Avenue we’d done the week prior, but it was great to see how New Englanders carry on decades old traditions.

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” – Helen Keller