Christmas at Blithewold

Each year in late December, the Van Wickle/McKee family would return to Blithewold to celebrate Christmas and the New Year. The household staff would arrive days before the family to ready the house for all the holiday celebrations. The head gardener and caretaker would gather evergreen boughs and cut down a tall tree from the property. The housekeeper and maids would decorate the tree in the entrance and the mantles in each room with the greenery, ensuring that their visitors would be welcomed into a warm house filled with the fragrance of Christmas.

Today’s Blithewold finds our volunteer decorators echoing the spirit of the past by transforming the house for our visitors. Every year we choose a theme that explores the interests of the Van Wickle/McKee family during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Then our decorators translate that theme into a dazzling display celebrating the magic of Christmas.

This Year’s Theme

Gifts of Nature

Christmas at Blithewold returns in 2026 with Gifts of Nature, a celebration of the beauty and wonder of the natural world. Imaginative displays inspired by Blithewold’s gardens, woodlands, and shoreline fill the Manor with birds, butterflies, woodland creatures, mushrooms, flowers, stars, and enchanting storybook scenes. Handmade decorations, natural materials, and historic details connect each room to the Van Wickle family’s love of Blithewold and its landscape.

Come experience a Christmas filled with creativity, discovery, and the enduring gifts found just outside our doors.

Everywhere you look, you’ll be filled with the joy of the holiday season past and present.
Come join us this Christmas at Blithewold.

Visit our program and events page to join us for some seasonal fun.

Learn about our opening hours here.