Saturday, December 19 Christmas Candlelight& Grand Illumination
5:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
*Tryon Palace Historic Sites & Gardens’ Christmas Candlelight & Grand Illumination has been recognized by TIME.com and the Chicago Tribune as one of the Top 10 Holiday Events in the nation.
Join us honored visitor as we step back to December 1770 to celebrate King George III’s birthday and the completion of the construction on North Carolina’s first capitol. Candle globes and fire baskets light the way to the Palace where a grand entertainment and ball are underway. On this special evening the Palace is beautifully decorated and filled with elegant dancers and musicians. Fascinating characters and colonial entertainers, such as Signora Bella and Otto the Sword Swallower, compete for the title "best colonial entertainer" while outside the Palace gates Jonkonnu steals the show with their West Indies dance and song. This magical evening is topped off with a spectacular fireworks show on the South Lawn. Costumed dancers, musicians, and dynamic performers entertain outside the Palace with daring shows of acrobatics, juggling, and sword swallowing. The Fife & Drum Corps performs twice each night, first to get the festivities started, and again midway through the evening. The Jonkonnu performers delight and entertain visitors with a lively mix of songs and dances in an African American Christmas celebration dating back to the eighteenth century in eastern NC. At the end of the evening, a Grand Illumination of fireworks takes place on the South Lawn.
Visitors touring the Palace will be given a choice of time to enter the Palace, thus freeing everyone up to tour the outside events at their leisure. Adults $15; Students $6. Group discounts are available.
Signora Bella and Otto the Sword Swallower
Barney's Coffee House warms and entertains you with colorful characters and serving maids!
Mail: Tryon Palace Historic Sites & Gardens
Attn: Candlelight Tickets
PO Box 1007, New Bern, NC 28563
Candlelight activities are ongoing from 5 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Tickets have timed entry for Palace tours in one hour time slots at
5 p.m., 6 p.m., 7 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Ticket availability is limited.
All sales are final, and tickets cannot be refunded or reissued.
Advance ticket sales not purchased from the Visitor Center
must be completed by 12 noon the day before the Candlelight event
and will be available for pick-up the day of the event.
Tryon Palace Historic Sites & Gardens thanks the following sponsors:
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