Join this annual tradition on its last day of the season, and visit your choice of a selection of Victorian inns, homes, churches and hotels all beautifully decorated for the holidays.
CAPE MAY — Share a special holiday tradition with friends and family on a festive tour of Cape May’s historic district and surrounding areas during Christmas Candlelight House Tours, presented by the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts & Humanities (MAC). Every year since 1974, a large selection of Victorian inns, homes, churches and hotels open their doors and welcome visitors to share the warmth and hospitality of the season during these popular, self-guided, walking tours.
You will be welcomed inside with holiday hospitality and cheer. Enjoy Christmas carols by candlelight, strolling musicians along the historic streets of Cape May and beautiful holiday decorations. Walk from site to site, stopping at hospitality centers for warm beverages and holiday treats during your travels. Free heated shuttles make limited stops along some routes.
The final of three Christmas Candlelight House Tours of the season is Saturday, Dec. 16, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Choose from featured properties, including: Angel of the Sea, 5 Trenton Ave.; Antoinette’s Apartments & Suites, 717 Washington St.; Beauclaire’s Bed & Breakfast Inn, 23 Ocean St.; Bradford Cottage, 509 Franklin St.; Cape Island Baptist Church, Columbia Avenue & Gurney Street (restroom only); Cape May United Methodist Church, 635 Washington St. (tour only); The Carlin Family Residence, 1102 Lafayette St.; Cavalier Cottage, 1109 Washington St.; The Colonial House Museum, 653 ½ Washington St.; Franklin’s Key, 313 Franklin St.; The Harrison, 613 Columbia Ave.; Inn at the Park, 1002 Washington St.; The Jersey Lady, 1409 New Jersey Ave.; Kiwanis Club of Cape May, 1041 Beach Ave.; The Kurtz Family Residence, 910 Washington St.; The Luther Ogden Inn, 815 Kearney Ave.; The Mainstay Inn, 635 Columbia Ave.; The Mission Inn, 1117 New Jersey Ave.; The Ocean Victorian, 25 Ocean St.; Our Lady Star of the Sea Church, 525 Washington Street Mall; Pharos at the Harrison, 617 Columbia Ave.; The Queen Victoria B&B, 102 Ocean St.; The Southern Mansion, 720 Washington St.; and The Wilbraham Mansion, 133 Myrtle St. Two conveniently located hospitality centers, the Carriage House at the Emlen Physick Estate, 1048 Washington St., and the First Presbyterian Church of Cape May, Decatur and Hughes streets, will be open, allowing visitors to enjoy warm beverages and traditional holiday treats.
Christmas Candlelight House Tours also include admission to Cape May’s authentically decorated Victorian house museum, the Emlen Physick Estate, and the exhibit “An Old-Fashioned Christmas: Holiday Traditions through the Years” in the Carriage House Gallery located on the grounds of the Physick Estate. The exhibit’s main attraction is a display featuring a Dept. 56 Dickens Village, model trains and vintage Christmas memorabilia, all beneath the boughs of a giant Christmas tree. While there, letters to Santa can be deposited for mailing to the North Pole.
Admission to the Christmas Candlelight House Tour is $35 for adults and $20 for children (ages 3 to 12). The tour is limited; it is strongly recommended that tickets be purchased online by visiting www.capemaymac.org, or reserved in advance by calling (609) 884-5404 or (800) 275-4278. Any remaining tickets on the day of the tour may be purchased at the Washington Street Mall Information Booth, Washington and Ocean streets. Properties on the tour are subject to change.