Yuma's Christmas Village debuts Friday
Holiday fantasyland, skating rink open through Dec. 30 for affordable family fun
YUMA, ARIZONA – After months of planning and construction, a magical Christmas Village
taking shape at the Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park will open its doors to the public at 6 p.m. Friday (Dec. 10) and remain open daily through Dec. 30, except Dec. 24 & 25. Open until 10 p.m. on its debut night, Village hours are from noon to 8 p.m. all other days.
Offering daily entertainment and family activities, the holiday attraction features a town square of fanciful walk-in-sized playhouses surrounding an ice-skating rink, surrounded by thousands of sparkling lights adorning the trees and buildings of the 10-acre historic site.
A “Polar Pass” for Christmas Village admission costs $5 and is good for unlimited return visits for $1 each. Kids age two and under are admitted free. Skating is $5 for half an hour and includes skate rentals for all ages and sizes.
The Christmas Village is a joint production of the Yuma Visitors Bureau and the Yuma Crossing National Heritage Area; the City of Yuma is sponsoring the ice-skating rink, which features a high-tech synthetic surface for skating fun under Yuma’s sunny skies and mild, star-lit nights.
Each of the Christmas Village playhouses offers free interactive activities for kids, from dressing for career success in the Arizona Western College schoolhouse, to animal-themed games and pet gifts for sale at the Humane Society of Yuma’s gingerbread house with its “Santa’s Dog House.”
Kids also will be able to buy “gold” coins from the Foothills Bank vault they can use to shop for brothers, sisters, moms, dads and others at Santa’s Workshop, where all the gifts cost just $1 and volunteers will be on hand to help kids wrap their packages “all by themselves.”
Mr. Claus himself will be on hand opening night, then 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday (Dec. 11-12); 4 to 7 p.m. next Friday, Saturday and Sunday (Dec. 17-19); and 4-7 p.m. Dec. 23. There’s no charge to visit with Santa and professional photos of your kids with the jolly old elf are available for $10 each. During days and hours that Santa is not on hand, kids can “register” their wish lists in the inn sponsored by the Hilton Garden Inn.
Free daily entertainment will be offered, with performances ranging from ballet to cloggers and from mariachi music to carols and show tunes. The Yuma County Library District will offer a free story time daily (except opening night and Dec. 11).
A variety of adult and kids’ classes are also being offered on site, from Christmas makeovers to holiday crafts to cookie decorating and gingerbread house construction. Some are free, cost for others depend on the supplies involved, from $5 to $20. A full list of classes is attached.
Free spots for a special “photo opportunity” have been set up around the Quartermaster Depot, and visitors to the Christmas Village are encouraged to tour all the regular park sights. Food vendors will be on hand, along with face-painters and inflatable slide or jumpers (extra charge).
The Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park is located at 201 N. Fourth Avenue. However, because parking is limited at the front entrance to the park, Christmas Village visitors are encouraged to park around old City Hall (180 W. First Street), and follow Second Avenue north down the hill and across a bridge to the park’s rear entrance.
Schedules of performances and classes, a parking map and FAQs are available online at www.visityuma.com (click on Events & Festivals).
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Ann Walker, 928-376-0100 (office), 928-210-9044 (cell), ann@visityuma.com
Yuma Visitors Bureau markets the Yuma area within the travel and tourism industry and to the general public. The nonprofit is funded in part by City of Yuma hospitality tax revenues. Direct travel spending in Yuma County totaled more than $577 million in 2009 and supported nearly 6,000 jobs. Travel spending in the county also generated more than $36 million in state and local taxes.
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