South Norfolk welcomes the holidays - and YOU!

Before you can say “Yuletide,” a visit to Historic South Norfolk will leave you awash like a baptism in the warmth of holiday spirit, harmonious carols and jingling bells. Tune in to 2WD at 101.3 for the holiday tunes as you tour. (Click for playlist).

This year, a high percentage of historic homes are decorated; some adorned in traditional garlands and bows with minimal lights, and some that likely may be seen from space, lighted with all the gusto of Clark Griswold, himself.

If you enter on Park Avenue off Bainbridge, be sure to slow down as you pass the lake on Bainbridge. That’s the only spot you can catch in one camera view, both the colorful Ruritan’s Christmas tree on the lake and the South Norfolk Neighborhood Watch’s beautiful seven lighted wreaths that adorn the west side of the bridge.

This is a daytime shot from an earlier year. The neighborhood watch now manages seven lighted wreaths on the bridge at Lakeside Park.

A daytime cruise around the historic district is a step back in time, before Christmas lights, before cars and before interstates. These traditional decorations from the 19th and 20th Centuries are most obvious and most remarkable during the day, but many traditionally decorated historic homes are lit with floodlights at night.

Poindexter Street is better decorated than Atlantic Avenue at Virginia Beach. No really, it’s true. Nearly every antique-look light post on Poindexter is appointed with a lighted garland and a big red bow, and this is no small feat for community leaders, who monitor the lights by the hour, almost, to make sure all the lights along the corridor will work, despite some mischievous little elves who work against them in the wee hours of the night.

This home is on Chesapeake Avenue looks beautiful day or night.

An evening cruise highlights the more modern holiday decorations, but the traditional garlands still look beautiful at night. To see them all in the dazzling daylight AND in the romantic glow of the night is truly an experience you should not miss.

All the churches in South Norfolk welcome you to Christmas Eve services. Check with your choice for service times. Come early, or stay late after, and use the opportunity to soak in some good, old-fashioned South Norfolk warmth of the season. You are always welcome here.