Christmas in Sidney starts on Friday, November 27, from 5 to 8 pm. Downtown shops stay open late, and this year there's one new piece. The Sidney BIA has been shopping at participating downtown businesses for gifts for a new Giving Tree, and it will hand them out wrapped over the course of the evening.
Every gift from the tree is money already spent in a downtown Sidney store. That fits a season whose whole calendar is laid out to bring people back to Beacon Avenue and the Mary Winspear Centre, week after week, until the end of December.
Gifts bought on the street where they're given out
The BIA explains it on its Christmas in Sidney page:
"We've been busy shopping at participating local businesses, hand-selecting wonderful gifts to surprise our community with throughout the evening."
Visitors stop by the tree for a chance at a wrapped surprise, "purchased right here in Sidney." The Giving Tree is the only item on this year's Holiday Shopping Night marked as new. The rest of the evening is familiar: free treats, a tote bag giveaway, live music and Santa photos.
Where those gifts come from depends on which shops are on Beacon Avenue right now, and that list has changed since late summer.
The Beacon Avenue the gifts come from
If you last walked downtown in July, you'll see changes on November 27.
- Atticus Clothing, 2495 Beacon Avenue, was set to close in September as owner Helen Crump retired, according to the Sidney BIA's September bulletin.
- Art and Soul Studio held its grand opening on September 10 at 9802 Fifth Street. The studio's own site describes it as newly open at that address. It took over the space Bodacious Boutique gave up when that shop moved to pop-ups and online sales.
- Jared VanderMeer Gallery and Studio opened earlier this year at #1–2449 Beacon Avenue, as Seaside Magazine reported in late August.
- Local Pizza has been renovating the former Taco Shell location at Beacon Avenue and Third Street.
So two of the newer stops on a late-night shopping loop are an art studio and a working gallery. Both fit a night meant for gift shopping, and both are within a short walk of the corner where the evening's free cookies are served.
Friday, November 27, from corner to corner
Holiday Shopping Night has no single venue. It's spread across downtown, so the order you walk it in matters. The BIA lists these stops:
- Second Street and Beacon Avenue. SMØR Scandinavian Bakery hands out free seasonal drinks and cookies on the corner.
- Outside Starbucks on Beacon Avenue. Live holiday music.
- Sidney Pier Hotel. Santa photos, taken by Four Frames Photo.
- The Giving Tree. Wrapped gifts handed out over the evening.
- Tote bags. Christmas in Sidney totes are given away while supplies last.
The tote bags go first, so arriving close to 5 pm gives you the best chance at one. The Pier Hotel is at the water end of downtown, so it's an easy last stop before you head home.
Beacon Avenue and the Mary Winspear carry most of the season
After November 27, most of Sidney's holiday dates fall in one of two places. Beacon Avenue hosts the free outdoor events. The Mary Winspear Centre hosts the ticketed and indoor ones. The Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea on the waterfront adds two preschool mornings in early December. Here's the season in date order:
Week of November 23
- Tuesday, November 24, 7 to 8:30 pm. Far and Away Adventure Travel's Canadian Travel Showcase at the Mary Winspear Centre, in person or online, featuring Rocky Mountaineer, Maple Leaf Adventures and G Adventures.
- Friday, November 27, 5 to 8 pm. Holiday Shopping Night, downtown.
Week of November 30
- Tuesday, December 1. Tot Tuesday, themed "Stars of the Sea," at the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea.
- Friday, December 4, to Sunday, December 6. Peninsula Singers: Home for the Holidays at the Mary Winspear Centre.
- Sunday, December 6, 5 to 6 pm. Sidney Sparkles Holiday Parade on Beacon Avenue.
Week of December 7
- Tuesday, December 8. Tot Tuesday, themed "Polar Adventures," at the Shaw Centre.
- Friday, December 11, to Sunday, December 13. Last Chance Christmas Craft Fair at the Mary Winspear Centre.
- Saturday, December 12, 11 am to 2 pm. Free photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus downtown. Pets are welcome.
Week of December 20
- December 20, 21 and 26 to 29. Peninsula Players' Robin Hood the Panto at the Mary Winspear Centre.
The weekend of December 4 to 6 is the busiest stretch. The Peninsula Singers fill three nights at the Mary Winspear, and the parade comes down Beacon on the Sunday evening. The following weekend is nearly as full, with the Last Chance fair running indoors while Santa takes photos downtown on the Saturday.
The craft fairs bookend the season. The First Chance Christmas Craft Fair already ran November 7 and 8 with more than 80 West Coast artists and makers. The Last Chance fair comes back to the same building for the last gift run in mid-December.
Parade night on Beacon Avenue
Peninsula Celebrations Society presents the Sidney Sparkles Holiday Parade, with Santa and Mrs. Claus at the end of the line. Entrant registration is open to nonprofits and businesses.
Explore Sidney's event listing gives the route. It starts on Resthaven Drive, runs the length of downtown on Beacon Avenue, turns onto Second Street and ends at Ocean Avenue. The parade is free, and the listing recommends arriving early for a good spot.
That route goes past most of the businesses on the stops list above. The Second Street turn comes just after the SMØR corner from Holiday Shopping Night, so the stretch of Beacon between Resthaven and Second is where the whole parade passes by.
The scavenger hunt fills the weeks in between
The Elf on the Shelf Scavenger Hunt runs all season. It follows the same idea as the Giving Tree: get people walking through the doors downtown. The BIA says elves are hiding in more than 50 downtown businesses.
You can pick up a map at the Sidney Information Centre, 2281 Beacon Avenue, or download one from the BIA's holiday page. Children who finish the hunt can come back to the Information Centre, say which elf was their favourite and get a prize. The centre is open 10 am to 4 pm and closed Sundays, so a Saturday hunt fits better than a parade-day one.
The BIA also runs a Holiday Window Decorating Contest through the season. That gives you one more reason to walk the full length of Beacon at least once before the decorations come down.
With more than 50 hiding spots, the hunt goes well past the handful of shops near the Second Street corner. The new gallery on Beacon, the studio on Fifth and the older storefronts all count as stops.
If you're tracking which Beacon Avenue storefronts have changed hands this fall, or wondering how downtown Sidney's mix of shops is holding up year to year, Kash Burley follows the peninsula's main streets closely and is happy to talk through what she's seeing. Reach out any time, or get your free home valuation if a move is on next year's list.
