5 Festive Reasons to Visit Pittsburgh During the Holidays (Updated for 2023)

Twinkling lights, holiday magic, and festive family fun await you & your family this holiday season in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...

This post was created in partnership with Visit Pittsburgh. As always, all opinions & thoughts expressed below are 100% my own.

I have spent most of my life living 2 hours or less from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and never once in that 30+ years did I visit the Steel City just to take in the sights & the sounds of the holiday season. 

To shop at the malls for holiday gifts? Yes. 

But we had never took the time to go and see the twinkling lights at Kennywood, or to take in the wonder of the season at Phipps Conservatory, or to try our luck at ice skating downtown. That is, of course, until a couple of weeks ago. ;)

Let me just start by saying that we have been missing out! I don't know how many times during our most recent visit to Pittsburgh (aka, Kidsburgh) that I turned and looked at my husband & asked him why we have never taken the kids to the city do all of these fun & festive things during the holidays before? 

Pittsburgh becomes something so much more during the holidays than just a former steel town, a home to major league sport teams, the point where the Allegheny, Monongahela, & Ohio Rivers meet. During the holiday season, the city becomes a magical place alive with the spirit of holiday wonder.

Although there is so much to do during the holidays in Pittsburgh, I am sharing with you all my top 5 festive reasons to visit the Steel City during the holidays in today's post...

Why Grapevine, Texas Should Be on Your Holiday Travel List

If you haven't considered Grapevine, Texas as a family holiday destination before, then you definitely need to check out these reasons why the Christmas Capitol of Texas should be at the top of your holiday travel list...

This post was created in partnership with GrapevineTexasUSA. As always, all opinions & thoughts expressed below are 100% my own.

When it comes to making travel plans for the holidays, I know that Texas may not be the first destination that comes to mind. I mean, we usually think of snow and maybe a cabin with a roaring fireplace in the mountains when we start thinking about planning an escape from the usual Christmas festivities. 

But today I am going to share with you all the very reason why the Lone Star state should be at the top of your holiday destination list this year- Grapevine, aka the Christmas Capitol of Texas! 

I had the pleasure of visiting Grapevine near the beginning of last month just as they had started to gear up for their annual 40+ days of over 1400 holiday events. The entire historic downtown area had been transformed into a festive wonderland of lights, wreaths, & evergreen garlands. 

All the shops along Main Street were already getting into the swing of the hustle & bustle of holiday shopping. And this was during the first week in November, folks. 

Grapevine doesn't play when it comes to Christmas. I mean, you certainly don't earn the title of the Christmas Capitol of Texas by not going all in, am I right? ;)

There are hundreds of reasons why Grapevine, Texas is the perfect family holiday vacation spot, but I can't possibly cover them all in this post. You all might be reading this for days if I did attempt that. 

However, I will share with you all my top picks of what to do when visiting Grapevine with your family during the months of November & December starting with my personal favorite- a visit to the Gaylord Texan Resort...