Three activities to do in Peoria over the holidays

*This article was originally submitted as a calendar story in a feature news writing class on Dec. 13, 2021.*

The days are shorter and colder, but that doesn’t mean we have to hibernate for the winter.

Peoria offers many events and activities to participate in throughout the winter that will warm you up with a smile. Whether it’s a little bit of holiday magic or doing something new, Peoria can provide you and your family with some fun.

East Peoria Festival of Lights

It’s time for the 37th annual East Peoria Festival of Lights (Folepi), featuring floats from the Parade of Lights. The festival was the 2020 champion of the Heavyweights Division in ABC’s The Great Christmas Light Fight.

For Bradley student Jordan Tomlianovich, attending the Festival of Lights is nostalgic as it brings back childhood memories. Now, he introduces his friends who haven’t been before.

“It’s generally a great thing for the holidays if you enjoy all the colorful lights,” Tomlianovich said. “You get to drive slowly through the park with the radio playing calm Christmas music and enjoy all the bizarre characters, creatures, buildings and vehicles made of lights.”

It takes about 30 minutes to drive through the display, but the park warns that the line on weekends could be a three-hour wait, so try to get there early or attend on a weekday.

Folepi’s Winter Wonderland will be up until Jan. 2 and is located at 123 Par 3 Lane, East Peoria. Admission is $10 per car. The display is open 5-9 p.m. on Sunday through Thursday and 5-11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Visit the Luthy Botanical Garden

The Luthy Botanical Garden, located at 2520 N. Prospect Road, offers several events throughout the winter.

The Poinsettia Show in the conservatory is free to attend and continues until Dec. 30. The Nature Art Show, where you can buy nature-inspired art from local artists, is available during normal business hours until Dec. 31.

Luthy Botanical Garden also offers recurring events on different dates in December such as candlelight walks and Christmas tree lighting ceremonies.

The Peoria Zoo and many Peoria parks could also provide outdoor fun for the whole family during the winter break from school. With the weather predicted to be abnormally warm this season, spending time outside won’t be frightful.

See a list of upcoming events hosted by the Peoria Park District with dates and times here.

Go skating

Although the Owens Center is open all year, ice skating is a popular winter activity, and it can be done solo or with a group. The indoor rink offers public skate times and learn to skate programs for kids and adults.

Doug Silberer is the general manager of the Owens Center and said the rink has had 1,200 people in the learn to skate program this year, and there are 325 people in the recreational hockey league this winter.

“If you’re a pure recreational skater and you want to come in and skate a few times, you definitely want to come jump in on the public skate times,” Silberer said. “Even though they’re packed this time of year … it’s still fun to be around a lot of people.”

Located at 1019 W. Lake Ave., the Owens Center’s public skating prices are $4 for kids ages 12 and under, $5 for ages 13 and over and group pricing is available at $4.75 per person for up to 50 people. Skate rentals are $3.

Have fun

Go explore Peoria and have a merry time with friends and family this holiday season.