This Kentucky town has handmade gifts from the state’s best artists and holiday events

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered our lives in many ways, including the way we celebrate holidays. Suddenly, Americans have had to get creative in celebrating Easter, the Fourth of July, Memorial Day and Labor Day, Halloween and Thanksgiving. But what about the biggest holiday of all?

COVID-19 is the ultimate Grinch who is trying to steal Christmas. Is there a way we can celebrate this festive season safely?

One thing that I especially love to do during the holidays is to choose a place in Kentucky that promises an extra dose of festivity and spend some time there. In past years, I have seen how Louisville, Bardstown, Shelbyville and Northern Kentucky pull out all the stops to allow visitors to enjoy holiday cheer Kentucky-style.

This year, if you are looking forward to a mini-trip, Berea, just 45 minutes south of Lexington, is ready and waiting, and following all the COVID guidelines for a safe and enjoyable experience.

Throughout the month of December, the town’s Artisan Village will welcome a new attraction – an old-fashioned gingerbread house located in an authentic smokehouse. Inside the house, Santa will provide photo ops for the kids, although lap sitting is strictly forbidden and anyone who tries will be put on the naughty list. Instead, you can take a selfie with jolly old St. Nick — from six feet away, of course, and with no more than four people in the waiting line. The same guidelines apply for selfies with Santa at the Welcome Center Train Depot which will boast its usual elaborate holiday décor.

Talk about elaborate — from December 1-13, visitors will have a chance to vote for their favorite entry in the citywide storefront decorating contest. Either on foot or by car, you can expect to see lots of sugar plum fairies, flying reindeers, green wreaths and silver bells. Vote by liking your favorite storefront through its photo on Berea Tourism’s Facebook and Instagram pages.

If you are in Berea on Saturday, Dec. 13, your browsing will be accompanied by a concert of Christmas music in the Artisan Village. There will be no seating or standing around; the music is strictly for the enjoyment of visitors as they wander around the Village.

As for wandering around, the Village’s unique shops such as Wildflower Boutique, Weston Glass, Painter’s Palette, Becky Brown Jewelry and Top Drawer Gallery will be open to entice shoppers with special handmade gifts (Berea isn’t known as Kentucky’s Folk Art Capital for nothing). Some of the studios will even have “elves” working away, and all will allow a limited number of mask-only patrons in the stores at one time.

Outside of Artisan Village, you shouldn’t miss the oldest continuously operating craft gallery in Kentucky, the Log House Craft Gallery just steps away from College Square. Operated by Berea College, it has a cornucopia of handcrafted items from the commonwealth’s best artists and artisans. It will also feature multiple trees throughout the gallery decorated with handmade ornaments.

Berea restaurants such as Old Town Amish Store, Papaleno’s, Berea Coffee & Tea and Brandi’s Bakery and Bistro are following Gov. Andy Beshear’s restrictions on dining in. If you aren’t put off by a brisk breeze, some restaurants offer outdoor seating in front of their buildings, or you can pick up your meal curbside and enjoy it al fresco at Fee Park, a cobble-stoned plaza in the downtown center.

Boone Tavern holiday offerings

GI Jack, Crying Cathy, Cowboy Charlie and Perky Polly are the toys vying for a ride on Santa’s sleigh on Christmas Eve. Which one will it be and how does a mystery fit into this? You can find out for yourself at the holiday version of Boone Tavern’s acclaimed Murder Mystery Dinner.

Who will get done in? Will it be Cowboy Charlie with a candlestick? Or perhaps Perky Polly with a poker? You’ll just have to find out for yourself at this year’s offering “A Gift of Murder.” Despite the murder factor, it’s billed as a comedy safe for the entire family on Dec. 18 and the cost is $59 per person and it’s all inclusive.

Due to the virus, Boone Tavern is abandoning its past habit of putting groups of people who don’t necessarily know each other together for even more hilarity when they try to guess the murderer.

This year tables will be reserved for only those in your party and will be spaced six feet apart. Masks are required when interacting with the actors between courses, and temperature checks are done at the door. (Sorry, those whose temps exceed 98.6 Fahrenheit will miss the mayhem.)

The following day, Dec. 19, the hotel will host an all-inclusive Christmas Tea event for $35. The menu is to be announced.

And during the month of December they are hosting a gingerbread house contest. Although entries needed to be turned in by Dec. 3, you can vote for your favorite at the hotel to see who will the first prize of an overnight stay with dinner for two.

Should you want to spend the night, Boone Tavern is offering a special holiday package. You can book a room for one night complete with Christmas tree and tray of holiday cookies starting at $109. boonetavernhotel.com

This year, don’t let the COVID Grinch steal Christmas. Berea has taken every precaution to ensure you have a safe and festive holiday adventure.

For more information on Christmas in Berea, go to visitberea.com

This story was originally published December 3, 2020 at 6:00 AM.