Presented by Charlotte Ballet

As part of our Charlotte Ballet Nutcracker giveaway, we asked Charlotteans to share their favorite Christmas traditions. As the person that went through all 1,033 responses, I can confidently say that Charlotteans are seriously obsessed with Christmas.

From dressing up as Santa to playing Cards Against Humanity with grandparents (kind of weird, but we can dig it), you better believe that Charlotte is buzzing with Christmas cheer.

Check out 24 of our favorite 1,033 Charlotte Christmas traditions:

The classics

• Seeing the Nutcracker ballet (complete with champagne, of course!) followed by a horse drawn carriage ride through uptown!
  *123 Charlotteans mentioned Charlotte Ballet’s Nutcracker as their fave tradition. Find out why here.
• I LOVEE the Fourth Ward Holiday Home Tour! Such a fun way to see some historic homes decorated for the holidays
• Love Small Business Saturday, best gifts!!!
• Looking at the gingerbread houses at the Ballantyne Hotel and staying for dinner at the Gallery. My kids love it!
• Seeing The Polar Express in IMAX at Discovery Place.
• Ice skating at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
• I love seeing the creepy bears in Founder’s Hall. Their eyes are dead, but it just wouldn’t be Christmas without them!
• My favorite Christmas tradition is piling in the car with friends and hubby (and my poodle dressed like Santa Paws) going Christmas caroling at friends houses, hunting for the best light displays in the neighborhood while drinking hot chocolate!!!
• Attending Christmas Eve service at church and singing Silent Night by candlelight.
• My family always celebrates Christmas by going to the Panthers game closest to Christmas Eve. Some years, like this year, we get lucky and have a game ON Christmas Eve! Best. Family. Tradition. EVER!
• Our Christmas tradition includes picking an evening just before Christmas, bundling up, taking a drive to enjoy the Christmas lights in and around the Queen City. Then we return to uptown for dinner in uptown, followed by dessert and coffee at Bar Cocoa.
• The giant tree balls near Wells Fargo!

The heart-melters

• Dressing up as Santa and placing gifts under the tree while my wife and daughters sneak a peak. The kids go crazy!
• Preparing Ziploc bags filled with goodies to give out to homeless people for the following months, with my fiancé and 5 yr old 🙂
• Since we were babies, my dad would read my sister and I The Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve before we went to bed. My sister and I are now 20 and 23 and the tradition still lives on and we are very thankful for that.
• When we were little, my parents would have the neighbors come over around bedtime and throw ice cubes on our roof. My parents would say that it was the hooves of the reindeer and we better go to sleep immediately so that Santa could come. It worked every year! It is now a tradition we have with our own children and it makes our heart grow to see the magic in their eyes.
• My parents, two brothers and I moved here about 6 years ago. We are the only family here, so every Christmas we go serve lunch at Charlotte Rescue Mission. It is by far the most rewarding and favorite Christmas Tradition.
• Picking a child from the Salvation Army angel tree in Southpark and shopping for them so they have a Christmas, too!

The individuals

• There is nothing better than spending time with your family on Christmas, though my favorite tradition may be stuffing my face of the food my mother slaved over for the previous week and awkwardly playing cards of humanity with my parents/family… Haha!
• Every year, on Christmas day, my entire family goes to a Chinese buffet and then to the movie theater to watch whichever Christmas movie is playing that year, usually the theater is empty so it’s like our own private theater. It’s unusual, but it’s what we do and we love it 🙂 MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
• Annual Ornament Exchange at my friend’s house and Santa Sunday Funday – made up holiday that I celebrate with my friends and all of our friends dress up as elves, Santas or reindeer.
• Sleeping in my sister’s room on Christmas Eve and my dad playing pranks to try and keep us from getting to the Christmas tree (Saran wrapping the entryway to the living room so we can see the tree but not get to it, putting obstacles on the stairs to make it difficult to get down, etc)
• My parents still make all 4 of us kids (and the dog) wait on the staircase before we can see the Christmas tree on Christmas morning. It used to be so my dad could get a picture of how excited everyone’s faces were to see what ‘Santa’ brought. But now he and my mom think it’s funny to make all of us wait while they have a cup of coffee and kill time. Us ‘kids’ are 23, 27, 28, and 32. It’s getting a tad ridiculous. But the pictures are pretty classic- everyone looks grumpy as all get out.
• Exchanging stocking stuffer gifts with my family; it’s a fun contest to see who can come up with the most obscure/blast from the past “from” line on the tag – you may receive socks from the high school band director, Mr. Womack, or gum or chocolates from John the Bug Man (pest control guy from 20 years ago). My mom’s favorite gift giver is Bart Simpson.

Ready to make some new Christmas traditions based on these awesome responses?

If Charlotte Ballet’s Nutcracker is one of them, you can find ticket information here and why this year’s performances are extra special here. The show will be around until December 23.

Merry Christmas, Charlotte!

(Note: This content is presented by Charlotte Ballet. Cover image via Facebook)