1. Waterloo Park
Starting Dec. 1, Waterloo Park will be holding their twenty-fifth year of the Wonders of Winter! Waterloo Park is just a short walk from campus and they have the cutest Christmas light displays! Grab a hot chocolate and hop on a horsedrawn trolley ride! What’s more Christmas-y than that?!
2. Christkindl Market
Celebrate a German Christmas in downtown Kitchener! Christkindl has outdoor huts with vendors (great gift ideas), horse-drawn carriage rides, live entertainment, free skating and delicious hot drinks and treats! This event runs from Dec. 6 to 9, so check it out as a study break! The Facebook event page can be found HERE.
3. Skating in Uptown Square
We’re not the best skaters, but that doesn’t stop us from trying to get into the Christmas spirit! Waterloo Town Square has a cute little skating rink that’s perfect to go to with friends! Or bring that special someone for an adorable date (skating is the perfect excuse to hold hands if you wanna make some moves)!
4. Cookie Decorating
Gingerbread, sugar, chocolate chip — heck, even oatmeal raisin! Christmas is the best time to bake, snack and especially decorate! Get a group of friends together for a night of baking, make a gingerbread house or have a cookie decorating competition! And if all else fails, just enjoy all the sweet treats you make!
5. Decorate Your Home
There is nothing cozier than coming home to an apartment filled with lights, stockings and Christmas decorations! We go crazy decorating our apartment: Honestly, we dedicated a whole night for hot chocolate, music and all things Christmas. There’s a reason they call it the most wonderful time of the year. Set aside some time to put up lights, bows, a tree if you can and let your place scream Christmas!
6. Santa / At Home Christmas Sweater Photos
Every year we wrangle up our girls and take a cute photo with Santa! Don’t have a chance to visit the big guy in red? No worries! Dress up in your festive gear and take a photo at home or even at the Waterloo Park Wonders of Winter (another awesome reason to go)! This is just something small that not only will look super cute on your Insta, but will be a nice memory to have in the future! Heartwarming? Ya, I think so too.
7. Dinner
Going out for a nice dinner is a super low-fuss way to celebrate with your friends or roommates. We still have a Christmas dinner with our first-year roomies every year (shout out to 1A)! Try Symposium or Famoso’s; or, if you’re looking for something a little more casual, check out Beertown or McCabe’s. If you’re feeling ambitious, you could cook and host the dinner yourselves!
8. Secret Santa
This is a great activity for roommates, friends or club members (and it helps save a few dollars!) Organize a group who wants to be involved and set a price cap of your choice. This way everyone gets to give and receive, without breaking the bank.
9. Movie Night
Rent a projector (free at the U-Desk and for those with memberships at Prism), grab some snacks and throw on a holiday movie! Cozy blankets, pillows and Christmas lights are a necessity for this. Cookies wouldn’t hurt either.
10. Cafe Hopping
Between Settlement, Princess Cafe, Cafe 1842, Coffee Culture and TONS more — Waterloo has endless cute cafes. Do some investigating and find out where they make your favourite holiday drink, then share it with us!
11. Victoria Park
Victoria Park also has a Christmas lights display — and it’s probably somewhere you don’t go as often. Hop on the bus and go for a field trip! The official lighting is at 6:00 p.m. on Dec. 8. Check out the Facebook event page HERE
12. Chapters
Chapters is one of our favourite places to go in general, so combining it with Christmas makes it even better! With beautiful decorations and unique gift ideas for everyone, it’s a great place to stop by. Head to the one up Weber Street and hang out at Starbucks to study.
13. The Mall
The mall usually ends up being a necessary stop around this time of year. While it can be stressful on occasion, you can make it fun! Go with a shopping list and some friends and cross some things off the “buy” list. Make sure to say hi to Santa while you’re there — and maybe even grab yourself a treat from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory!