{"id":26137,"date":"2012-09-01T12:20:59","date_gmt":"2012-09-01T16:20:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/?p=26137"},"modified":"2025-09-01T21:15:15","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T01:15:15","slug":"winter-carnivals-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/26137\/winter-carnivals-2015\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Winter Carnivals of 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"

Plan to celebrate winter with a flourish by attending one of these seven mid-winter carnivals. Ice carvings, snow sculptures and polar bear swims are some traditional winter pastimes that will warm your spirit in spite of the single digit temps.<\/p>\n

No car is needed to explore the Northeast’s best winter carnivals of 2015<\/strong>. You do need to pack your warmest clothes, as it all takes place in the great outdoors. These events are 100% kid-friendly, so pack the kids along with your long johns and make the most of this snowy season.<\/p>\n

\"sledding

\"Quebec

\"ottawa

What:<\/strong> Dartmouth College Winter Carnival
\nWhere: <\/strong>Hanover, New Hampshire
\nWhen: <\/strong>February 5-8
\nWhy: <\/strong>Held since 1911, the Dartmouth College Winter Carnival demonstrates that Ivy Leaguers know how to party in all kinds of weather. Collegiate lore says that this event was invented to lure females to the frosty campus during the doldrums of winter, back when the school was all male. Today, students, locals and visitors ice-skate on Occum Pond, ski race at the Dartmouth Ski way, eat snow topped with local maple syrup and participate in a human dogsled-style race on the picturesque Dartmouth Green. In the middle of the green sit giant ice sculptures constructed by pros, as well as smaller works done by frats, sororities and various student organizations.
\nWhere to stay:<\/strong> The Hanover Inn<\/a> overlooks the Green, perfectly situated to enjoy all the events. The 109 rooms are all newly renovated. Dine on site at Zins, where the menu serves organic produce and humanely raised meats, highlighting Northern New England bounty.
\nHow to get there:<\/strong> The Dartmouth Coach departs from the Yale Club near Grand Central and drops off at the Hanover Inn in under five hours.<\/p>\n

\"winter

What:<\/strong> Lake George Winter Carnival Weekend
\nWhere:<\/strong> Lake George, New York
\nWhen: <\/strong>February 7-8
\nWhy: <\/strong>Events for the Lake George Winter Carnival<\/a> website 53rd anniversary edition includes tethered hot air balloon rides, bonfires, helicopter rides, air ballooning, fireworks, a chili cook off and a communal polar plunge that welcome winter to the Adirondacks. Picturesque Lake George is a pristine winter setting, and February is a peaceful time to be here.
\nWhere to stay: The Quality Inn is located in the center of the village, so you can walk pretty much everywhere. The 54 rooms are functional, and wireless Internet access and continental breakfast are included in your room rate.
\nHow to get there: <\/strong>The Adirondack Trailways bus from Port Authority takes 4 and 1\/2 hours.<\/p>\n

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What: <\/strong>Montreal High Lights Festival
\nWhere:<\/strong> The High Lights event and all affiliated outdoor activities take place in Old Montreal and the Quays of the Old Port; performances and culinary events happen all throughout the city.
\nWhen:<\/strong> February 19-March 1
\nWhy: <\/strong>We all need a little more light in the dark, dreary days of winter, and no one does light better than the good people of Montreal. This year\u2019s festival celebrates Buenos Aires in a festive lineup of culinary and entertainment events to please all the senses. Enjoy the warmth of cozy bonfires and under the illumination of spectacular light shows and torchlight processions. The High Lights Event takes the already fabulous (and free) daily activities to higher heights, lighting up land and sky with mind-blowing digital arts, circus feats, and more. Audiences looking to be shaken all night long need look no further than Nuit blanche \u00e0 Montr\u00e9al (a.k.a. the Montreal all-nighter) and its 175 mostly free<\/em> concerts, exhibitions, and performances.
\nWhere to stay:<\/strong> The Fairmont Queen Elizabeth<\/a> and Square Phillips<\/a> offer luxurious and affordable accommodations in the heart of Montreal. Check back on their websites for specific festival packages.
\nHow to get there:<\/strong> There are a few options. You can take the 11-hour ride on Amtrak<\/a>, or the Greyhound bus, which generally takes 8 or 9 hours. Or touch down at Montreal Trudeau Airport, where there are a number of transportation options heading into central Montreal. Check with your hotel to see if it provides a shuttle. Otherwise, take the 204 bus or L\u2019A\u00e9robus shuttle. For a full list of transportation options, click here.<\/p>\n

Photos: caribb<\/a>, Carnaval de Qu\u00e9bec, Winterlude, Ottawa Tourism<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Plan to celebrate winter with a flourish by attending one of these seven mid-winter carnivals. Ice carvings, snow sculptures and polar bear swims are some traditional winter pastimes that will warm your spirit in spite of the single digit temps. No car is needed to explore the Northeast’s best winter carnivals of 2015. You do […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":50,"featured_media":34015,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[725,747,413,753,315,325,956,922,748,333,316],"tags":[520,120,441,378,133,282,184,135],"class_list":{"0":"post-26137","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-best-of","8":"category-bus-2","9":"category-canada","10":"category-car-2","11":"category-day-trips","12":"category-new-york","13":"category-plane-2","14":"category-stowe","15":"category-train-2","16":"category-vermont","17":"category-weekend-getaways","18":"tag-carnival","19":"tag-family-fun","20":"tag-hotels","21":"tag-ice-skating","22":"tag-outdoors","23":"tag-romantic","24":"tag-sculpture","25":"tag-winter"},"acf":[],"mv":{"thumbnail_id":34015,"thumbnail_uri":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/8248401538_59b49c59df_z-e1354741790812-300x156.jpg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26137","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/50"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26137"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26137\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offmetro.com\/ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}