Jenna Careri / November 23rd, 2016
[TravnikovStudio]/Shutterstock
There’s plenty to do in Texas to celebrate the holiday season. No matter whether you visit San Antonio’s tree-lined Riverwalk, Wimberley’s Holiday Trail of Lights or Galveston’s Dickens on the Strand, you can enjoy the season’s merriment with (usually) mild weather. If you want to check out a green holiday festival, however, then look no further than College Station’s Santa’s Wonderland.
A short history with a tall order
In 1998, Santa’s Wonderland first opened with over a million Christmas lights within a one-mile trail. Since creation, people have traveled hundreds of miles to visit this attraction, making it the largest Christmas attraction in all of Texas. The trail has grown half a mile, and has added shops, musical entertainment, a Christmas village and, we assume, yummy food.
What makes Santa’s Wonderland green?
When it first began, its 1 million lights were lit with incandescent bulbs. In 2008 it began transitioning to LED bulbs, using 90 percent less power in 2016 than it did when it first started. Now, the attraction has more than 3 million LED lights glowing for all 200,000 attendees.
Explore more in College Station
Not only is the city home to Santa’s Wonderland, it’s also home to Texas A&M University. With this in mind, it’s no surprise that the city has an environmentally minded focus. College Station has many programs that encourage residents and business owners to conserve energy and water, and to reduce overall waste.
Some of these great programs include its Energy Back program that provides customers with a rebate for replacing their central air systems with higher efficiency models. Its Good Cents New Home program also encourages builders and homebuyers to build more efficient homes, which would help lower energy costs. Finally, the city of College Station offers free curbside recycling to single-family homes, making it easier for homeowners to participate in an eco-friendly lifestyle.
While you’re out exploring all that College Station has to offer during the holidays, don’t forget to explore its Earthy-friendly efforts all year.
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