Check back for 2021 dates.
What better place to get into the true spirit of Christmas than Victorian Cape May? This seaside town is transformed into a Dickens village for the holidays with garlands of fragrant greens and twinkling gaslights. Wrap yourself in the warmth of holiday spirit and sample a variety of fun tours and events.
Featured Events
CHRISTMAS CANDLELIGHT HOUSE TOUR
A virtual experience
We are thrilled to announce that the 47th Annual Christmas Candlelight House Tour will be virtual in 2020! Cape May MAC is creating a video featuring 10 Cape May properties, all decorated for the holiday season, with interviews and more!
This presentation is sponsored by Sturdy Savings Bank and Brown & Brown Insurance.
CITY GUIDE GOLF CART TOURS
Custom Dates
Looking for a private customized tour? We can adapt our holidays tours for a special, city guide experience.
We at Cape May MAC Group Tours want our guests to be able to personalize their Cape May experience. We offer 1, 2, and 3 hour City Guide tours for 2-4 guests aboard our street- legal golf cart. A minimum of 48 hours notice required.
PHYSICK FAMILY CHRISTMAS HOUSE TOUR
This 1879 Victorian house museum sparkles for the holidays with authentic Victorian decorations that invite you to step back into Christmas past! On the Physick Family Christmas House Tour, you will visit the Physick Estate, decorated in true Victorian style, for a unique living history experience with members of the Physick Family household of the 1890s. Also see the “Old-Fashioned Christmas” exhibit at the Carroll Gallery at the Carriage House, a breathtaking Dept. 56 Dickens Village beneath the boughs of a giant Christmas tree.
Adults: $15; Children (3-12): $8
BREAKFAST WITH SANTA
Enjoy a family-friendly table served breakfast at the Inn of Cape May as children visit with Santa. Christmas lists accepted! Treats for the kids.
Adults $20; Children (ages 3-12) $12; $5 children under age 3
Holiday Trolley & Walking Tours
HOLIDAY LIGHTS TROLLEY RIDES
Who can resist the twinkle of Cape May’s beautiful Victorian homes decorated for Christmas? This trolley ride through the historic streets of Cape May is a delight. Listen to Christmas music and enjoy hearing about the history of many of our Christmas traditions today. Tour begins and ends at the trolley stop, across from the Washington Street Mall Information Booth, on Ocean Street.
Adults: $15; Children (3-12): $10
Advance reservations are strongly recommended.
Trolleys are open-air, please dress accordingly.
Accessible with advance notice.
SANTA’S TROLLEY RIDES
Bring the kids to the Physick Estate on weekends for a ride around Cape May with stories and songs led by Mrs. Claus. Santa will greet children with a sweet in the gazebo on the grounds of the Emlen Physick Estate. All rides start at the Emlen Physick Estate.
Adults $10; Children (ages 3-12) $8.
Advance reservations are strongly recommended.
Trolleys are open-air, please dress accordingly.
GHOSTS OF CHRISTMAS PAST TROLLEY RIDE
A member of the East Lynne Theater Company regales you with a Victorian holiday ghost tale as you ride through Cape May’s festively decorated Historic District. Rides start and end at the trolley stop, across from the Washington Street Mall Information Booth, on Ocean Street.
Tickets $15 adults; $8 children (ages 3-12).
Advance reservations are strongly recommended.
Trolleys are open-air, please dress accordingly.
LAMPLIGHTER WALKING TOUR
A man. A lamp. A mystery. Take a historical walking tour and see the festively-decorated Victorian gems for which Cape May is famous. Enjoy the holiday lights of Cape May and help solve a mystery along the way. Tour begins and ends at the gazebo on the grounds of the Emlen Physick Estate, 1048 Washington St.
Adults: $35; Children (3-12): $28
Holiday House Tours
A DR. PHYSICK CHRISTMAS TOUR
Dr. Physick welcomes you to his home. Christmas is a wonderful time of year to come to Cape May and the Emlen Physick Estate is decorated to the nines! In this first person tour, Dr. Physick walks guests through his home, pointing out Victorian decorations and telling stories of his family and friends at Christmas.
Adults $15; Children (3-12) $8
EVENING YULETIDE HOUSE TOUR
Take this guided tour of the first floor rooms of the 1879 Physick House Museum, authentically decorated for a Victorian Christmas. See and hear how the Physick family might have entertained friends and family and celebrated in traditional Victorian fashion during the holidays. Afterwards, visit the Carriage House where a commemorative gift is yours to keep: a special Christmas ornament designed in 2020 featuring the 1879 Physick House. Visit “An Old-fashioned Christmas” exhibit in the Carroll Gallery and see this popular annual display featuring a huge Christmas tree, model trains, and an elaborate Dept 56 Dickens village collection.
Adults $20; Children (3-12) $18
A DICKENS OF A MURDER
At the Emlen Physick Estate
BAH! HUMBUG! Ebenezer Scrooge is known for his miserly, uncompassionate ways, but he’s a changed man; he’s been practically giving his money away! Scrooge’s nephew, Fred Sawyer, is throwing a Christmas party and everyone is delighted by Scrooge’s appearance! But when things go awry and murder is for served for supper, the guests may just become detectives…or even suspects. This Christmas party’s a hoppin’, but there’s a murderer a knockin’! This evening will be a Dickens of a Murder!
Adults: $35; Children (3-12): $28
Free Experiences
“AN OLD-FASHIONED CHRISTMAS” EXHIBIT
Enter a holiday wonderland and feel like a child again as you see our extensive Dept. 56 Dickens Village collection beneath the boughs of our giant Christmas tree. All this plus old family photos, trains and more. There’s even a place to drop off your letters to Santa! Located at the Carroll Gallery in the Carriage House.
Emlen Physick Estate
1048 Washington St.
HOLIDAY LUNCH & LEARNS
Our favorite winter educational series is back with holiday lectures via zoom!
WINTER WONDERWALK
The grounds of Cape May’s only Victorian House Museum, the Emlen Physick Estate, 1048 Washington St., have been transformed for the holiday season. Winter Wonderwalk is an exciting new addition to the decorated estate. Walk the grounds and vote for your favorite fun & whimsical display of winters past.