Parade Doubleheader: Scottish Christmas Walk, Boat Parade Preview

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Alexandria is gearing up for its biggest holiday weekend, with two holiday parades lined up for Saturday. The Scottish Christmas Walk Parade and Alexandria Holiday Boat Parade of Lights are both scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 2.

First up is the 52nd annual Alexandria Scottish Christmas Walk Parade sponsored by Wegmans in at 11 a.m. Saturday. The parade will feature more than 120 parade units, including dozens of Scottish clans dressed in colorful tartans, pipe and drum bands, terriers and hounds, community groups and more. It celebrates Alexandria's 1749 founding by Scottish merchants and naming for Scotsman John Alexander, who owned the land that became Alexandria.

The parade starts on S. St. Asaph Street at Wolfe Street and heads north to Queen Street, east to Fairfax Street, south to King Street, and west to end in front of City Hall. Spectators are encouraged to spread out on the parade route. For a map of the parade route, visit ALXScottishWalk.com.

Some of the new parade highlights will be U.S. National Scottish Fiddle champion Seán Heely presented by The MacMillan Spirit House, Christmas album selections from Northern Virginia pop singer SHENNA, traditional dance, music and costumes from Ethiopia presented by the Ethiopian Community Support Center, Scotland’s national animal – the unicorn – in a parade unit created by local Torpedo Factory artist Lisa Schumaier with UpCycle Creative Reuse Center and Girl Scout Troop 52117, LEGO’s NINJAGO character Kai and LEGO Discovery Center Washington, D.C.’s 29th Master Builder Andrew Litterst's special creation.

This year, grand marshals will be Rep. Don Beyer (D-Alexandria) and Megan Beyer, the director of the Office of Art in Embassies at the U.S. Department of State. Don Beyer is serving his fifth term as the U.S. Representative from Virginia’s 8th District, which includes the City of Alexandria. Megan Beyer is an award-winning journalist, civic activist, public diplomacy leader and founder of Megan Beyer Associates. Both are Alexandria residents. The master of ceremonies will be Ian Houston, an international nonprofit leader, GlobalScot and journalist who seeks to promote cultural links between Scotland and the U.S.

The Alexandria Scottish Christmas Walk Parade is held by Visit Alexandria with the Campagna Center and the City of Alexandria and sponsored by Wegmans. Additional support is provided by Scottish Government USA and First Watch Strategies & Events.

New this year to parade day is cocktails and whiskey flights during the Taste of Scotland sponsored by The Goodheart Group. The Taste of Scotland, a popular part of the Scottish Christmas Walk Weekend, is a cocktail party at The Atrium Building with Scotch tasting stations and food pairings. Laphroaig worked with over 20 restaurants and bars in Old Town to offer the flights. Proceeds from the event benefit the Campagna Center's programs.

Stick around until the evening for the 23rd annual Alexandria Holiday Boat Parade of Lights sponsored by Amazon at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. More than 50 illuminated boats will cruise the Potomac River between Canal Center to Ford's Landing Park to delight spectators.

Parade viewing areas include: Canal Center Plaza (11 Canal Center Plaza), Rivergate City Park (2 Montgomery St.), Oronoco Bay Park (100 Madison St.), Founders Park (351 N. Union St.), Alexandria City Marina (0 Cameron St.), Waterfront Park (1A Prince St.), Point Lumley Park (1 Duke St.), Robinson Landing (7 Pioneer Mill Way), Shipyard/Harborside Park (1 Wilkes St.), Windmill Hill Park (501 S. Union St.) and Ford’s Landing Park (99 Franklin St.).

Attendees can also enjoy dockside festivities in Waterfront Park from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Activities include a pop-up beer garden from Port City Brewing Company, hard cider from Lost Boy Cider, hot chocolate from Dolci Gelati, American food from Mason Social, empanadas from Tequila & Taco, pizza by the slice from Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana and cookies and snacks from Together We Bake. 97.1 WASH-FM will provide holiday music as well as giveaways from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

At 3:30 p.m., Santa and Mrs. Claus will arrive by fireboat at the Alexandria City Marina before they head to the Holiday Festival at Torpedo Factory Art Center, which happens from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.

From 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., businesses will provide activities like children’s holiday bracelet making with Pippin Toy Co., ALX Dog Walk’s sustainable/plastic-free holiday booth with products from Ten Thousand Villages, ornament and watercolor holiday card making from Shop Made in Virginia, a Letters to Santa postcard station from paper goods boutique Penny Post and a holiday ornament craft activity from AR Workshop Alexandria.

Canal Center, another Boat Parade viewing location will host its Canal Center Holiday Art Mart from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. for the Canal Center Holiday Art Mart, a holiday bazaar of arts, crafts, vintage goods and more. Vendors like Chalkboard Wings & BBQ, Scuttlebutt Bakery, Port City Brewing and more will provide food and drinks. Live music will happen from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. through the Yellow Door Concert Series featuring holiday jazz classics like Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas. Parade assembly is expected in this area of the Potomac River between 5 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. In addition, the Gallery at Canal Center will be open with its art exhibition presented by Galactic Panther.

The Holiday Boat Parade of Lights parade is coordinated by Visit Alexandria with the City of Alexandria, City Cruises-Alexandria and the Old Dominion Boat Club.

SEE ALSO:

• Christmas, Hanukkah Events In Alexandria: Parades, Tree Lightings
• Where To Find A Christmas Tree In Old Town Alexandria In 2023
• Where To See Santa In Alexandria In The 2023 Christmas Season