The Best Holiday Event Around Town – Witness the Spectacular Nights of A Thousand Candles

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Found on the Grand Strand’s southern end in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, Brookgreen Gardens — one of the Myrtle Beach area’s leading tourist attractions — offers its guests over 9,00 acres of natural and manmade beauty. Featuring a unique combination of art, nature and history, the sculpture garden/nature preserve is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, houses nearly 1,500 works of American figurative sculpture (making it the nation’s most extensive collection) and also offers a Lowcountry Zoo that spotlights an impressive range of the region’s wildlife.

And while the destination is popular with visitors year-round, it shines especially bright during the holiday season, when the annual Nights of a Thousand Candles tradition sees more than 4,500 hand-lit candles and 100,000-plus twinkling lights illuminate the sculpture gardens’ grounds. Boosting the attraction’s holiday cheer even more, carolers, handbell choirs and other musicians perform traditional Christmas favorites during the event, and visitors can grab some hot cider to warm them up as they enjoy the spectacle.

This year, Nights of a Thousand Candles runs on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights from December 6 through December 22. Here’s a quick rundown of the 2018 Nights of a Thousand Candles entertainment schedule:

December 6-9:
Hammock Shops Village Entertainment Tent — Raglan Road performing Carolina Celtic Christmas, and Bill Oberst, Jr. performing A Christmas Carol
Tidelands Health Entertainment Tent — Paul Grimshaw Band performing pop, rock and variety, and Vocal Edition performing choral holiday favorites

December 13-16:
Hammock Shops Village Entertainment Tent — Concert pianist Rocky Fretz, and the Ross Holmes Band performing holiday standards
Tidelands Health Entertainment Tent — Tru Soul performing R&B, soul and dance, and Natalie Daise performing Gullah Family Christmas

December 20-22:
Hammock Shops Village Entertainment Tent — Beach Brass Quintet performing Horns for the Holidays, and Prettier than Matt performing country, pop and rock
Tidelands Health Entertainment Tent — the Mike Frost Band performing cool jazz, and Vocal Edition performing choral holiday favorites

Space is limited, and tickets (priced for non-members at $25 for adults and $15 for children or for members at $20 for adults and $12 for children) must be purchased before arrival. For more information on Nights of a Thousand Candles, visit brookgreen.org or call 843-235-6000.

When you’re ready to plan your holiday getaway on the Grand Strand, book a stay at Bay View Resort on the Myrtle Beach oceanfront. With our central location and comfortable oceanfront accommodations, we’ve got everything you’ll need to make some bright holiday memories on the Carolina coast.