Winterfest 2023 - Schedule and Hub

[Ebon Ilnaren]

Winter is returning to RhyDin, and with it comes Winterfest, the annual celebration of the season! City workers were hanging banners and setting up for the week to come! This year Winterfest will be held from the 10th through the16th of December, and there will be plenty of way to enjoy the seasonal spirit, from charity and sharing to activities and entertainment! It all starts on Sunday!

- Schedule of Events -

All events are forum-based unless otherwise noted.

Sunday, 12/10

Welcome to Winterfest!
At noon, join Governor Gatito Lindo for Winterfest’s Opening Ceremony and the Lighting of the Yule Tree in the Town Hall Plaza. During the course of the ceremony, a team of powerful weather mages will unleash the snow and blanket much of the city in chilly, sparkling white. (forum event)

Monday, 12/11

- 10:00 AM: Skiing Santa @ Seaside! Come down to the beach to see Santa and his elves hit the waves for surfing and water-skiing stunts galore!

- 11:30 AM: Join the Reindeer Run and enjoy a cold-weather trot from Seaside through Old Market and Dragon’s Gate to the shores of Kaiju Lake. Antlers optional.

- 8:00 PM: Head over to Spike’s Landing on Kaiju Lake and watch–or take part, if you can stand the cold!--in the first annual Kaiju Lake Polar Plunge! ((LIVE - #kaiju-lake))

Tuesday, 12/12

- 8:00 AM: Bring the youngsters over to the RhyDin Observatory & Botanical Garden Complex bright and early for Children’s Craft Workshops! There will be lessons in baking, making holiday wreaths and floral displays, carving and assembling wooden toys, and more!


- 7:00 PM: Eregor takes over the Observatory to lead children and adults alike in an evening of winter stargazing. Find the brightest stars and celestial marvels above us!

Wednesday, 12/13

- Noon: Four Points Square in Old Temple will be the site of a Build-A-Snowman contest! Pack the snow and add your own special style to see who takes home the prize.

- 8:00 PM: Snowmageddon! Grab a handful or two and hurl it at your fellow snow-slingers! Team up or take your chances and go it alone. There are no winners, just fun in this wintry free-for-all! Be careful, though; some of the snowmen built that afternoon may decide to take part in the excitement! ((LIVE - #streets-of-rhydin))

Thursday, 12/14

- Noon: Join Tenball at Books & Brews for Holiday Storytime as they read for the children and children-at-heart.

- 6:00 PM: Following the above, hang out at Books & Brews for a White Elephant Gift Exchange. Bring something goofy or odd and take home something equally unusual in an evening of sharing.

Friday, 12/15

- 8:00 PM: The event of the season is here! Join RhyDin's finest at the Winter Ball! Let yourself be carried away to an enchanted location where clockwork creatures delight and elegantly-dressed automatons attend to your needs. Enjoy fine cocktails and a delicious buffet in between turns around the dance floor, and be on the lookout for magic when the clock chimes midnight! ((LIVE - #streets-of-rhydin))

Saturday, 12/16

- 2:00 PM: The Kabuki Street Community School concert choir and orchestra take to the stage for a Holiday Concert celebrating all the holidays of the season!

- 6:30 PM: Winterfest wraps up with a closing ceremony at the Town Hall, followed by a spectacular fireworks display!

[Ebon Ilnaren]

The following events begin on this day, and will continue throughout or beyond Winterfest:

All Week

Jolly Times at the Drive-In: Every night this week, the RhyDin Drive-In will show a holiday double-feature on each of its two screens. This is a family-friendly event, with one screen devoted to animation, stop-motion, and family favorites. The other screen will show comedies and other more grown-up classics.

Reindeer Petting Zoo & Arctic Animal Adventure: Come out to Battlefield Park to interact with the majestic creatures best known for pulling Santa’s sleigh. In addition to several adult and young reindeer, the petting zoo will also feature supervised encounters and informational sessions about other arctic wildlife, such as bobcats, snowy owls, arctic hares, and arctic foxes.

Sing the Season: Do you enjoy belting out your favorite carols? Terrorizing your loved ones with renditions of “Last Christmas” or “All I Want For Christmas Is You”? You’re in luck! During Winterfest, there will be organized groups working their way through different neighborhoods in each district, regaling the citizenry with songs of the season. Check the schedule to find out where the carolers will be each day!


Frozen Beauty: Those with a more creative side are invited to participate in the Winterfest Ice Sculpture Showcase. Blocks of ice will be available for delivery through the week for all to shape into art, be it simple or spectacular.

Winterfest in Lights: Finally, deck homes and businesses alike with fantastic displays of brilliant, flashing colors in the Winterfest Celebration of Light!

All Season

Ice Skating: The fountain square in the Marketplace has been converted to an ice skating rink! The rink will remain frozen until the end of February. Other ice skating rinks will also be available at locations throughout all of RhyDin’s districts for the duration of the season.


Warming Stations: Several businesses and other establishments throughout the city are opening their doors or setting up tents to serve as warming stations, providing those in need with a much-needed respite from the chill throughout the cold season.

In a similar vein, the Governor’s Office is arranging for pop-up tents serving hot cocoa and mulled cider all winter.

Donation Drop Boxes: Drop boxes are being placed at multiple locations such as the baronial manors, dueling venues, and others for a multi-charity donation drive: toys for the RhyDin Orphanage, clothing to benefit the city’s shelters, and food for the RhyDin Food Depository. These will be available through the end of December.

[Ebon Ilnaren]

Winterfest 2023 - Holiday Movies at the Drive-In

Both screens at the RhyDin Drive-In will be playing double featureas of holiday movies all week, starting just after sundown. Admission is free!

Sunday 12/10
Screen 1: 12/10 - Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964) / Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Screen 2: A Christmas Story (1983) / The Christmas Card (2006)

Monday 12/11
Screen 1: A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) / The Shop Around The Corner (1940)
Screen 2: Scrooged (1988) / Moonlight & Mistletoe (2008)

Tuesday 12/12
Screen 1: How The Grinch Stole Christmas (1966) / Christmas In Connecticut (1945)
Screen 2: National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989) / The Spirit of Christmas (2015) <-- as requested!!!

Wednesday 12/13
Screen 1: Frosty The Snowman (1969) / It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)
Screen 2: The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) / A Crown For Christmas (2015)

Thursday 12.14
Screen 1: Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town (1970) / It Happened On 5th Avenue (1947)
Screen 2: The Santa Clause (1994) / The Christmas Cottage (2017)

Friday 12/15
Screen 1: Mickey’s Once Upon A Christmas (1999) / Holiday Affair (1949)
Screen 2: Jingle All The Way (1996) / Road To Christmas (2018)

Saturday 12/16
Screen 1: The Polar Express (2004) / White Christmas (1954)
Screen 2: Elf (2003) / The Christmas House (2020)