‘Tis the last weekend before Christmas, and everyone is hustling to tie a bow on their to-do list.
If you want to take a break, check out our roundups of the Top 12 Ice Skating Rinks Around the DC Area and 20 Merry and Bright Holiday Lights Displays in the DMV.
Don’t sweat if you feel behind on gift shopping: We’ve found 13 holiday markets open this weekend.
Holiday Markets in DC, Maryland and Virginia This Weekend
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The District
- Procrastinator's Holiday Market (Saturday, noon to 6 p.m., Northeast)
- Yalda Market DC (Saturday, 2-6 p.m., Brookland Arts Walk): This market marks Shab-eh Yalda — the winter solstice in Persian.
- Holiday Pop-Up- Hotel Washington by URBNmarket (Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.)
- Unique Markets: DC Holiday Market (Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., $10, Union Market)
- Red Bear Brewing Hoppy Holidays Market Part 2 (Sunday, noon to 6 p.m., Northeast)
- Capitol Cider House Holiday Artisan Market (Sunday, 3-6 p.m.)
Maryland
- Sunshine Project Outdoor Holiday Market Bazaar (Saturday, noon to 3 p.m., Potomac)
- Takoma Cocoa Crawl & Book Fair (Saturday, 1-4 p.m., Takoma Park)
- Holiday Artist Market (Saturday, 1-5 p.m., Bethesda)
- Market at the Bank (Sunday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Takoma Park)
- Baltimore’s Authentic German Christmas Market (Open through 5 p.m. on Dec. 24, Inner Harbor)
Virginia
- Del Ray Artisans’ 27th Annual Fine Art & Fine Craft Holiday Market (Friday to Sunday)
- Mosaic Holiday Village by URBNmarket (Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
- Blend Coffee Bar German Christmas Market (Saturday, 4-9 p.m., Ashburn)
- Old Town North Holiday Market (Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.)
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The Scene
The most fun things to do and places to be in D.C., Maryland and Virginia
More Things to Do Around D.C. This Weekend
National Harbor holidays (free): You can watch the Christmas tree light show nightly, but the holiday season's final fireworks fire Saturday at 5:30 p.m. You can also check out MGM’s The Conservatory, which is decked out with a 20-foot snowman and 1,500 poinsettias.
Rudolph's Rockin' Reindeer Games (Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., The Boro Tysons, free): Craft hliday gifts, warm up at the hot coca bar and compete in the reindeer games. Santa himself will make an appearance from 1 to 2 p.m.
It's a Wonderful Life (Saturday, 7 p.m., Union Station): Story District hosts tales inspired by “It’s A Wonderful Life” at Union Stage.
Handel’s “Messiah” (Saturday, 8 p.m. and Sunday, 3 p.m., Strathmore, tickets start at $29, kids are free): The Scotland A.M.E. Zion Mass Choir will join the National Philharmonic to perform this Christmas classic at Strathmore. Half of the proceeds benefit the historic, Black church that was vandalized last month, as Pat Collins reported.
Capital One Arena FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Watch Party (Sunday, doors open at 9 a.m., free): A big match calls for a big watch party. Make sure to register in advance.
Audi Field World Cup Watch Party (Sunday, doors open at 8:30 a.m., free entry): D.C.'s soccer stadium is throwing a big watch party. The action goes down in the EagleBank Club, hwere mimosas and brunch will be available for purchase. Register in advance.
Commanders Beer Fest (Sunday, 5 p.m., FedExField, $65-$129): Sample craft beers before heading to one of the Commanders' biggest games of the season, against the Giants. Admission comes with a ticket to the game.
Concert Picks
The Scene's resident Music Snob listens far and wide to pick the best shows worth your money — and effort going out into the cold.
Here are two shows you gotta know about:
Horse Jumper of Love (9:30 p.m. Friday, Quarry House Tavern, $26.45): The Boston slowcore trio took a turn toward folk influences with its latest LP, “Natural Part.”
Oddisee & Good Cmpny (7 p.m. Sunday, 9:30 Club, $30): The rapper brings his politically-focused, inequity-conscious lyrics to 9:30, but don’t overlook his jazzy hip-hop and its elements of his hometown go-go.
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