Things 2 Do

See life-size gingerbread house, have Santa tuck in the kids at local resort

The St. Regis Atlanta announced the return of its annual holiday events and attractions, including its life-size, Sugarfina-decorated gingerbread house and pop-up retail shop, Storytime with Santa and Tea with Santa.  
“As we near the hotel’s tenth anniversary, we are excited to offer our holiday traditions in fresh ways this year,” said Guntram Merl, the hotel’s general manager.  “We look forward to the familiar faces of those who consider our hotel’s festivities as part of their own personal holiday traditions, while we also find a special joy in seeing new visitors who come to experience our magical holiday offerings.”
The holiday celebrations begin on Nov. 22 with a Thanksgiving Buffet set in the hotel’s Astor Ballroom. Menu highlights include caviar, sushi, seafood, live action pasta station, and a decadent dessert display. Pricing is $155 for adults, $75 for children eight to 12 years old, $59 for children four to seven years old and complimentary for newborns to three-year-old children.
Following the overwhelming success of last year, The St. Regis Atlanta’s pastry team will construct Atlanta’s largest gingerbread house in collaboration with Sugarfina, a luxury candy boutique, to give a warm welcome to guests in the hotel’s grand lobby entrance.  For the second year in a row, Sugarfina will host a pop-up holiday candy shop within the gingerbread house to sell its holiday collections featuring limited-edition candies, including gingerbread men gummies and Santa’s Sugar Cookies to guests of the hotel. The gingerbread house will take about 500 hours to construct and will be a combination of 300 pounds of flour, 100 pounds of sugar, 10 pounds of spice, 70 pounds of shortening, 45 pounds of corn syrup and 16 pounds of molasses.  The creation will also be adorned with over 300 pounds of royal icing, gingerbread figurines, and poinsettias. The gingerbread house will be unveiled on Nov. 23 at 5 p.m. in the lobby with holiday celebrations continuing until 8 p.m.  The Sugarfina gingerbread house will be on display until January 1, 2019.
In conjunction with the gingerbread house unveiling, the hotel will present the Christmas tree lighting ceremony at 6:00 p.m. Santa will make a special guest appearance for both the gingerbread house unveiling and Christmas tree lighting.
Visitors to the hotel can take part in the special St. Regis tradition of the hotel’s Tea with Santa on the weekends of Nov. 23 – 25, Nov. 30 – Dec. 2, Dec. 7 – 9 and throughout Dec. 14 – 24 from 1:45 – 4:30 p.m.  Santa will roam through Astor Court and sit with children at their table.  Menu highlights include Pistachio and Raspberry Financier, Double Chocolate and Peppermint Gateaux, and a s’mores station for children.  Pricing is $78 for adults and $52 for children four to 12 years old.  Children under the age of three receive a complimentary tea experience.  
Glide onto The St. Regis Atlanta’s Astor Holiday Ice Rink, which will officially open Nov. 23 for its 10th season.  The rink is adorned with white lights and illuminates skaters as they glide to the sounds of festive holiday tunes. The hotel will serve hot cocoa, s’mores, and a full food and beverage menu for skaters to enjoy as they warm up after a turn on the ice.  
The signature St. Regis Storytime with Santa experience returns this year, available Dec. 14-24.  This holiday season, Santa and Mrs. Claus will be in residence to tuck four lucky children in to bed each night from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. The jolly offering includes Santa and Mrs. Claus reading a traditional Christmas bedtime story and gifting an autographed copy of “The Night before Christmas.” Pricing is $75 for the first child and $30 for each additional child.