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Albany Visitors Association
122 Ferry St SW
Albany, OR 97321
PO Box 965
Phone:
541-928-0911
Newsletter
Explore Albany, Discover your story
Calendar
Welcome to AVA’s monthly calendar of events. Take a peek and plan your stay-cation or your next visit to our region. The city’s most notable annual events include historic home tours, outdoor summer concerts and movies under the stars, and the Northwest Art and Air Festival.
*Note for event organizers: If you’d like to have your event listed on the AVA calendar, head over to our contact page and submit your event to us.
Nov
17
Fri
Nov 17 – Dec 31 all-day
Sixth Annual Ornament Hunt and Sweepstakes in the Willamette Valley
The Willamette Valley Visitors Association announces its annual ornament hunt, encouraging participants to connect with public lands through the spirit of holiday cheer!
The Willamette Valley Visitors Association (WVVA) will launch its sixth annual ornament hunt throughout the region and on non-wilderness trails of the Willamette National Forest and the Umpqua National Forest.
Beginning November 17, 2023, two hundred locally crafted wooden ornaments will be hidden
along non-wilderness trails in the following ranger districts: Detroit, Sweet Home, McKenzie
River and Middle Fork on the Willamette National Forest and Cottage Grove on the Umpqua
National Forest for lucky hikers to find.
This year’s ornaments will feature an agricultural scene that highlights the unique wine-growing
areas or AVAs throughout the Willamette Valley, in honor of the 40th anniversary of the
Willamette Valley AVA designation. Each ornament found includes instructions on how to
register to win the Grand Prize: a two-day getaway to the Willamette Valley.
For the first year ever, WVVA is offering a limited number of additional ornaments that will be
available for purchase at four ranger stations throughout the forest. All proceeds will benefit
Cascade Volunteers — a nonprofit organization that supports trail keepers and trail
maintenance. Learn more at https://cascadevols.org/.
Not only does the Ornament Hunt provide the perfect hiking opportunity, but participants are
also encouraged to go Christmas tree hunting. Be sure to register for a permit before taking
home the perfect tree, straight from the Willamette National Forest. More at
https://www.recreation.gov/tree-permits/ebd4facc-ec56-11ea-bcba-fa43c1aabce3
Participants venturing into the forest are asked to abide by Take Care Out There and Leave No
Trace Principles. WVVA and the forest service encourage hikers to plan ahead and take a look
at the winter safety tips.
The Willamette Valley Visitors Association website, https://willamettevalley.org/ornament, will
serve as the hub for ornament hunt details and hiking planning tips. It is also where you can
register your ornament to win the grand prize, a weekend getaway to the Willamette Valley. You
can also find trail information and hints throughout December on the following social channels:
@gowillamettevalley and @willametteNF.
WVVA encourages sharing adventures using #FindYourOrnament, #FindYourTrail, #IwonderWV,
#pnwonderland, #willamettenationalforest. The Willamette Valley Visitors Association abides by
Leave No Trace Principles; once the contest closes, all remaining ornaments will be picked up
by U.S. Forest Service professionals.
About Willamette Valley Visitors Association
Willamette Valley Visitors Association (WVVA) is a private, non-profit organization that supports
travel and tourism in the Willamette Valley – Oregon Wine Country.
About the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service
The U.S. Forest Service is a Federal agency that manages 193 million acres of public lands in
national forests and grasslands.
Dec
16
Sat
Visit Christmas Storybook Land to relive your favorite childhood nursery rhymes, fairy tales and family movies in a magical indoor walk-thru forest! Entry is free, although commercially packaged food for the local food bank is gladly accepted.
Christmas in the Market by Rooted Boutique
Come shop with 30 LOCAL vendors on December 16th from 10-7pm, downtown Albany, in the Two Rivers Market!
This will be a MAGICAL day including Santa, cookies, ornament decorating, another passport experience, a grand prize worth over $1,000, raffles, giveaways, and much more!
Linn County Arts Guild, 846 Main St. Nov. 1st through Dec. 24th (11-5 Tues-Sat).
Many local artists offering ‘handcrafted in Linn County’ items!
Saturday, December 16
The Yokai Market: Yokai Wonderland
Vendors. Food. Music. Art. Anime. Cosplay. Collectibles. Pop Culture. Crafts. Jewelry. AND BEYOND. A market unlike any other
Admission $5, tickets available through EventBright
The Kids Create classes are open to everyone in the community. They have limited space, so call and sign up as soon as possible at 541-497-0386.
If a class fills up, there’s always a possibility that they will create another class later in the day. If you have an elementary-age or younger child, please stay with your child and help supervise them.
These classes and workshops have been made possible through a grant from the Linn County Cultural Coalition.
Visit the Art Guild’s website for more information.
Hop aboard the Monteith Historical Society’s festive trolley and let’s spice up the season with a dash of Christmas Cheer!
Tickets available at https://monteithhouse.ticketleap.com/
Get ready for a trolley-mendous time as we jingle all the way through the Monteith Historic District in downtown Albany. Their carol-ousel of merriment will have you singing your heart out to the neighborhood.
After their trolley-tastic tour, cozy up in the Monteith House and savor some cider-iffic hot apple cider and cookies that are “sleigh”-fully delightful.
This year, our carol-riding adventure takes place on Albany’s historic trolley – the wheels on the bus go jingle all the way!
Join them for this event to catch that holly jolly Christmas bug and relish in a good, old-fashioned yuletide spirit. Ho-ho-hope to see you there!
The tour may be around 45 minutes, but the laughter will last a sleigh-lifetime. So be a “mistle-toad” and arrive 15 minutes early, and don’t forget to bundle up – it’s going to be “snow” much fun!
*Interested in booking a caroling trolley tour for a large group, 20 or more people? Contact them before November 25, 2023 at info@monteithhouse.org or 541-220-0421 to reserve tickets for your party with limited fees. Requests for limiting/waving fees for large groups will not be honored after November 25.
It’s a quick trip to Corvallis to visit the historic Whiteside Theater!
Born out of the relentless winter months of the Pacific Northwest — where Christmas sweaters adorn even the animal statues — this holiday concert hits different.
The Cello Project, known for their delightfully dedicated performances of both modern and classical music (and everything in between), invite Saeeda Wright on stage with them to bring a complement of unexpected classical jams to the holiday stage. Expect uniquely jazzy takes on holiday classics from What Child is This and Do You Hear What I Hear, to standards like What Are you Doing for New Years?, bridged with Hannukah medleys and hidden gem classical pieces from Benjamin Britten and renaissance rounds made famous by The Monkees.
Just try to be a scrooge at this concert. We dare you. There’s something for everyone, and all the gifts are tied together by the cello in the unique ways that have made The Cello Project a perennial favorite over the last decade.
Special Guest Saeeda Wright has been seen on stages backing Prince (as a member of his New Power Generation), and she has performed with gospel music greats Jessica Reedy, Cece Winans, Crystal Akin, JJ Harrison and Yvette Williams. She is regularly featured heating up the stage in The Cello Project’s Purple Reign programs, and The Cello Project is honored to have her continue their relationship, warming up some wonderful wintertime favorites on this program as well as a new album — also called Under the Mistletoe with Saeeda Wright — due out in November 2023.
Willamette Valley Symphony Concert–“Musical Stories”
Dates: December 16 at 7:00 p.m. and December 17 at 4:00 p.m.
Location: Ashbrook Independent School, 4045 SW Research Way in Corvallis
Price: Youth under 18 are free; Seniors $18; Adults $20. Our Youth Passport Program allows for one free adult ticket for every youth ticket. Arts for All: anyone with a Oregon Trail card gets in for $5. Tickets available at www.willamettevalleysymphony.org
Please join the WVS for an evening of Musical Stories. Our December concerts feature pianist Monica Ohuchi playing Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto no. 3. You will then escape into musical stories featuring the adventures of Hansel and Gretel (Humperdinck), the peaceful forest (Debussy’s Afternoon of a Faun), and finally the incredible Firebird Suite by Stravinsky, which depicts the struggle between Prince Ivan and the evil “Kastchei the Deathless.” With the help of the beautiful bird with feathers like flames, Prince Ivan claims victory. The concert is preceded by a pre-concert talk by Artistic Director Lance Inouye at 6:15 pm on Saturday and 3:15 pm on Sunday.
Save by purchasing season tickets for WVS’ last four concerts.
Dec 16 @ 7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Peter and the Starcatcher
by Rick Elice
Music by Wayne Barker
Based on the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Directed by: Mirinda Keeling
Performances: Dec. 1, 2, 3(m), 8, 9, 10(m), 14, 15, 16, 2023
A young orphan and his mates are shipped off from Victorian England to a distant island ruled by the evil King Zarboff. They know nothing of the mysterious trunk in the captain’s cabin, which contains a precious, otherworldly cargo. At sea, the boys are discovered by a precocious young girl named Molly, a Starcatcher-in-training who realizes that the trunk’s precious cargo is starstuff, a celestial substance so powerful that it must never fall into the wrong hands. When the ship is taken over by pirates – led by the fearsome Black Stache, a villain determined to claim the trunk and its treasure for his own – the journey quickly becomes a thrilling adventure. (Music Theatre International)
Box office opens 45 minutes before performances
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