It’s 2022, and while the holidays are behind us, we’re still having lots of family fun this week and weekend. Follow the lights for the Three Kings Day Celebration in Belleville, warm up at the Winter Festival Bonfire and Fireworks in Warren, or see a kaleidoscopic art display after dark at the Grounds For Sculpture Night Forms in Hamilton Township. And for more ideas on family fun, check out our guide to free things to do this month.
Featured Photo Credit: Klip Collective, ‘Frog Head Rainbow’, and Michelle Post, ‘The Oligarchs’, 2014, cast aluminum, 76 inches x 40 feet x 6 feet, Grounds For Sculpture, Gift of The Seward Johnson Atelier photo: David Michael Howarth Photography @dmhphotographer
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(Note: Since COVID-19 rules and regulations are continually changing, it’s best to check ahead for in-person events)
Guided Nature Hike
January 6, 9, 15, 20, 23, and 29 at 12:30 PM and January 13 and 27 at 10 AM
Celebrate the winter season on a 1.5-2 mile guided nature hike for ages 8 and older. Make sure to dress for the weather, and you can bring Fido too (as long as he’s on a leash). Call on the day of the event to check for weather cancellation.
Cost: Free
Cheesequake State Park, Trailhead Parking area, 287 State Park Road, Matawan, NJ 07747
(732) 566-3208
King George’s Winter Walk
January 6 – February 22
Run, walk, or roll 22 miles from the Twelfth Night (January 6) through Washington’s Birthday (February 22). This walk is open for all ages. Return a completed walker’s log by March 1 to enter a lottery for a Washington’s Birthday surprise.
Cost: Donations appreciated
Virtual
(908) 725-1015
Winter Beach Walk at Fisherman’s Cove Conservation Area
January 6 at 11 AM
Stroll with a Park System Naturalist along the beach at Fisherman’s Cove collecting and identifying some of the ocean’s natural treasures. Make sure you dress warm and bring along a pail or basket to carry shells.
Cost: Free
391 Third Avenue, Manasquan, NJ 08736
Three Kings Day Celebration Belleville
January 6 at 5:30 PM
The whole family can look up to the sky at nightfall and follow the lights to the Third Annual Three Kings Day celebration. The light will be leading all to make the pilgrimage at this drive-by event, culminating at Belleville High School- 100 Passaic Ave. Participants will enter this drive-thru via Division St. and exit via Passaic Ave.
Cost: Free
100 Passaic Ave., Belleville, NJ 07109
(973) 450-3345
Smithville Holiday Light Show On The Lake
Now-January 6, lights can be seen at sunset
Over 120 Christmas Trees with over 50,000 Christmas lights float on Lake Meone in the center of Historic Smithville. When darkness falls, an orchestrated show of lights and music plays across the lake. The show can be seen from either side of the village and the bridge.
Cost: Free
Historic Smithville, 615 E. Moss Mill Rd., Smithville, NJ 08205
(609) 748-8999
Winter Festival Bonfire and Fireworks
January 8 at 4 PM
It’s time to light up the sky and the ground below at the Winter Festival Bonfire and Fireworks. This evening celebration is fun for the whole family.
Cost: Free
Warren Municipal Baseball Fields – 4 Bardy Road, Warren, NJ 07059
(908) 753-8000
Now-January 8 at 5 PM
See over 30,000 lights at Fanwood’s Famous Christmas House, which has bright displays and a light show every evening. Donations will be accepted for the NJ Institute for Disabilities.
Cost: Free
82 Paterson Road, Fanwood, NJ 07023
(908) 403-6486
January 9 at 3 PM
A tradition of teaching 250 years later at Rutgers, the Old Dutch Parsonage’s Frederick Frelinghuysen offered the first tutorials for Queen’s College at the Sign of the Red Lion Tavern in New Brunswick. Learn about the early history of Queen’s College, the first tutorials at the Sign of the Red Lion, and the metaphor of Enlightenment and illumination in the 18th century of New Jersey. This event is for ages 10 and up.
Cost: Free
Wallace House & Old Dutch Parsonage State Historic Site – 71 Somerset Street, Somerville, NJ 08876
(908) 725-1015
Let it Glow: A Lantern Spectacular
Now-January 30, Thursday through Sunday starting at 4 PM
Take an enchanting stroll through the Bergen County Zoo to see over 30 scenes of handmade delight and the animals that live there. You can even hop aboard the train. This event is separate from Winter Wonderland in the park and requires a separate admission ticket.
Cost: $15 for adults, $7.50 for children, under 2 is free
216 Forest Avenue, Paramus, NJ 07652
(201) 634-3112
Grounds For Sculpture Night Forms
Now-February 27, select dates at 5 PM
Glowing trees, sounds, art—it’s a multi-sensory experience at Grounds For Sculpture. Night Forms: dreamloop by Klip Collective takes place after hours, and it is a combination of video projection, light, sound, and storytelling.
Cost: $14 and up
80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton Township, NJ 08619
(609) 586-0616
Morris County Winter Farmers’ Market – Grow It Green
Now-March 27 (except December 26) at 9:30 AM
The Morris County Winter Farmers’ Market features more than 20 farmers and local food vendors to develop a local food system that patrons can eat locally and seasonally. There will be freshly grown produce, farm-raised beef, pork and poultry and fresh seafood, baked goods, farm eggs, and so much more.
Cost: Free
Convent Train Station, Convent Road, Morris Township, NJ 07960
Now–into Winter 2022,
Wrap yourself in the warmth of the holiday season as the grounds of Cape May’s only Victorian House Museum. The Emlen Physick Estate will be lit up and glowing. Join the Winter Wonderwalk to walk the grounds and view these fun and whimsical display of winter’s past. And continue the festivities by walking along the streets of Cape May’s decorated homes.
Cost: Free
1048 Washington Street, Cape May, NJ 08204
(609) 884-5404
RWJBarnabas Health: Cooking Classes for Kids
Dates and times vary depending on the program
Kids of all ages will love cooking up healthy treats in these virtual hands-on cooking classes (adult supervision required during class): Try Healthy Kids in Hannah’s Kitchen for kids 8-12, where they’ll learn to use a recipe, cook with nutritious ingredients, and utilize kitchen basics or try Taste Testers in Hannah’s Kitchen, a Mommy and Me style class for 2-4-year-olds.
Cost: Free
RWJBarnabas, Virtual
(973) 926-7371
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