This old copper mining town wouldn't have to do anything to feel Christmasy. The Copper Queen Hotel looks like a gingerbread house even before they throw the switch on the Christmas lights.
The holiday season in Bisbee kicks off right Friday and Saturday with the Bisbee Festival of Lights celebration at 6 p.m. Friday in front of Grassy Park next to the Mining and Historical Museum (just below the Copper Queen Hotel). Santa shows up in a firetruck with treats for children.
The two-day Bisbee Home Tour also starts Friday. While not strictly a holiday event, some of the homes are usually decked out for Christmas. (See details in today's At Home section.)
Bisbee is always ready for a celebration and it's never short of holiday spirit from the shops along Main Street and the lobby of the Copper Queen.
And, Bisbee stands a chance, great by Southern Arizona standards, of snow over the holidays due to it's slightly higher altitude (a mile high, more or less).
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Bonus: Grab your camera and walk (for a steep workout) or drive up Tombstone Canyon (Main Street, the main drag downtown, turns into Tombstone Canyon) for a quirky bit of Bisbee Christmas cheer.
In the 200 block of Tombstone Canyon, look left for what appears to be a copper statue of Elvis. Actually, it's a tribute to copper miners in general, but there is fairly wide agreement that it looks a lot like The King.
And somebody usually puts a red and white Santa hat on his head.
If you go
• What: Bisbee Festival of Lights celebration, Santa shows up in a firetruck with treats for children.
• When: 6 p.m. Friday .
• Where: Grassy Park, next to the Mining and Historical Museum, below the Copper Queen Hotel.
• Cost: Free.
• To get there: Take Interstate-10 east 41 miles to Benson, take exit 303/ Arizona 80 east and south 52 miles through Benson, St. David and Tombstone to Old Bisbee. Total distance is about 93 miles.
Dan Sorenson
