TELLING RELATIVES ELSEWHERE... that you saw Santa Claus show up in a Dragon Boat? With a surfboard? On a nice, semi-balmy San Diego day at Seaport Village? They might advise you to pull the other leg, with a guffaw, and then proceed to lecture on how exactly the famously festive figure really arrives in town. The word "roof" will probably be involved, and "reindeer" and "chimney" and "snow" and the other details we've all memorized from the tales of old. And while we're certain Santa does probably see a few million — or is it billion? — snowy roofs as he journeys around the world on Christmas Eve, with his reindeer valiantly pulling his sleigh, Southern California is a tad different. Oh, absolutely, there are roofs and chimneys and even the occasional snowfall, up 'round Julian and Idyllwild and Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear, too. But when Kris Kringle arrives at Seaport Village in San Diego on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, it is all about the stylin' board shorts, the beautiful Dragon Boat, and the surfboard he has in tow. Want to see for yourself? He'll be riding the waves in on...
SATURDAY, NOV. 25, and he will kindly hang out for a bit 'round the village, all so elf-loving aficionados can snap a few Santa-fun selfies or pose-ready pics. He arrives at 1 that day, but stay around through the afternoon for the parade, which'll feature the legend in a red convertible (also quite photo-perfect for the out-of-state relatives). Shops and restaurants around Seaport Village'll be humming as the season gets underway, so doing lunch before your Santa snap or staying for dinner after waving at his convertible feels like a pretty high-five-able plan.
