Annual Garden Party Christmas Market

On Saturday, November 22nd, downtown Winchester was looking and sounding very festive. It was a wonderful sunny and mild day for their annual Garden Party Christmas Market.

I arrived in time to meet Santa before he got busy with photoshoots. Vendors lined the streets selling original crafts, delicious treats, and gifts for that special someone in your life. The Boys and Girls Club tent was alive with children making crafts. Other children flocked around the animals at the Spencerville’s Happy Little Farmstead Petting Zoo.

As a special treat, Reid Acres Percheron from Kemptville was offering Horse-drawn wagon rides around the downtown while carollers, known locally as “The Streetwise Singers,” harmoniously spread joy in front of the church.

At Sweet Corner Park, you could warm up at a firepit and listen to English and French Christmas tunes from the talented folk singer-songwriter, Kristine St-Pierre & The Christmas Band. Hailing from Ottawa, Kristine is none other than the 2025 Country Music Association of Ontario (CMAO) Francophone Artist of the Year.

If you got hungry, the Winchester United Church had a bake sale, free hot chocolate, and a chili lunch to offer while outdoors the Winchester Hawks Hockey Club were hosting a fundraising BBQ.

Well done, Winchester! This was a party indeed.