Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, has quite an industrious history, from the hardworking Moravian settlers who chose this fertile Lehigh Valley location in 1741 to the massive furnaces of Bethlehem Steel that dominated the landscape for more than a century. Today the erstwhile Rust Belt town has become a beacon for holiday-season tourists, having earned the sparkly moniker “Christmas City.”
Some, like the couple I encountered in my hotel lobby during a visit last December, even make an annual pilgrimage to revel in its yuletide festivities.
“See you again next year!” they chirped at the front desk clerk with broad smiles—and then, turning to me: “We come every year. We love it here.”
They’re not the only regulars, the clerk assured me. Whether you celebrate Christmas as a religious, secular or commercial holiday, Bethlehem brings the magic.
Yes, there are oodles of Hallmark-y displays—more holiday ornaments than you can count, thousands of twinkling lights and a charming village bazaar reminiscent of Europe’s famed Christmas markets, packed with artisanal wares and food vendors in tents. In 2022, the town’s annual Christmas tree tour showcased 26 faux firs decorated to the hilt with toy-and-game-themed concepts ranging from Dungeons & Dragons to mahjong.
But there’s more to Bethlehem than holiday glitz. Intimate and walkable, the town claims more original Colonial-era buildings than Williamsburg, Virginia (where most of the buildings are reproductions). Its historic Moravian district, a bastion of Germanic-style architecture, makes for a picturesque walk, day or night.
Outside the visitor center, my friend Carol and I meet our guide, Loretta—who is dressed in full Moravian garb—for a “Christmas City stroll” walking tour. The Moravian religion arose from the early 15th-century teachings of Jan Hus, a Reformation figure in what is now modern-day Czechia (the Czech Republic), who advocated against the sale of indulgences and urged greater participation by common folk in religious ceremonies. Hus was burned at the stake in 1415, but his undaunted followers gathered in 1457 to form the Moravian Church.
As we walk, Loretta assures us that Moravians are “not a people who have died off,” though the religion today has only about 60,000 followers in North America. You can still attend a Moravian service at the cupola-topped Central Moravian Church in town.
The town itself was established in 1741 by a group of Moravians who had moved to the British colonies to create a missionary settlement. On Christmas Eve of that year, the influential Moravian Count Zinzendorf organized a so-called “love feast” (agape service), Loretta explains, and the town assumed the name Bethlehem in honor of that holiday celebration and the story of Jesus’ birth. Today, Moravians continue to host these communal meals to promote fellowship on special occasions.
The sect is known for its three-dimensional star, with points radiating in all directions like the Star of Bethlehem.
Though residency in Bethlehem proper was initially limited to Moravians, the townsfolk established the respected Sun Inn in 1758, welcoming travelers no less than George Washington and Ben Franklin. These days, you can grab a seat at the bar and enjoy updated tavern fare and drinks from a local distillery in the restored structure.
Another founding father, John Adams, was struck by the community’s industrial advances, calling it “a curious and remarkable town.” In 1754, Bethlehem boasted the first municipal water system capable of pumping water uphill from the lower river.
They were “very good urban planners,” Loretta says.
That riverside area, now a National Historic Landmark District that was also nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage site, is worth a gander—especially if you like older buildings.
To modern minds, the Moravian settlers would be considered more progressive than their contemporaries, given that they educated boys and girls similarly and opened the first boarding school for girls in the colonies. They did not enslave people, Loretta adds, and did not differentiate based on skin color.
As evening falls, we are wowed by some seriously illuminated evergreens before crossing the river to the town’s celebrated Christkindlmarkt. Twice recognized by Travel & Leisure as one of the best holiday markets in the U.S., it’s packed with glittering ornaments, Bavarian-style nutcrackers, cuckoo clocks and holiday tchotchkes.
The elaborate, lathe-turned wooden cutouts and figurines by Käthe Wohlfahrt, a German craft company, are especially eye-catching, albeit a tad pricey. I pause to covet a carving of a holiday scene under a candle-powered spinning windmill.
Elsewhere in the market, we spy glassblowers creating ornaments and ice carvers hard at work. The festive and German-themed cuisine includes sausages, potato pancakes and strudels, plus freshly made stroopwafels, which are well worth the long line.
No less captivating are the landmarks symbolizing Bethlehem’s post-industrial rejuvenation. As a company town for more than a century, Bethlehem produced the essential steel for skyscrapers, ships and the U.S. Navy’s heavy armor plating until 1995, when its blast furnaces were decommissioned. Today, the former steel plant has been reinvented as SteelStacks, a cultural and historic center that hosts festivals and concerts. Towering over the Christmas tents, campfires and ice rink, its stacks have a steampunk-y quality that is at once alluring and haunting.
The Hoover-Mason Trestle, rising some 40 feet off the ground, is another vestige of Bethlehem’s brawny past. A narrow-gauge railway constructed in the early 20th century to carry raw materials from the ore yards to the heart of the Bethlehem Steel plant, it is now an elevated park and pedestrian walkway. We saunter the full third of a mile and back, reading the information panels and gazing with admiration at the otherworldly stacks, which are illuminated in festive colors at night.
Steel manufacturing was a dangerous job for the mostly Irish, Italian and Slovak immigrant workers who manned the plant just after the turn of the 20th century. Later, they would strike and form unions.
From 1905 to 1995, the factory produced a billion tons of steel, providing the building blocks of our country’s bridges, tunnels and military equipment. The SteelStacks complex has won prestigious urban design awards for its innovative reclamation of what would otherwise be a metal wasteland.
On our second morning, we head to the nearby Easton Farmers’ Market, which claims to be the longest continuously running market in America (though its promoters admit that some weeks early on might have consisted of a single farmer selling heads of cabbage from a wagon). The winter offerings are light—mostly breads, mushrooms and pickles. We chat with a craft honey vendor and grab a latte to counterbalance the chill in the air.
Easton—home to Lafayette College—is located where the Delaware River splits off into the Lehigh River and, like Bethlehem, has a history that predates the Revolutionary War. To this day, its residents celebrate Independence Day a week later than most—because that’s how long it took for the news of America’s victory to reach them.
A few blocks from the riverfront, the recently revitalized Easton Winter Market fills the central square with live entertainment, a skating rink and small, decorated huts serving up everything from glühwein to stuffed pretzels, craft beer and chocolate. As we wander the main streets and enjoy local fare, we are once again warmed by the people.
Gastronomically, our visit peaks with dinner at Bolete, a celebrated restaurant in Bethlehem (the name is Latin for mushroom), owned and operated by chef Lee Chizmar and his wife, Erin Shea. Housed in a former stagecoach inn—parts of which date to 1734—it serves one of the best soups I’ve ever tasted, a lightly smoky squash bisque. My entrée of seared halibut accented with bacon lardons, Brussels sprouts and oyster mushrooms also delivers. A local boy, Chizmar sources most of his ingredients from nearby farms and suppliers.
Happily saying “yes” to dessert, I’m blown away by the sweet potato profiteroles that arrive at our table—delicate pastry orbs filled with sweet-potato mousse and toasted marshmallows, paired with cinnamon brown sugar ice cream and gingersnap crumble. Yet another festive spin in a valley that has mastered reinvention.
Where to Stay
Live it up at the stately and centrally located Hotel Bethlehem, thrice named “the best historic hotel in America” by USAToday, and dine at its light-filled restaurant, 1741 on the Terrace. The Hyatt Place Bethlehem offers an easy walk to town and free parking. Or, stay closer to SteelStacks across the river at the 1858 Sayre Mansion, which offers afternoon tea.
Where to Eat & Drink
For a caffeine fix, sip a coffee drink at Bitty & Beau’s, which lives its mission of providing jobs for people with disabilities. Bethlehem’s popular Apollo Grill has a hoppin’ happy hour and a wide-ranging menu. Treat your taste buds to some magic at critically acclaimed Bolete, where the seasonal menus showcase regional ingredients and culinary ingenuity. In the nearby town of Easton, check out Sette Luna, a Tuscan trattoria with fresh salads, fun pizzas and a proper beverage program listing craft suds and Italian wines, plus Italian liqueurs, amari and grappa. At the indoor Easton Public Market you’ll find everything from noodles and tacos to barbecue. For drinks, go for the local stuff at Social Still distillery and Bonn Place Brewing Co. in Bethlehem, and Seven Sirens Brewing Co., which has brewpubs in both Bethlehem and Easton.
What to Do
This year, Bethlehem’s Christkindlmarkt opens Nov. 17 and runs on weekends through Dec. 17. The ice rink at SteelStacks is open daily from Nov. 21 to Jan. 15, with 75-minute skating sessions. The Rise & Fall of Bethlehem Steel walking tour ($20 adults; $12 kids) departs from the SteelStacks visitor center at 1 p.m. every Friday through Sunday. For bibliophiles, the Moravian Book Shop claims to be the oldest continuously operating bookstore in America.
Arlington writer and author Amy Brecount White writes about travel, sustainable gardening and interesting people.