It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…on Orchard Road.
Christmas on A Great Street, organised by Orchard Road Business Association (ORBA), brings back the popular Great Christmas Eve Street Party, along with nightly immersive snowfall shows, Christmas villages, a new 14-metre-tall outdoor Christmas tree, and even augmented reality (AR) projections.
Highlight is the Christmas Eve Street Party, stretching 400 metres from Ion Orchard to Ngee Ann City with live DJ performances, roving mascots, pop-up stalls, and food trucks. The countdown to Christmas Day begins at 8pm, and revellers can party the night away till 2am.
But don’t wait till then. Kick-start your celebrations on Nov 9 when the lights are turned on along Orchard Road. Stroll down the iconic street surrounded by twinkling lights and Christmas elements set in a “firefly garden”. This year’s stars, bells, dazzling fir trees, red cardinal birds will be perched atop the overstreet decor and arches of pine and holly, while vertical beams of light mimic the wavelike motion of fireflies. The abundance of evergreen pine in the design is also a nod to Orchard Road’s past when it was home to former fruit orchards and nutmeg plantations.
This year’s two Great Christmas Villages – one at Shaw House Urban Plaza and the other at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza – will open to the public on Nov 8 and 10 November respectively. Taking centre stage at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza is a 14-metre-tall Christmas tree, complete with a four-minute programmed snowfall show around the tree at 8pm and 9pm from Nov 10, 2024 to Jan 1, 2025. Besides carnival rides such as a Flying Dumbo ride, revellers can enjoy an exclusive Orchard Road craft beer called Jingle Ale in partnership with a local brewer Asa Brew, and live performances by local buskers and bands on weekends.
Meanwhile, the Great Christmas Village at Shaw House Urban Plaza will run from Nov 8, 2024 to Jan 5, 2025, featuring carnival rides such as the Euro Swing, Ferris Wheel, claw machines, and a new Spin & Catch game.
The AR multimedia projections on the facade of Hilton Singapore Orchard, in partnership with OUE Limited, will see golden sparkles, snowflakes and fireworks come to life in augmented reality. Visitors can view the AR display which will transform the hotel building facade into a lively display of immersive public art when viewed on their phones. The 100-metre-tall outdoor visual projections will be activated from Nov 1, 2024 to Jan 1, 2025. Music in the Air, played synchronously from speakers perched on 44 lamp posts on both sides of Orchard Road, will further enhance the festive atmosphere.
Don’t forget to get your bar-hopping passport that features a selection of eight iconic bars in the precinct. ORBar on A Great Street includes a passport bundle of eight signature cocktails from four selected bars from now till Dec 31, 2024. Each bar will serve two drinks per passport. The drinks in the bar passport can be redeemed at the participating bars from Nov 1, 2024 to Jan 31, 2025.
For more information, visit www.orchardroad.org.
