The Yuletide spirit will come alive Friday and Saturday at the Riverside Convention Center, where the 35th annual “Festival of Trees” will be held, featuring elaborately adorned firs, benefiting a Riverside County charity for children.
The event, hosted by the Riverside University Health System Foundation, transforms the venue into a virtual Christmas forest, bedecked with 50 “designer trees” — each sporting its own unique theme — for visitors to view, touch and photograph.
The fest, a tradition going back to 1989, will be free and open to the public Friday and Saturday. The hours both days are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
“Come walk through our uniquely decorated Christmas trees from our gala and do some holiday shopping,” according to an RUHS Foundation statement.
Several dozen area vendors are slated to have booths inside the Convention Center.
Roughly 300 volunteers return each season to position and decorate each of the nearly eight-foot-tall trees.
The Festival of Trees reverted to in-person celebrations at the downtown Riverside location in 2022. In 2020, because of the COVID lockdowns, the fest was all-virtual, and in 2021, it was outdoors, relocated to Rancho Jurupa Regional park in Jurupa Valley.
“The Festival of Trees raises awareness and support for crucial work at Riverside University Health System’s Pediatric Unit, neonatal and pediatric intensive care units, and the Riverside County Child Abuse and Neglect Unit,” the foundation stated.
A variety of activities are planned, catering to visitors of all ages as they stroll around the trees, organizers said.
Officials estimated the number of fest visitors could reach 10,000 during the two-day period. The event will coincide with the first week of the 32nd annual Festival of Lights downtown.
More information is available at ruhsfoundation.org/.