2014 Holiday Home Tours Bring the Holidays Home

For the holidays, I like to see how others decorate their homes to get ideas for my own. This year on the Louisiana Holiday Trail of Lights, six of the cities will be offering holiday home tours. The first home tours start in Shreveport-Bossier spanning two weekends – Dec. 4-5 and Dec. 11-12. Step-on guide Jan Pettiet will take visitors through two private residences on the Candlelight Christmas Home Tours, which will include the Logan Mansion, a magnificent 1897 Queen Ann Victorian home, and the Davis Homeplace, which dates back to 1916.  Tour-goers can park at Festival Plaza in downtown Shreveport and board the trolley, which will take them to each home. The cost is $26 per person and tickets must be purchased in advance through Eventbrite. To the west of Shreveport-Bossier, Minden will be offering the Historic District Christmas Candlelight Holiday Tour of Homes, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Dec. 13. Visitors can meet at the Stewart Center, located at 521 East & West Street, to board the shuttle to the homes. The tour includes homes and churches that depict the architecture of downtown including Greek Revival, Spanish Colonial, Victorian and more. The cost is $10 per person and can be purchased on the day of the tour. Natchitoches is bringing back its popular Natchitoches Christmas by Candlelight Holiday Tour of Homes, Dec. 10, 12, 17 and 19. The hour-long tours start at 5 p.m. except Saturday tours, which are 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Dec. 13 and 20. Tour-goers will receive a map to navigate from home to home in historic downtown. These tours showcase some of the most beautiful homes in the oldest settlement in Louisiana. Natchitoches celebrates its tri-centennial this year. The cost is $20 per person and can be purchased in advance by calling 800-259-1714. New to the Trail this year, the Holiday Tour of Homes in Alexandria’s historic Garden District will open four homes – the Omar Bradley Home on Marye Street, Walter Hill Home on Albert Street, Bottle House on Polk Street and the Scott-Thomas-McDaniel Home on Barrister Street, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Dec. 13.  Participants begin their tour at the First United Methodist Church, located at 2727 Jackson Street, where they will board a trolley that stops at each home. The cost is $25 per person and tickets can be purchased in advance through ticket-central.org. For more holiday events, visit www.holidaytrailoflights.com