In Berkeley Springs, the Christmas Market Falls in the Middle of the Gift Season

On Thursday, November 5, the Ice House at 138 Independence Street opens its galleries at 11 a.m. for the first day of the Morgan Arts Council's Annual Holiday Show, "Celebrating Memories." Four days earlier, on November 1, the building's fall ceramics exhibit "From Soup to Nuts" closed. Curator Jan Knight's holiday exhibit now runs through January 3, 2027. The Morgan Arts Council describes it as a place to find "unique, handcrafted treasures" for holiday shopping.

The town's other big gift event is the 3rd Annual Bath Christmas Market, which runs for three days, December 11 through 13. The Ice House show opens five weeks before the first chalet and stays open three weeks after the last one closes. Two shops that opened downtown in 2026 add more gift options within a few blocks. For anyone shopping handmade and local this year, the calendar runs nine weeks.

The season, laid out by date

The opening reception for the Holiday Show comes on November 21, more than two weeks after the show itself opens. The Ice House galleries keep their regular hours, Thursday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., so the show is open for two full weekends before the reception.

The first Saturday belongs to the Gala

The season's first big night is two days after the show opens. The MAC 2026 Gala, "Interwoven Roots," runs Saturday, November 7, from 6 to 9 p.m. It starts with a cocktail hour on the Ice House's second floor, then moves to Paradox Hall for a sit-down dinner, a live auction and dancing.

During the cocktail hour, guests can watch the Art Throwdown. The Morgan Arts Council's Gala page describes it as a friendly, live, head-to-head competition: each artist gets a 90-minute hands-on challenge that can mix disciplines and media, and there "may even be a surprise challenge thrown in." This year's Throwdown artists are Bernie Carpenter, Archetta Walters, Sandra Goodman, Rick Wilkins and Dave Griffiths. According to the council, the event reflects its belief "that the more you integrate artists and local people into the community, the more both will prosper."

The Gala features local artists, the Holiday Show sells handcrafted work through New Year's, and the market accepts handcrafted items only.

The Ice House stays busy after the Gala. On Tuesday, November 10, the Ice House Theater Project offers a free Intro to Acting workshop with instructor Lauren Proffit from 5 to 7 p.m. It covers movement, character development and expression, and no experience is needed. On November 17, the second-floor Carr-Kelly Gallery opens a new exhibit with work by Caitlynn Buckler, Ava Hull and Jelise Ballon. It runs through January 3, the same day the Holiday Show closes.

The Morgan Arts Council has owned the Ice House since 1996, and the building now holds several gallery spaces. Between the Holiday Show, the Carr-Kelly exhibit and the first-floor Hall of Dreams, a December visit covers more than one room of local work.

Two 2026 openings add to the weekday options

The Ice House is closed Monday through Wednesday. This year, two new downtown shops cover more of those days.

The Wild and Wonderful Souvenir Shop opened at 16 Williams Street, across from the train depot, in an opening Mayor Greg Schene announced on August 28. According to the Town's announcement and its business listing, the shop sells West Virginia-sourced goods, local art, gifts, regional music and keepsakes, plus Nate's handcrafted fishing nets. The Town's business listing gives its hours as 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday and Thursday through Sunday.

The Carriage House Boutiques at Tiny Shoppe Village, 99 N. Washington Street, held their ribbon cutting on April 11. The Town's grand-opening account lists what the five boutiques sell:

• Shuggie Mac's, a home bakery specializing in handcrafted French macarons
• Timeless Baby Boutique, with bamboo baby essentials
• Lavender Bliss Boutique, with curated style finds
• The Artist's Cottage, with handmade jewelry and gifts
• The Succulent Garden, with greenery and arrangements

Whole Latte Love sits next door to the Village and serves warm drinks and sweet treats. Hours for the individual boutiques aren't published, so check before making a special trip.

Here is how the posted hours line up through a week:

Thursday through Sunday is the easiest stretch to plan around. Both places are open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., which leaves a five-hour window to do both stops in one outing.

The market is juried, and handcrafted only

The Bath Christmas Market follows the same handmade rule as the rest of the season, and the Town makes it official. Its market page states that "for vendors this is a juried event, and we ask only for handcrafted items to be sold at the market."

The 2026 market has a Candyland theme, admission is free, and it is sponsored by OnTRAC and the Town of Bath. This year's logo carries 250th-anniversary branding. In his January message, the mayor said it marks the anniversaries of both the Town and the country. The event is listed at the Morgan County Courthouse parking lot, 77 Fairfax Street.

The Town has started introducing 2026 vendors on the market page:

• Belle's Acres, with artisan soaps, lotions and skin care made in small batches with milk from the farm's own goats
• Majestic Glass Arts, with handblown glass ornaments, icicles and spheres
• Fischer's Custom Woodwork, with furniture and décor made from reclaimed lumber, new wood and used whiskey barrels
• Jennifer Mackenroth Jewelry, with wirework and stone pieces
• Lunar Garden Crystals, with crystal and natural stone bracelets and gemstone carvings
• Hello Haberdashery, with jewelry and felt hats
• Sticky Lips, with gourmet cotton candy

The market includes ice skating, and kids skate free. The daily schedule:

1. Friday, December 11: market noon to 5 p.m., skating until 8 p.m.
2. Saturday, December 12: market 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., skating until 8 p.m.
3. Sunday, December 13: market and skating 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

On Friday and Saturday, the rink stays open three hours after the vendors close, so evening skating is a separate trip from daytime shopping. Sunday is the short day, and everything ends at 2 p.m. The market weekend also falls on Ice House gallery days, so the Holiday Show is open during all three days of the market. The Town posts vendor and schedule updates on its market page and on the Christmas in Bath WV Facebook page.

As of this writing, the Town hasn't announced 2026 dates for the Christmas parade or other December events. The market's Facebook page and the Town calendar are the places to watch.

After the chalets come down

Once the market closes on December 13, the Holiday Show still has three weeks left, through January 3. That covers the last shopping days before Christmas and the week after, when out-of-town guests are often looking for something to do.

December could also bring a change to how some residents get around town. The Morgan Messenger reported in June that the Ewing Street Bridge, across from the basketball courts on Biser Street, had been closed for more than a year. In an August 26 update, Mayor Schene said the replacement was running ahead of schedule and under budget, with completion projected by December 1, 2026 and a ribbon cutting expected that December. That date is still a projection, and the Town's news page will have any update.

Meanwhile, the building at 174 N. Washington Street is still an open opportunity. In September the mayor promoted it as available for someone looking to start a restaurant downtown, so it isn't yet part of this year's season.

Kesecker Realty, Inc. has worked out of Berkeley Springs since 2009. If family visiting for the market weekend start asking what it would take to have a place of their own a few blocks from the Ice House, our agents can walk them through it. Contact a local agent today.