Around Town

Reston Town Center is shaking up its annual holiday parade.

Set to return for a 34th year on Black Friday (Nov. 27), the popular celebration will no longer include some of the larger balloons or horse-drawn carriage rides featured in the past, says a spokesperson for BXP, the main property owner and developer behind the town center.


Around Town

For the last four years, Krissy Reynolds has loaded up her truck with colorful handmade soaps, then driven more than three hours from Roanoke to Northern Virginia, ready to greet the crowds streaming in at the Northern Virginia Christmas Market at the Dulles Expo Center in Chantilly.

When the Chantilly events center closed at the end of 2025 to make way for an IKEA, Events Management Group (EMG), the company that organizes the Christmas market, shifted to a new venue: the DTC Expo & Events Center, which was anticipated to open this fall at Dulles Town Center in Sterling.


Countywide

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has authorized changes giving Visit Fairfax more responsibility — and funding — for developing and running community events that could attract tourists and other outside visitors.

Board members voted unanimously at their Oct. 27 meeting to amend a memorandum of understanding between the county government and the independent nonprofit, handing it event management responsibilities previously delegated to Celebrate Fairfax.


Around Town

Santa Claus is coming to Tysons Corner Center tomorrow (Friday), ushering in what promises to be a busy winter holiday season at the D.C. region’s biggest mall.

Returning to Tysons Corner Center for a 39th year, the big man in red will be stationed for photos on the mall’s lower level near Wasabi starting at 11 a.m. tomorrow through Christmas Eve (Dec. 24).


Around Town

Time is ticking down on the McLean Art Society’s stay at the Chesterbrook Shopping Center.

The nonprofit will welcome a new exhibit titled “City Life” to its McLean Art Gallery tomorrow (Wednesday) that’s now expected to be one of the last in the pop-up space at 6224B Old Dominion Drive.


Around Town

On Halloween, Fair Oaks Mall is offering a treat for families: a grand opening celebration for its brand-new play space for young children, followed by the shopping center’s annual “Mall-O-Ween” festivities.

The grand opening celebration, which will include a costume contest, prizes, and a DJ playing family-friendly tunes, will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday (Oct. 31) at the nature-themed play space, near JCPenney. Shortly after the celebration, “Mall-O-Ween” will kick off, bringing a full evening of trick-or-treating from 5 to 8 p.m. at participating stores.


Around Town

After sundown tomorrow night (Wednesday), Maple Avenue in Vienna will come alive with goblins, ghouls and ghosts from America’s past.

That’s when the town’s annual Halloween Parade is set to return for its milestone 80th anniversary, extending a local tradition that dates back to the end of World War II and a year-long celebration of the country’s semiquincentennial with the theme of “Haunted History: 250 Years of America.”


Around Town

A three-day-long anime convention is moving to Chantilly’s Westfields Marriott Washington Dulles from its prior Arlington home this fall.

Now in its 27th year, the volunteer-led “Anime USA” will arrive at the conference center (14750 Conference Center Drive) on Nov. 20 and continue through Nov. 22. With the theme “The RPG,” this year’s edition will have a special emphasis on role-playing games, fantasy, and their connections to anime.


Around Town

A crowd cheered on the winner of a race last night (Thursday) at Frying Pan Farm Park, as she approached the finish line. But Jubilee could only be coaxed to wear her crown and sash for a reluctant minute: for a Jersey cow, alfalfa and grains from local breweries were the true prize.

Jubilee was one of seven bovine contenders who took to the “track” — a smooth path around a corral — during the seventh annual NASCOW FundRACER to help support the animals at the farm (2709 West Ox Road) in the Frying Pan area south of Herndon.


Around Town

Frying Pan Farm Park’s popular bovine competition, billed as “the slowest race you will ever cheer for,” is set to return to the Herndon-area park this week.

Seven cows will take to the “race track” Thursday evening (Oct. 22) for the seventh annual NASCOW FundRACER at the farm (2709 West Ox Road) in the Frying Pan area south of Herndon. Gates open at 5:30 p.m., with cows taking to the track at 6 p.m.


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