INDIANAPOLIS — WRTV is partnering with The Christmas Gift and Hobby Show as it returns for its 72nd year.
After taking the year off in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the decades-old event returned to the Indiana State Fairgrounds on Wednesday.
The 2021 Christmas Gift and Hobby Show will run through Sunday and have over 300 local and national exhibitors, 100 of which are new.
Exhibits at the festive marketplace include local artisans selling their work, holiday displays, live entertainment, a mailbox delivering Gift Lists straight to Santa Claus, Santa himself, and more.
Show-goers will once again have the chance to meet Karolyn Grimes, who played Zuzu Bailey in the 1946 film "It's a Wonderful Life." This time though, Grimes has her newly-updated cookbook in tow, which fans can purchase with an autograph.
A new feature of the show is a miniature train of the North Pole Express. Sure to be a treat for the kids.
This year, the Christmas Gift and Hobby Show will also have a table of more than 20 local authors with books in almost every genre.
Event organizers told WRTV the event is perfect for holiday decor inspiration, unique gift-buying, and getting out of the house after the last 15 months of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
"It's a great place to come and buy all your Christmas gifts, and not worry about shipping or anything along those lines," Laura Groninger, the show manager, said. "It's just a total experience at the show as well. So, bring your friends, bring your children — have them come and see Santa Claus — lots of fun things to do here at the show."
Groninger, who has been with the show for the last 10 years, said she's seen an enthusiasm from people she has not seen in the past.
"People are just excited to be back and be kind of getting that sense of 'normal' again," Groninger said.
Tickets are $13, with showings the rest of the weekend—Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Children 12 and under are free to enter, and seniors are $9.
Learn more about the Christmas Gift and Hobby Show on its website.
