46th Annual Christmas in Salem House Tour Runs Dec. 6-7

This year, Historic Salem, Inc. (HSI) hosts their annual Christmas in Salem 2025 holiday house tour. Online tickets are now available for the tour, which takes place on Saturday and Sunday, December 6 and 7. This will be the 46th year of opening richly decorated private homes to the public within the historic neighborhoods of Salem, Massachusetts.

This year’s tour of 12 historic homes will be focused in the historic Summer Street area of the city. It will include stops at the famous Pickering House, which was built in 1664 and has been home to 10 successive generations of the Pickering family. Historic New England’s Gedney House that was built in 1665 will also be featured. 

Also on the tour is the Joshua Ward House, a three-story Federal-style brick house, built in 1784, that was one of the first brick houses in Salem. It features interior woodwork by noted Salem builder and woodworker Samuel McIntire.

Salem is known for its 17th and 18th century Colonial-style buildings, along with historic Federal and Georgian architecture. The town will host the next Traditional Building Conference, which runs March 24 and 25, 2026.

Additionally, the tour will showcase private homes on historic Broad, Cambridge, and Essex streets.  The theme for this year’s tour is “Boughs and Blooms” which will bring a lush botanical air to each of the properties. Visitors will also enjoy the variety of in-home seasonal entertainment, wandering carolers, and lectures.

Tour hours are Saturday, December 6 from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, December 7 from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Friday evening’s preview event will begin at 6:15 pm. A complimentary get-on, get-off trolley will also circuit the tour area both days.

Tickets for Christmas in Salem 2025 are available online at christmasinsalem.org at $40 for HSI members and $45 for non-members. Tickets on the day of the tour are $50 and may be purchased online or at this year’s tour headquarters located at historic Ames Hall located at 290 Essex Street in Salem.

HSI is a nonprofit advocacy group based in Salem, Massachusetts, dedicated to preserving Salem’s rich legacy of historic houses, buildings, and other properties. HSI advocates for architectural and visual integrity as well as appropriate adaptive reuse. The organization participates in civic design reviews, presents annual preservation awards, provides house histories and plaques to identify historic properties throughout the city, offers educational programs, and hosts social events that welcome newcomers and lifelong residents alike to its preservation community.   

Historic Salem has served for eight decades as one of Salem’s key architectural and historical resources and advocates. It has been instrumental in establishing official historic districts within the city and nominating several landmarks to the National Register of Historic Landmarks.