‘Tis the Season To Be Jolly: These Are the Most Festive States for the Holidays

by Peter Taylor

A father helping his daughter decorate their Christmas tree at home — Getty Images

For generations, the vision of coming home for the holidays has been feasts with family and friends, garlands and mistletoe hanging overhead, and homes decked out in lights as it snows lightly outside.

But some parts of the country get more into the holiday spirit than others. And while certain holiday decorations are perennially popular, others have fallen out of favor.

The most festive city in the nation for holiday decorations is Las Vegas, according to a recent study commissioned by Michigan-based home builders Lombardo Homes. (The study looked at how much residents searched for holiday decorations online per capita.) It was followed by Denver, Baltimore, Nashville, TN, and Dallas.

The botanical gardens at the Bellagio Hotel and Casino during Christmas in Las Vegas, NV.
Getty Images

Meanwhile, New York City led the list of America’s least festive cities, trailed by Los Angeles, Phoenix, Chicago, and Silicon Valley’s San Jose, CA.

“It was surprising to see our nation’s two largest cities come in at No. 1 and No. 2 for least Christmas cheer,” says Maria Szatkowski, who worked on the report. “Even though tourists flock to the famous Rockefeller Christmas tree each year [in New York City], based on the Google search trend data, Las Vegas residents are more interested in decking the halls and making their homes festive for the season.”

(To come up with its findings, Lombardo Homes analyzed nearly 8,000 search terms on Google that were related to Christmas decorations. They compared the results with the national average to determine each state’s most popular holiday decorations. To find the most festive states, the builders looked at how much residents of the 30 largest cities in the nation were searching for holiday decorations per capita. They also surveyed more than 1,000 Americans on holiday decorations.)

The most holiday-obsessed state for decorations is Alaska, trailed by Delaware, Maine, Hawaii, and Idaho

Meanwhile, New York state was the least festive state for decorations. Washington, Minnesota, Ohio, and Oregon weren’t far behind.

These are the most popular holiday decorations

This year, the most popular decoration in U.S. homes remained the Christmas tree.
Getty Images

The majority, 80%, of Americans say they’re planning to decorate for the holidays, spending an average of four hours doing so, according to the report. About 20% of folks begin putting up lights and other decorations before Thanksgiving, 48% do so in November, and 32% wait until December.

This year, the most popular decoration in U.S. homes remained the Christmas tree, according to the study. About 67% of Americans prefer real trees to 33% who choose artificial ones.

The Christmas tree was followed by garlands, Christmas lights, mistletoe, and snowmen. Rounding out the top 10 were stockings, wreaths, Nativity scenes, angels, and stars.

Not ironically, snowmen decorations topped the list in America’s coldest and snowiest states, including Colorado, Illinois, and Minnesota.

“No matter where you live, and no matter how much (or how little) people around you get into the Christmas spirit, the ability and lengths you go to decorate are ultimately up to you,” says Szatkowski.