Christmas festivities return to Skirvin

By Steve Lackmeyer

Published: December 12, 2007

Christmas festivities, historically celebrated in style at the Skirvin Hotel, are being reintroduced as the landmark celebrates its first holiday season in two decades.

The hotel, which reopened as a Hilton in February, is hosting a daily array of festivities this month ranging from a "high tea” on Tuesday through Saturday afternoons, special reservation-only visits with Santa Claus on Saturdays, and choirs performing each noon hour this week.

"When the Skirvin reopened in February, we heard countless stories of wonderful holiday memories at the hotel. It's now time to create new, 21st century holiday memories at the Skirvin Hilton,” said John Williams, the hotel's general manager. "The hotel and restaurant staffs are excited and prepared to offer a terrific holiday experience for our guests.”

The hotel, Park Avenue Grill restaurant and Red Piano lounge are decked out in full holiday fashion, with eight Christmas trees, 20 wreaths and magnificent outdoor lights and decorations. Guests are greeted by a 14-foot lobby tree decorated with 600 ornaments.

Williams originally hoped to add a bit of holiday décor for last Christmas, while the hotel was still undergoing a $54 million renovation after being closed for almost 20 years.

"For the average passerby, the whole hotel looked pretty rough,” Williams said. "We put together some thoughts on how to decorate the outside of the hotel, and put a grand Christmas tree where the red piano is. As things turned out, there were no windows still in December, no sidewalks, and that was the end of that.”

But the early planning led Williams to continue planning something grand for this Christmas. The hotel hired Rebecca Thai, owner of Little Surprises Design, to come up with a decoration plan for the entire hotel and banquet annex.

"The intent was to individually touch each area of the hotel, so there is a little bit on the outside as you approach, and then we give each area of the hotel its own flavor,” Williams said. "We didn't want to beat people over the head with Christmas. We didn't want it to feel like a shopping mall, with all respect to retailers.”

Williams is happy with corporate holiday party bookings, with several filling the hotel's various meeting and banquet rooms daily throughout the month.

"Holiday parties to companies are a very special thing,” he said. "A year ago, (they) were an unknown commodity. So if you were holding your party at another venue, and you were thinking about coming to the Skirvin, you weren't going to let that space go at the other venue until you were absolutely sure what the Skirvin was going to be when all fixed up. So we've been very fortunate getting booked up with these events.”

The next step was to introduce festivities that Williams hopes will create new family traditions in the community. Weekly visits with Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus was an easy call. And Williams had no concern about visitors embracing daily noontime Christmas carolers. Introducing a "high tea,” however, took some careful planning.

Justin Avera, a server with the hotel's Park Avenue Grill, reported the high teas have been a success. Guests have spent afternoons munching on ham and cheese, cucumber and egg salad sandwiches, ginger cakes, cookies, cinnamon twists and scones, and sipping coffee and tea. But Williams admits he's engaged a slight holiday deception.

"Technically, it's a low tea,” Williams said. "High tea is taken at 6 o'clock in the evening, and it's really heavy, almost a meal. The low tea is in the afternoon; it's sweets and savories and, of course, tea. But the American populace doesn't understand what a low tea is, so we call it ‘high tea.'”

Holidays at the Skirvin Hilton Hotel:

•High Tea at the Skirvin; 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Friday through Dec. 20. Assorted teas, tea sandwiches, scones, other sweets. $20.95 adults, $10.95 children under 12

•Five Days of Christmas; 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dec. 10 to Dec. 14. Local youth choirs surround the lobby's Christmas tree to bring the holiday spirit to the downtown business day.

•Breakfast with Santa in the Crystal Room; final visit 10 a.m. to noon Saturday. Special family breakfast with Santa, children receive special holiday memento. $19.95 adults, $15.95 children under 12.

•Christmas Eve at the Park Avenue Grill, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., special holiday menu.

•Christmas Day in the Park Avenue Grill, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., special holiday menu.

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