Portland Observatory pictured with a full moon. Doug Jones/Staff Photographer

Holiday Lantern Tours
5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Portland Observatory, 138 Congress St., Portland, $10. portlandlandmarks.org
For a chance to see Portland and its waterfront from a unique vantage point, grab a ticket to a Holiday Lantern Tour at the Portland Observatory. The 25-minute tours happen between 5:30 and 7:30 p.m., and as you ascend the 86-foot-tall tower, a docent will share a holiday story. Dress for cold weather because the observatory, built in 1807, isn’t heated.

¡Hanukkah Mexicana!
5:30 p.m. Friday. Chocolate Church Arts Center, 804 Washington St. Bath, $40 talk and concert, $30 seniors and kids under 10, $25 concert only, $18 seniors and under 10. chocolatechurcharts.org
Here’s a chance to combine delicious food with music and dancing, all under one roof. ¡Hanukkah Mexicana! kicks off with an author talk. Ilan Stavans and Margaret Boyle wrote “Sabor Judio: The Jewish American Cookbook” and will be serving a few dishes from it, including latkes with molé sauce. Then, at 7 p.m., the music starts with the Casco Bay Tummlers and Veronica Roblé’s all female mariachi band. Jewish and Mexican social dances will ensue. Don’t worry if you don’t know them; you’ll pick up the steps as you go along.

An impressive entry at the 2023 Gingerbread Spectacular in Boothbay Harbor. Photo by Peter Southwick

The Gingerbread Spectacular
1-6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Opera House at Boothbay Harbor, 86 Townsend Ave., free, donations appreciated. boothbayoperahouse.com
This year marks the 18th anniversary of the Opera House at Boothbay Harbor’s Gingerbread Spectacular. Feast your eyes, over the course of three days, on mouth-watering displays of gingerbread houses, castles and other structures made by professional and amateur bakers. The opera house will be fully decked out for the holidays, and there be live music on Saturday afternoon. Prizes will be awarded in categories like best representation of a local landmark, most hilarious and best traditional gingerbread house design. Several baked goods will be for sale all weekend long, and there will also be raffles. Best of all, many of the gingerbread creations will be auctioned off.

Neil McGarry in “A Christmas Carol” at Saco River Theatre. Photo by Erica Simpson

Neil McGarry’s ‘A Christmas Carol’
7:30 p.m. Friday, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Saco River Theatre, 29 Salmon Falls Road, Buxton, $15. sacorivertheatre.org
Actor Neil McGarry presents a one-man performance of the timeless Charles Dickens tale “A Christmas Carol.” He’ll be playing every role, and the fully-staged production also features dancing. Sit back and sink into the characters you know and love, including Bob Cratchit, Tiny Tim, a trio of ghosts and even Ebenezer Scrooge.

Story Trees by the Sea
10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Sunday. Ogunquit Museum of American Art, 543 Shore Road, free. ogunquitmuseum.org
The Ogunquit Museum of American Art will open its doors this weekend for a free, family-friendly holiday gathering. Story Trees by the Sea happens in the Carol and Noel Leary Gallery. Visitors will be surrounded by trees decorated by local schools and art organizations, all with an eye on celebrating Ogunquit’s creativity and artistic talent. One of several seasonal displays will be snowy scenes by Henry Strater. Kids can enjoy readings of stories by local authors and on Saturday, River Tree Arts music students will play some winter-themed songs and Santa Claus will be making an appearance. On both days, a mobile art bus will be on site and on Sunday, artist Heather Lewis will lead a drawing class.