Christmas Decorations -- When to Take Them Down

I love Christmas decorations -- both looking at those of others as well as decorating myself! But they look out of place if they are up at the wrong time of year -- at least I think they do to most of us.

When is the best time to take them down?

My mom usually likes to take the tree and other decorations down on Christmas Day, December 25, or soon afterward. Some others do, too. But many prefer to leave Christmas decorations up until New Year's Day or a few days later.

Businesses closed for the days from Christmas through New Year's Day, typically leave the decorations up until they return to work in January.

Complicating matters, many Orthodox Christians use the older Julian calendar instead of the modern Gregorian calendar. They celebrate Christmas in January (i.e., January 7, 2022), so they may have Christmas decorations up even later. Maybe they are even putting them up as others are taking them down!

My Personal Perspective

Below is a photo taken November 25th, 2019 of the 2019 Christmas decorations on the outside of my apartment door.

Personally, I usually try to put my Christmas decorations up early, and when I remove them varies from year to year. Sometimes, I desire to move forward to other things. Therefore, I take my Christmas decorations down near the end of Christmas Day (December 25) or the next day.

During some other Christmas seasons, I desire to try to retain the Christmas spirit a bit longer, and may leave the decorations up until New Year's Day or the day after. As long as the decorations are still up, it still seems like Christmas in a sense!

In fact, I usually enjoy still seeing a few Christmas decorations up in the neighborhood in early January, even through the end of the first week in January when many Orthodox Christians celebrate the holiday or a week later.

I don't even mind if outdoor lights are left up all year round, as long as they are not lit. I respect the time saved by persons who would need to put them up and take them down annually otherwise, which can be very time consuming for big displays.

There is certainly no perfect day to put up or take down Christmas decorations. But it seems a bit weird to me to see Christmas lights burning and a Santa Claus in some one's yard after the end of January.

I believe each person can make their own decision (as long as there is no zoning ordinance or other regulation in a particular area and neighbors don't object). But taking the decorations down sometime in the first half of January seems advisable. At least that's my personal opinion.

NOTE: This article was last modified on July 28th, 2021.