Solvang’s Copenhagen Countdown Rings In 2026 On Denmark Time
SOLVANG, Calif. (KEYT) - The city of Solvang rang in the new year this afternoon with the second annual Copenhagen Countdown.
It's already 2026 in Denmark, so with its rich Danish heritage as part of Julefest, the city of Solvang rings in the new year on their time, which is 3:00pm here in California.
“The afternoon part of it is because we wanted to have an event that was with our, you know, Denmark, Copenhagen, but also for families,” says Candice Libera, City Of Solvang’s Marketing And Events coordinator. “So they can come out and have this event with their kids, do this, but then still have the night time to go do whatever other event they'd like to do in the valley.”
Locals say the days of Christmas Eve and Christmas saw visitor traffic this year that was still surprisingly high despite the rain.
“This year, because of the weather, I think in the rains it was really, you know, pushed into the weekend specifically,” says Annalan Cucki, co-owner and winemaker at Final Girl Wines.
Business owners say what the storms really did was shift all the visitor traffic to an overwhelming December 27th, when the weather cleared up.
“This is a super small operation and my husband basically runs this place and we have one employee,” says Cucki. “And on Saturday he the one employee had the day off, it was Peter by himself. And that guy happened to walk by and decided he needed to come in and kind of help.”
Organizers say the second annual Copenhagen countdown has had a show-must-go-on approach, whether it's raining or not. Complete with a live performance from local band sensation the Molly Ringwald Project.
“It seems like the weather's cleared up just enough for this to happen,” says The Molly Ringwald Project’s Ian Musgrove. “And you know what? It's probably raining and snowing in Europe right now anyway, so I think the weather is perfect,” says the band’s lead vocalist Roxanne Morgenstern. “Feels very authentic,” says Musgrove.
The traditional closure of Julefest, the annual Christmas Tree Burn, is tentatively scheduled for the evening of January 9th, weather permitting.
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