Naper Settlement’s Yuletide festival is taking place for the first time this year. Since the Kriskringal mart normally occurs during this time of year, Yuletide is stepping in to take the place of Kriskringal mart, which is leaving this year. 

When walking into this event, there are a lot of lights and even a lighted tunnel at the entrance for customers to go through.The festival itself was practically a ghost town, which had left people from the community very disappointed. 

Kris Ryan, a local naperville resident and her family had been coming to the Kriskringal mart for years and their expectations weren’t met with this new festival. 

“I expected a lot more people vendor’s shops and now there’s nothing. I don’t know where it all went. I’m really disappointed because I wanted to spend money,’ Ryan said.

There were at least three or four shop vendors throughout this festival and the common theme regarding food was all polish inspired like Tata’s Pierogis. “Tata’s Pierogi is a business inspired by the owners parents and grandparents,” Christopher Ryan a worker at Tata’s said.“In Poland they would always make pierogies, and they decided to continue making them when they came to America.”

The theme of this festival was explained throughout the food since there was no music and barely any vendors. Some of the people from the community were so disappointed that in the end they regretted going. 

“I hope this improves over the next few years because normally the winter festivals are great in this community and now they’ve lost their touch. Now I’m just gonna go the Chicago now and good to a good winter festival instead of this one,” Ryan said 

Hopefully, this event will improve and become popular to the community, as of right now it’s not living up to their expectations.