Christmas Village opens in Laconia, Laconia Leafs Players Volunteer with set-up.

Through Sunday, the happiest place in the Lakes Region is Christmas Village at the Laconia Community Center.

The 34th annual Christmas Village opens Thursday with hundreds of visitors coming to see the Jolly Old Elf, Mrs. Claus and an extensive cast of characters including Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman and The Grinch.

The event is put on by dozens of volunteers, including members of the Laconia Leafs JR Hockey Team. In total, about 3,000 “Man/person” hours are donated to create the event.

Admission is free. Everyone enters the community center basement where Laconia police officers and other volunteers will do face- and fingernail-painting, play games for prizes and help visitors make their own take-home Christmas ornament.

Elves will later lead groups upstairs and through the brightly and colorfully-lit village. There are free cookies and soft drinks while Polaroid photos with Santa are just $3.

Laconia's holiday spectacular was instituted by Dick Tapply. The city's one-time parks and recreation director, he borrowed the idea from his father, "Wink," who began Santa's Village in Bristol which celebrates its 54th anniversary next week.

Christmas Village will be open from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday and from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Senior citizens and persons with handicaps who may require more time to go through the gymnasium may visit Christmas Village from 10 to noon on Saturday and Sunday.

Coach Will Fay said "we are pleased to be able to help the elves with the set up of the village, it is such a great thing for out community, we wish we could help even more."