ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Christmas is right around the corner and festive events and activities are in full swing, but if you're still looking for something new to do that's full of Christmas cheer, head to St. Petersburg to explore a charming and quaint horse farm where they will take you on a Christmas carriage ride tour.

What You Need To Know

  • Cypress Breeze Farms offers horse-drawn Christmas carriage rides

  • The carriages roll leisurely down streets with homes that dazzle with holiday decorations

  • Packages for a variety of experiences are available on the farm's website

  • Call ahead to schedule a tour because they fill quickly

Tending to the dozens of horses at Cypress Breeze Farms is quite a job, but Monika Bruehsel and her family wouldn't have it any other way. 

“We've been operating the carriage rides and the trail riding for the past 10 years. And then we ended up adding my part of the family into it as well, so (it's) really a big family-run business at this point," Bruehsel said. 

Home for her and her family is now Florida, but she originally grew up in Colorado, giving her a good sense of the great outdoors — and horses. But because of the sheer number of carriage tours in that area, she decided opening rides in Florida would make for a better business prospect, and it has. 

Now in their 10th year, the farm and its horse-drawn carriage rides have become a staple in the area, especially this time of year. They offer Christmas holiday packages, giving visitors the chance to ride the horse, grab some festive holiday photos with the animals in their fully decorated barn and then go on the real excursion — the holiday horse-drawn carriage rides. 

Those rides take visitors through the quaint neighborhoods of St. Pete, where homes are decked out in all the latest decorations and dazzling lights.

They also give Bruehsel and her family the opportunity to bring in a new generation of children to the art of caring for a farm. 

“We found that by adding the carriage tours and different animal aspects, it really brings people together," Bruehsel said, "We really focus on family encounters. Whether that be a tour, or carriage rides or learning about the horses, we feel that — with social media and cellphones — we need to get back to our roots of quality time.”

Cypress Breeze Farm is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. EST. Call ahead to schedule a tour because they fill up fast. Bruehsel and her family also offer other experiences and have plans to expand the farm in the upcoming year.