Gaylord Palms is a beautiful resort with many sights, photo opps, restaurants, and shops to explore, so imagine all that with Christmas on top!
Christmas at Gaylord brings back ICE! for it’s 15th season and this year they are featuring Christmas Around the World. ICE! is a walk-through attraction and just one of the incredible holiday spectaculars going on around the Gaylord Palms Resort.
Bring the whole family (bundle up little ones!) and journey through more than TWO MILLION pounds of hand-carved ice sculptures and two-story-tall ice slides. Also inside ICE you’ll find a scene of Santa’s toy workshop, a live ice-carving showcase and the traditional Nativity scene created with amazingly clear ice. It’s sight to see and with the temperature at 9 degrees, you’ll feel it all over!
TIPS For Visiting ICE at Gaylord Palms
- Wear warm clothing (I.E. pants and layers!) – It’s 9 degrees inside ICE and although it’s only 15-30 minutes, you want to be comfortable enough to enjoy yourself and not rush. It may be a little toasty throughout the rest of the resort so layering a shirt and removable sweatshirt would be ideal. You will be provided a calf-length hooded coat to explore ICE! Toddler sizes are also available.
- Touchscreen gloves, but if you don’t have those I’d go without mittens altogether. Taking them on and off every time for a photo isn’t worth the hassle.
- Close toed shoes – your feet will thank you.
- Bring a stroller for the little ones – There’s a lot to do and see, with tons of other people exploring the village.
- Go early and/or during the week – the lines get crazier the later you go and everything is more enjoyable without huge lines, right? The lines for ICE! have video screens throughout and go rather quickly. The lines for snowball throwing and snow tubing are another story. Alpine Village opens everyday at 10:00 am.
- Plan for lunch or dinner at the resort – Gaylord offers 8 different dining options from a marketplace to a sophisticated steakhouse. We ate at Wrecker’s Sports Bar before enjoying ICE!.
Other Holiday offerings at Gaylord Palms:
- Cirque Dreams Unwrapped show featuring eye opening acts from around the world. You can find this 25 minute show in the resort’s atrium. Free seating available first -come-first-serve. Guaranteed seating tickets available starting at $10.99.
- “Joyful” Atrium Light show can be seen and enjoyed from all over the resort’s atrium. Nightly shows beginning at 6:15 pm.
- Snow tubing located inside the Alpine Village with ICE!
- Santa’s Snow Throw with real snow balls (Alpine Village)
- Character Breakfast with Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang
- Gingerbread house decorating corner
- Santa and Mrs. Claus visits
- Elf on the Shelf scavenger hunts
- Build-A-Bear workshops
The girls really enjoyed the snowball throwing and were beyond themselves to handle real snowballs!
All holiday events at Gaylord Palms Resort are happening November 21st – Jan 7th, so make sure to catch them while you can!
***Disclaimer: Thank you to Mommy Spot Tampa I received free entry to Gaylord’s ICE! at their media preview night, in exchange for this blog post and social media love. As always, all opinions are my own.
