According to places like Disney World, Universal Orlando and SeaWorld, it’s never too early to start celebrating the holidays. From life-sized gingerbread houses and candlelight processionals to parades with Macy’s floats and so many sweet treats, here are all the Christmas events and attractions at the theme parks this year.
Walt Disney World
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party: If there was such a thing as too much Christmas cheer, then Magic Kingdom would have it. The park’s Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is an explosion of holiday lights, decor, food, music and live entertainment.There’s the Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration stage show, the Minnie’s Wonderful Christmastime Fireworks show and the popular Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade featuring life-sized toy soldiers. And throughout the night, guests can indulge in all you can eat and drink cookies and milk.
While you’re there, don’t forget to try all the new sweet and savory menu items like hot cocoa churros and cranberry citrus soft-serve floats.
Event dates: Select nights Nov. 9-Dec. 22
Disney’s Jollywood Nights: Disney World’s newest holiday event is a cozy, Hollywood glam soiree over at Hollywood Studios. Jollywood Nights, like Mickey’s party, is a separate ticket nighttime event with live entertainment, a festive fireworks and projections show and a “Nightmare Before Christmas” sing-along.
The park also has dozens of new culinary creations and crafted cocktails just for the event. The most popular treat so far seems to be the Christmas Gertie cookies, inspired by the beloved mint green dinosaur in the park’s Echo Lake.
Event dates: Select nights Nov. 11-Dec. 20
Epcot’s International Festival of the Holidays: Over at the most educational park, the International Festival of the Holidays and the popular Candlelight Processional return beginning Nov. 24. The event is all about showcasing holiday and winter traditions from around the world, and you’ll be able to hear magical tales and historic lore from storytellers around World Showcase.
As for the Candlelight Processional, the annual retelling of the Christmas story is one of the most popular shows all year. There are nine new celebrity narrators this year to share the religious tale alongside the Voices of Liberty choir, a 50-piece orchestra and heraldic trumpets.
There’s also the Holiday Cookie Stroll, more than 15 outdoor holiday kitchens, festive decor at attractions like Living with the Land and more live entertainment throughout the park.
Event dates: Nov. 24-Dec. 30
Gingerbread displays: Not to be missed outside of the parks are the larger-than-life gingerbread displays at six different Disney hotels.
The Grand Floridian brings back its life-sized gingerbread house for the 24th year, with an 85-pound chocolate Santa and more than 10,000 pieces of gingerbread. The Beach Club has a working Holiday carousel made out of gingerbread, and the BoardWalk Inn recreates some of its best spots out of the sweet treat. New this year is the display at the Yacht Club, which is a gingerbread recreation of the lighthouse along Crescent Lake.
Universal Orlando Resort
Grinchmas: Nothing says Christmas quite like the Grinch, and Islands of Adventure’s Seuss Landing turns into a festive Who-ville with Seuss-ified decor and visits from the Whos. The mean green one himself also makes appearances and stars in the popular “Grinchmas Who-liday Spectacular” show, which is a live retelling of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”Christmas in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter: In both Universal parks, the Wizarding World celebrates the holidays with festive decor and live entertainment in Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley.
In IOA’s Hogsmeade, check out Hogwarts students and giant croacking frogs sing magical holiday tunes. And stick around for the beautiful “Magic of Christmas” nighttime projection show on Hogwarts Castle.
Over in the Studios park, Diagon Alley has just as much holiday lights and decor plus performances by Celestina Warbeck and the Banshees on the shopping district’s stage.
In both Wizarding World lands, be on the lookout for the return of warm butterbeer, which — in our opinion — is the best version of the sweet butterscotch beverage.
Universal’s Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s: If you ever wanted to experience the excitement of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade without booking a (very expensive) flight to New York, the Universal Studio’s Holiday Parade is just as impressive. Some of the towering balloons come straight from the beloved annual parade.
Holidays at Universal event dates: Daily and nightly experiences run Nov. 17-Dec. 31.
SeaWorld Orlando and Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
SeaWorld’s Christmas Celebration: The coaster- and sea life-filled park gets turned into a winter wonderland with millions of lights, holiday decor, live entertainment and pop-up kitchens serving festive and cozy fare.Christmas Celebration features shows like “O Wondrous Night,” the Holiday Reflections fireworks finale, Elmo’s Christmas Wish show and Sesame Street Christmas Parade and Christmas movie at the Seafire Grill. There are also snow flurries at the Waterfront, the Sea of Trees in the lagoon, Winter Wonderland on Ice show and visits with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus himself.
There are more than a dozen spots to grab sweet and savory treats as well as beer, wine and craft cocktails. New this year are Oreo beignets and strawberries and cream beignets, gingerbread martinis and mistletoe margaritas, pumpkin lava cakes and a bar serving holiday moonshine.
Christmas Celebration is included with park admission, but food and drink purchases are separate.
Event dates: Nov. 10 - Jan. 2, 2024
Busch Gardens Christmas Town: Over in Tampa, Busch Gardens’ Christmas Town returns for nearly two months of holiday lights, decor, live shows, a festive train ride through the park’s Serengeti and meet and greets with Santa Claus and Rudolph.
One of the most popular attractions is the Holly Jolly Express, which decks out the Serengeti Express in Christmas lights and garlands for a ride around the park and its 65-acre veldt. Most of the animals are tucked away for the night, but occasionally you’ll see a zebra or ostrich hanging out near the train tracks.
Live entertainment includes the beloved Christmas on Ice in the Moroccan Palace Theater, Elmo’s Christmas Wish, the Three Kings Journey, Storytime with Mrs. Claus and the Holiday in the Sky finale fireworks show.
Clustered in the Christmas Town village next to Iron Gwazi are more than a dozen outdoor kitchens and shopping booths. There’s plenty of hot cocoa and cookies, of course, plus holiday cocktails, reimagined classic Christmas dishes and themed cupcakes in the Xcursions shop. About 10 other food and drink spots are scattered around the park.
Busch Gardens Christmas Town is included with park admission, but food and drink purchases are separate.
Event dates: Nov. 11 - Jan. 7, 2024
Legoland Florida
Holidays at Legoland: The Winter Haven park turns into a brick-ified holiday wonderland with truly impressive Lego Christmas builds, plenty of lights and decor, character experiences and festive food and shopping. There are five holiday villages throughout the park featuring opportunities to build toys and a sleigh for Santa, sing-alongs and scavenger hunts and meet and greets with Lego Santa, Lego Gingerbread Man and Lego toys.
This year’s foodie fare includes Candy Cane Lane Cold Brew Lattes, Granny’s Toffee Apple Fries, Better Than (Santa’s) Cookie Milkshakes, Everything but the Tree Sandwiches and some boozy options for the adults.
Don’t forget to check out the seasonal FUNderland and catch the Lego City Holiday Light Spectacular featuring the giant Lego Christmas Tree. Then in the last days of
December, Legoland hosts Kids New Year’s Eve (Dec. 26-31) with even more attractions, activities and an early fireworks show.
Event dates: Nov. 24-26, Dec. 2-3, 9-10, 16-17, 22-31
Gaylord Palms Resort
Though not a theme park, Gaylord Palms Resort in Kissimmee is known for having theme park-level attractions and entertainment and for being a destination vacation spot during the holidays. It’s also one of the few places that Floridians can experience true winter temperatures. ICE: The most popular event at the resort is ICE, a 20,000-square-foot walk-through exhibit filled with characters, slides and decor carved from 2 million pounds of ice. Since its a literal frozen attraction, ICE is kept at a frigid 9 degrees. Thick socks, gloves, hats and Gaylord Palms-provided blue parkas are highly recommended.
This year’s theme is “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” which first came to the exhibit in 2016. Classic Peanuts characters and scenes come to life through clear and colored ice throughout the attraction, which recreates the beloved animated short film.
Beyond “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” there are also ice slides, interactive ice displays, igloos and a finale room dedicated to a Nativity scene carved from crystal clear ice.
Elsewhere in the sprawling resort are dozens of other Christmas activities and entertainment, including the popular “Cirque: Spirit of Christmas” show, atrium light shows starring the 60-foot Christmas tree, experiences with Santa and Mrs. Claus, ice tubing and snowball throwing in the Snow Factory, scavenger hunts, cookie decorating and an entire Alpine Village for holiday shopping.
There are even more experiences included with resort stays and vacation packages.
Event dates: Nov. 17-Jan. 3, 2024
Subscribe to Orlando Weekly newsletters.
Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
