Family Video Review of Gaylord Palms ICE Construction
Family Video Review of Gaylord Palms ICE! Construction – We were invited out in October 2023 to check out the artisan welcome and beginnings of the construction for the 2023 ICE! exhibit! Check out our Family Video Review below.
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What:
Hundreds of Gaylord Palms STARS (employees) gave a “standing ovation” to welcome approximately 40 master ice carvers who travelled more than 7,000 miles to Central Florida from Harbin, China. Starting with 1,000 tons of ice in giant blocks, the team of ice artisans will use chainsaws, chisels and a variety of hand tools to carve and create this year’s ICE! holiday attraction at the resort. After the standing ovation
welcome, there was a special Dragon Dance performance by Orlando’s Wah Lum Temple. This year, ICE! will retell the classic holiday tale, “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”
Family Video Review:
We can tell this year’s ICE! will be another fantastic family experience. As always, bundle up! You can’t bring enough layers…and the warmer you are, the longer you’ll last inside! Boots, gloves, face masks and scarves, and multiple layers are ESSENTIAL for a longer enjoyment in the cold. Our reviews are just the beginning of construction and we hope to be back with the end results soon!
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More Info About ICE!
Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the Peanuts gang will be the stars of the holiday celebration at Gaylord Palms Resort, as “ICE!” returns for 2023. The heartwarming, animated feature “A Charlie Brown Christmas” will be brought to life Nov. 17, 2023-Jan. 3, 2024, by a team of 40 artisans who carve the characters out of 2 million pounds of ice to create the nearly 20,000-square-foot attraction.
Kept at an arctic 9 degrees Fahrenheit, “ICE!” will include other classic Peanuts characters like Lucy, Sally, Linus, and Peppermint Patty, as well as Charlie Brown’s famous little Christmas tree. Creating the attraction is a team of world-renowned carvers that will travel more than 7,000 miles from Harbin, China, to Kissimmee, Fla. Known as “Ice City,” Harbin is no stranger to elaborate ice carvings – it’s home to the world’s largest annual ice and snow sculpting festival in the world.
At Gaylord Palms, artisans will carve approximately 6,700 blocks of ice – each weighing 300 pounds – into the larger-than-life, whimsical scenes. Carvers use tools of all shapes and sizes, including chainsaws, chisels, tongs, handsaws, hand tools and grinders, to bring “A Charlie Brown Christmas” to life. Colored ice (created by a chemist who mixes special food colorings to ensure the ice maintains its vivid color the entire season), crystal clear ice, and colorful LED lights are all used to create the massive display. It will take the team of artisans approximately five weeks to complete the chilly attraction.
“We’re so pleased to bring this Central Florida holiday tradition back for our guests in 2023,” said Johann Krieger, general manager of Gaylord Palms Resort. “Since debuting here in 2003, ICE! has become a one-of-a-kind attraction for our guests, and one of our most popular events of the year.”
In addition to seeing characters from the Peanuts gang, “ICE!” guests can ride down two-story-tall ice slides and visit Carver’s Showcase to see live sculpting demonstrations. “ICE!” concludes in a separate area dedicated to a Nativity scene, meticulously carved in a dramatic display of crystal-clear ice. And while the frozen fun is kept cold by a state-of-the-art chilling system, guests are provided Gaylord Palms’ signature blue parkas to keep them warm inside the attraction. Snow Much More!
In addition to the “ICE!” attraction, a sleigh-full of events and activities will be featured across the 64-acre resort. Christmas shows and activities are presented in the atrium, while parts of the convention center transform into Alpine Village, a bustling, holiday hamlet with Bavarian-style storefronts, immersive activities and one of Florida’s largest Christmas shops.
More Details:
Here’s a rundown of the sleigh-full of events and activities planned for the celebration:
Live Shows & Entertainment Highlight the Holidays
- Yule Be Amazed: “Cirque: Spirit of Christmas” features high-flying stunts, acrobatic feats, and an original musical score. The show features Noel, a child trying to find holiday cheer. Noel is visited in dreamlike chapters by acrobats, aerial performers and others who help rekindle the Christmas spirit.
- Storytelling Celebration, Set to Song: Guests can experience a retelling of the birth of Jesus Christ through the eyes of six storytellers
in “The Greatest Story,” a musical stage show and celebration of faith and everlasting love. - Dreaming of a Bright Christmas: The skies above Gaylord Palms’ atrium come alive in the “#LIT Light Show.” Suspended light curtains and the 60-foot-tall atrium Christmas tree come to life in this animated, musical show.
- St. Nick Takes ‘Santa’ Stage: Guests can chat with the jolly old elf himself, Santa Claus, to make sure they’ve secured a spot
on his prestigious Nice List. Santa will meet guests inside Alpine Village from Nov. 17 through Dec. 24 – before he heads back to the North Pole for his annual, gift-giving journey. - A Round of Applause for Mrs. Claus: The jolliest hostess of all stars in Mrs. Claus’ Christmas Traditions. Mrs. Claus entertains guests in Alpine Village with a sing-along and storytelling of the Christmas tale, “’Twas the Night Before Christmas.” She also shares Santa’s favorite snack – milk and cookies – with guests.
- Mistletoe Melody Makers: Guests can enjoy the sounds of the season with the Dickens Carolers, who will be strolling and singing Christmas classics at various times and locations throughout the celebration.
- Tons of Fun at Interactive Attractions
- Snow Much Fun: A snowy play space awaits guests in the Snow Factory. After climbing Snow Flow Mountain, guests hop in inner-tubes and speed down atop real ice. (Admission allows unlimited ice tubing rides on the date on the ticket.) Guest can also head over to Snowball Build & Blast. Conveyor belts deliver tubs of real snow for guests to make snowballs and toss them at targets.
- A Holiday Escape: Guests test their wintry wits in the Naughty or Nice Escape Room. Trickster Jack Frost has added new names to Santa’s Naughty List. However, if guests can sneak into Santa’s office and solve a series of puzzles, Jack will remove their names from the Naughty List. Guests need to put on their holiday thinking caps, solve the mystery, and then dash away, dash away, dash away all!
- A Snoopy Scavenger Hunt: Snoopy needs guests’ help to find the most festive décor for his doghouse in the Merry Snoopy Scavenger Hunt. Families are challenged to search high and low in the 4.5-acre garden atrium and follow clues and complete the quest to receive a special seasonal souvenir.
Hands-On Holiday Fun - Dough-licious Decorating:In the Gingerbread Decorating Corner, guests let their Christmas creativity run wild while they adorn gingerbread treats. After they’ve reached confection perfection, they can enjoy a meet-and-greet and photograph with Nutmeg the Gingerbread Man.
- Have Your Elf a Merry Little Christmas: Guests can get crafty in Elf Training Academy. One of Santa’s top toymakers joins the fun as guests create a special keepsake gift to take home.
Overnight Stays Sweeten the Holidays - Rooms with a Yuletide View: There’s never a better time of year for guests to book a room with an upgraded atrium view. With balconies that overlook acres of Christmas décor, guests can immerse themselves in the festive surroundings. Select rooms even provide prime balcony viewing for atrium shows such as “Cirque: Spirit of Christmas,” “#LIT” light show and “The Greatest Story.”
- Ready, Set, Glow!: The night will light up at Gaylord Palms with more than 3 million sparkling, holiday lights. In total, more than 100 decorated Christmas trees will be on display, including the centerpiece, 60-foot-tall tree in the main atrium, and 12 elaborately themed trees along the atrium’s Christmas Tree Trail.
- Early ICE! and Alpine Village Access for Overnight Guests: Gaylord Palms is offering perks and special access to overnight resort guests so they can wait in line less and enjoy more. These perks include:
o “Chill Pass” privileges to the “ICE!” attraction, offering front-of-line access and shorter wait times. “Chill Pass” is free for eligible overnight guests. Attraction tickets are required and sold separately, in advance.
o An invitation to “Extra Cool Hour,” which provides early entry into ICE!, the Snow Factory, and select Alpine Village shows and activities one hour before they open to day guests. “Extra Cool Hour” is free for eligible guests. Attraction tickets are required and sold separately, in advance.
Holiday Dining for Resort Guests: Eat, Drink and Be Cranberry
Overnight guests at Gaylord Palms also have exclusive opportunities to enjoy holiday dining experiences: - Breakfast with Charlie Brown and Friends is a character dining experience, exclusive to overnight guests, with pals from the Peanuts gang including Charlie Brown, Lucy and Snoopy.
- Thanksgiving Dinner, scheduled for Nov. 23, is a plentiful buffet at Villa de Flora, located in the heart of the garden atrium. Traditional Thanksgiving favorites will be featured for overnight resort guests, along with dishes inspired by cuisine from Spain, France, and Italy.
- Resort guests can enjoy Christmas Dinner on Dec. 25 with a dazzling holiday feast at Villa de Flora restaurant featuring chef stations, holiday traditions and modern Mediterranean cuisine.
- Overnight resort guests can ring in the New Year in style on Dec. 31 at Villa de Flora with the New Year’s Eve Buffet, with a bountiful buffet featuring fresh and seasonal food inside the glass- enclosed atrium.
One-Stop Christmas Shop - In Alpine Village, one of the largest holiday shops in the Sunshine State opens each year just for the “Christmas at Gaylord Palms” celebration. Market Square features wall-to-wall holiday gifts, collectibles, toys, plush, home décor, apparel, ornaments, “ICE!”-branded souvenirs, and more.
Cost:
varies
More Information:
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Disclaimer: Events and information listed on this site are subject to last minute cancellations and changes which might not be reflected in this MyCentralFloridaFamily.com post. Please always confirm with this family-friendly business by calling or clicking the links for the most up-to-date information.
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