It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in Florida, and the state's many theme parks and attractions have ramped up the lights, decorations and food to get locals and visitors into the holiday spirit.
Christmas Town at Busch Gardens
Get in the Christmas spirit at the Tampa theme park with millions of lights, a decorated sing-along train, an ice skating show and visits with Santa. Rudolph is also at Christmas Town along with his friends Clarice and Bumble. The Christmas Town Village is filled with holiday decorations and food and drink stations, including hot chocolate and cookies, festive cocktails and a station just for waffles. The area also has booths to shop for Christmas gifts from local vendors. New this year is the Merry Mint Lane near the Animal Care Center. Guests can get up close to penguins and some of the other animal ambassadors, find photo opportunities and new treats.
Christmas Town is included with park admission and runs nightly through Jan. 6.
More information here.
PHOTOS: Busch Gardens decked out in holiday lights for Christmas Town
Legoland Florida
The holiday festivities at Legoland Florida are presented by Hallmark and include more than two weeks of events at the Winter Haven theme park. There are two shows -- Holly Jolly Jubilee and Lego Christmas Tree Spectacular. The first is a part inside Santa’s workshop with his elves and the other features the 30-foot tree decked out in lights and snow set to music. The event also has meet and greets with Lego Santa and Toy Soldiers and chances to help build holiday Lego items like a giant wreath, life-sized snowmen and a full sleigh with reindeer. And, of course, there are festive treats: oatmeal creme pies, peppermint brick bark, snowballs on a stick and frozen hot chocolate.
Holidays at Legoland is included with park admission and runs Dec. 7-8, 14-15 and 20-31.
More information here.
Christmas in the Wild at ZooTampa
The holiday event at ZooTampa returns weekends through Dec. 23. The zoo is decked out with thousands of Christmas lights and ornaments along with a holiday market, festive trees and special animal interactions. The event runs 4-9 p.m. weekend nights.
1101 W Sligh Ave., Tampa
More information here.
Christmas at The Florida Aquarium
The Florida Aquarium in Tampa has several events this December to celebrate the holiday season. Every Saturday leading up to Christmas is Saturdays with Santa, where families can get photos with the man himself and watch his elves dive in the coral reef habitat. Dec. 7’s Saturdays with Santa also has penguins and pancakes -- a buffet breakfast and quality time with the aquarium’s resident penguins. The aquarium also has a lighted boat outing for the holiday boat parade and snow days after Christmas. The snow play area is open Dec. 26-30 and is included with admission.
More information here.
Winter’s Wonderland at Clearwater Marine Aquarium
Florida’s most famous dolphin hosts a holiday celebration through Jan. 6. The entire aquarium in Clearwater is decked out in holiday lights and decorations and there’s a kids fun zone where you can learn more about penguins and polar bears. The special lighted boat cruise gives you the best view of the decorations around Clearwater Bay. It runs select nights for $25.98 per person. Winter’s Wonderland is included with aquarium admission.
More information here.
Christmas at Gaylord Palms
The annual holiday event returns to the Kissimmee hotel with festive shows, a pop-up market, snow tubing and the frigid ICE! Exhibit featuring “The Polar Express.” During ICE!, you’ll experience 9-degree temperatures after putting on a thick, heavy parka. Inside, everything is made out of colorful ice. Wearing warm clothing and gloves is highly recommended. The 2004 movie comes to life with three huge trains made out of ice, a set of ice slides, a green tree full of ornaments and a towering Santa Claus. There’s even a couple “Tom Hanks as the Conductor” statues asking for your ticket.
Find tickets and more information on other shows and Christmas experiences at Gaylord Palms here.
ICE at Gaylord Palms: 'The Polar Express'
Holidays at Universal Orlando
Christmas at Universal is a two-park, multi-week event that spans numerous franchises of popular characters. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the Grinch and the Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s are the stars this year. Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade in both parks are decked out for the holidays and serve up the best winter drink in any theme park: hot butterbeer. Stick around each night for the awe-inspiring Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle projection show.
Islands of Adventure is all about the Grinch, with the Who-liday Spectacular show, meet and greets with the mean green one and a special character breakfast. Then, at Universal Studios, the Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s rolls down the streets of New York with some of the same massive balloons you see in the iconic Thanksgiving day parade. And, Manheim Steamroller performs on the main stage on select nights through Dec. 15.
Most holiday events Universal are included with regular park admission.
More information here.
PHOTOS: Universal Orlando celebrates the holidays with Grinchmas, Hogwarts light show
Christmas at Walt Disney World
There are holiday happenings at every Disney park in Florida, including shopping complex Disney Springs.
Magic Kingdom is possibly the most festive, with almost every inch decked out in lights and decorations. There’s also Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, a separate ticket event with holiday dance parties, popular rides decorated for the holidays, free cookies and holiday drinks, Minnie’s fireworks show, the Once Upon a Christmastime parade and Cinderella’s Castle turned into an icy blue masterpiece a la Elsa from “Frozen.”
Epcot brings back it’s annual Festival of the Holidays with outdoor pop-up kitchens in the different countries around World Showcase and celebrity narrators telling the story of Christmas during the nightly Candlelight Processional. The festival and Candlelight Processional is included with park admission, but upgrades and food are sold separately.
Hollywood Studios has two nightly shows along with Toy Story Land decked out with oversized cranberry and popcorn garland, a 10-foot-tall Hamm sugar cookie and green alien ornaments at the Alien Swirling Saucers ride. Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM returns to the Chinese Theater with fireworks, music and scenes from “Mickey’s Christmas Carol” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas” projected on the surrounding buildings. The Tower of Terror ride turns into the Hollywood Toy Hotel with help from laser lights, projection mapping, lights and decor along Sunset Boulevard.
Animal Kingdom finally gets a Christmas makeover this year with a new Tree of Life show and adorable life-sized arctic animal puppets to pet. There are even holiday decorations in Pandora - The World of Avatar.
Then, if you want to meet Santa, head over to Disney Springs. He’s meeting and listening to holiday wishes in the Christmas Tree Trail, which features almost two dozen trees decorated with iconic Disney movie themes.
More information here.
PHOTOS: Holidays at Walt Disney World
SeaWorld
The Orlando park’s Christmas Celebration features more than 3 million lights, six shows, meet and greets with Santa and a menu of holiday treats. There are 21 stations around the park serving up indulgences like giant cookies and milk, tater tot nachos, s’mores, frozen cocktails and even a chicken wing glazed doughnut. Like its sister park, there is an entire kitchen dedicated to waffles. SeaWorld also has a similar Christmas Town featuring Rudolphi and friends along with a Christmas market for shopping.
The event is included with park admission, but food, drinks and gifts are separate.
It runs nightly through Dec. 31.
More information here.
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