FLORIDA OFFERS MANY HOLIDAY EVENTS
AND THINGS TO DO AT CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEARS
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In Kissimmee, from November 18 to January 2, Gaylord Palms' Best of Florida Christmas celebration includes three new events: ICE! Skating, an outdoor rink, The County Wreath Collection, an exhibit of wreaths representing Florida's diverse destinations, and a holiday gnome hunt through the resort's three atriums.
A highlight of The Best of Florida Christmas event is the annual ICE! at Gaylord Palms Resort. Besides nearly 2 million pounds of carved ice, kept at 9° F (-12° C), visitors will see a walk-through holiday train depot, a Victorian holiday home, a life-size horse-drawn carriage, Santa's workshop, three ice slides with a Christmas Castle and a Nativity scene.
Celebration's Now Snowing Nightly is one of Kissimmee's newest holiday traditions, beginning the day after Thanksgiving and lasting until December 31. Visitors caught by the evening snowfalls, at Celebration's Market Street, won't need coats. Christmas carolers and carriage rides provide entertainment. Children can have photos taken with Santa Claus or ride a holiday train.
New at Kissimmee's Old Town Shopping, Dining and Entertainment, is the snowfall on the streets during December's Friday and Saturday night cruises. Children can have free photos with Santa at The Old Town Portrait Gallery, with a donated unwrapped toy or cash donation to Devereux Florida, an organization that works with physically and psychologically abused children.
Old Town's Holiday Car Cruises take place December 22 and 23. Kris Kringle will be riding a car. Cruisers are encouraged to decorate their cars. There's a giant Christmas tree in front of Old Town and rooftop displays. Old Town rings in New Year's Eve with classic 50s and 60s Rock 'n' Roll and a fireworks show at midnight.
The dancing white Lipizzaner Stallions will perform three shows at Osceola Heritage Park on December 27 and 28.
Walt Disney World celebrates the holidays with the march of toy soldiers in Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Parade and the nighttime spectacular, Holiday Wishes, at the Magic Kingdom. Epcot celebrates Holidays Around the World, with Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa customs, and carol-singing in Epcot's Candlelight Processional. DJs, evening dance parties and Illuminations: Reflections of Earth celebrate New Years' with lights, lasers and fireworks in World Showcase.
At Disney MGM Studios, The Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights boasts a million sparkling lights. Three-dimensional and motion-based displays decorate the Disney-MGM Studios backlot. New Year's Eve features Fantasmic!, Disney movies and music, a Lights! Camera! Happy New Year! fireworks display and a DJ dance party around the Sorcerer Hat Stage.
Pleasure Island, at Downtown Disney, features music, street dance parties and a countdown to midnight during a New Year's Eve celebration. Garlands, ribbons and bows decorate Walt Disney World's four parks during the holidays and snow falls on Main Street. Holiday events begin on November 13, with some running until January 7.
Between December 8 and January 1, Universal Studios Florida features soaring balloons, colorful floats and visiting marching bands from Macy's Holiday Parade, beginning at sundown nightly. At the decorated Seuss Landing at Islands of Adventure, visitors meet the Grinch and the Whos.
Nightly, from November 24 to December 30, Christmas at SeaWorld Orlando offers holiday music, snow flurries, carolers on the Waterfront, and a Makahiki Christmas Luau. A Holiday Fountain Show features Christmas music and dancing water.
Until January 1, Arabian Nights Dinner Attraction tells the tale of Santa with 60 horses, 24 riders, fireworks, snow, special costumes and sets. From November 25 to January 6, Pirate's Dinner Adventure performs a new holiday version of its buccaneer story. Outside the theatre, there are photos with Santa and a Nativity with live animals.
Until January 7, Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede Dinner and Show features Christmas music and costumes, ice-skating, a carousel, horses, snowfall and Santa Claus.
The Tallahassee Museum hosts Market Days, one of the largest and finest arts and crafts shows in the Southeast for Christmas shopping on December 2 and 3.
Until January 31, the 13th annual Nights of Lights features two million tiny white lights decorating palm trees and buildings in St. Augustine's historic district. Storytellers dressed in period clothing lead night tours of ancient buildings and inns. Special events include concerts and a Christmas parade. Also in St. Augustine, from December 1 to 10, the annual St. Johns County Festival of Trees takes place at World Golf Village.
Until January 14, Maitland Historical Society hosts Holidays at the Waterhouse, an historic home on Lake Lily. The Waterhouse Family celebrates Christmas Eve with Victorian tree decorations, gifts and a holiday meal on the table.
The Celebrate Orlando holiday festival at Festival Bay Mall, on International Drive, offers holiday activities and entertainment on weekends before Christmas.
Until January 1, historic Bok Sanctuary in Lake Wales, near Lakeland, holds its 12th Annual Holiday Home Tour of a 1930s Mediterranean Revival Mansion at Pinewood.
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay celebrates Christmas and New Years with holiday decorations, entertainment and fireworks. The Christmas Celebration at Desert Grill is a musical cabaret with snowmen, carolers, toy soldiers, singers and dancers.
Historic Spanish Point in Osprey, near Sarasota, celebrates Heritage Holidays with holiday decorations and guided tours of the 30-acre museum until December 10. Three weekends of living history dramas bring the past to life at Sarasota County's archaeological and historic site.
In Fort Myers, the Edison & Ford Winter Estates' annual Holiday House celebrates the holidays with Treasures of the Sea, from December 1 to 31. An adaptation of Victor Herbert’s 1903 operetta Babes in Toyland is performed at the children's theatre at Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre, also in Fort Myers, from December 1 to 22. The Imaginarium Hands-On Museum holds the Holidayland Family Fun Event with Santa and Crafts on December 9. Children enjoy photos with Santa, printing holiday t-shirts, decorating Christmas cookies and face painting.
The Naples Zoo, at Caribbean Gardens, holds 12 Days of Holiday Fun from December 13 to 24. Zoo employees deliver gifts to the animals. Visitors watch lions claw into beautifully wrapped presents, hyenas lick candy canes made from blood and ice and lemurs nibble treats off a Christmas tree.
Florida's many waterways offer boat parades, including Seminole Hard Rock's Winterfest Boat Parade, the world's most watched boat parade.
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