Ho-ho-holiday fun: Tips for visiting 'Ice!' at Gaylord Hotels

One of my family’s favorite holiday traditions is visiting a Gaylord Hotel for its annual "Ice!" event. Each location has magnificent glass atriums, lush landscaping that magically brings the outdoors in, and endless activities and restaurants. Gaylord Hotels are beautiful anytime of year, but even more so during the holidays.

There are five Gaylord resorts across the country in Kissimmee, Florida; Nashville; Aurora, Colorado; Grapevine, Texas; and National Harbor, Maryland. Together, they collectively light up the holiday season with more than 7 million Christmas lights (that’s 295 miles of lights if you stretch them out end-to-end), 110,000 feet of garland, 600 Christmas trees, and 30,000 poinsettias.

Related: Top holiday destinations for festive family fun

That’s a whole lot of Christmas, but that’s not even the main attraction.

This year, "Ice!" is coming to six properties across the U.S. — all five Gaylord Resorts, plus, for the first time, the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa. Each hotel displays life-size, walk-through winter wonderlands built from 6,000 300-pound blocks of ice (that’s 2 million pounds of ice per property) — hence the name of Gaylord’s flagship holiday event.

Related: Naughty or ice? What it’s like staying at the Gaylord National during the holidays

If you plan to add Gaylord Hotels’ "Ice!" to your lineup of holiday traditions, here’s how to find discounts for 2024 and everything you need to know before you ho, ho, go.

Each property’s 'Ice!' event has a unique theme

Each property invites guests to experience immersive (and cold) walk-through displays centered around various popular Christmas movies and stories. While each display is different, they all have one thing in common: They are made from thousands of blocks of ice colored and carved into delightful holiday masterpieces by world-renowned experts.

Expert ice carvers from Harbin, China (home to the largest ice and snow festival in the world), travel to the U.S. to transform 12 million pounds of ice into whimsical and surprisingly realistic holiday displays that are sometimes upward of 30 feet tall. The highlight of the event for kids — and kids at heart, like myself — is sailing down a frosty slide made of ice. There’s also a shorter slide designed for kids too small or frightened for the full-size slides.

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This year’s "Ice!" themes are:

• Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center: “The Polar Express,” Nov. 22, 2024, through Jan. 1, 2025
• Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center: “Frosty the Snowman,” Nov. 8, 2024, through Jan. 4, 2025
• Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center: “Elf,” Nov. 15, 2024, through Jan. 4, 2025
• Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center: “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” Nov. 15, 2024, through Jan. 5, 2025
• Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center: “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” Nov. 15, 2024, through Dec. 28, 2024
• JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa: “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” Nov. 23, 2024, through Jan. 5, 2025

Book early and look for discounts

Some "Ice!" activities, like character breakfasts and visits to the carved ice displays, have timed-entry reservations. The earlier you purchase your tickets, the better chance you’ll have of getting the exact date and time you are hoping for. This is especially important if you plan to visit on or around a holiday or on weekends when the event is even busier than normal.

Booking early also opens up more opportunities for discounts on "Ice!" and the other activities at Gaylord properties. As soon as "Ice!" tickets go on sale in the summer, Gaylord regularly offers discounts in the months leading up to the event (especially around Black Friday).

Here's a look at the current deals, but be sure to follow Gaylord Hotels on social media to stay current on available discounts:

Gaylord Rockies — Aurora, Colorado

• Save up to 20% with the Festive Favorites Pack. You can get access to "Ice!" featuring “The Polar Express,” the Mistletoe Scavenger Hunt and the Elf Training Academy.
• Save up to 30% with the Holiday Deluxe Pack. Includes everything in the Festive Favorites Pack, plus access to the Gingerbread Decorating Corner and Mrs. Claus’ Christmas Traditions.
• Save up to 50% with the Snow Day Fun Pack or the Mistletoe Nights Pack. Both include access to "Ice!" and the Mistletoe Mile Scavenger Hunt. The daytime pack also includes the Elf Training Academy and Gingerbread Decorating Corner, while the nighttime pack includes Tier 2 seating for "Cirque: Frost."
• Save up to 50% with the Ultimate Holi-Day Pass. Includes everything in the Holiday Deluxe Pack, plus Tier 2 seating at "Cirque: Frost."

See all Gaylord Rockies offers

Gaylord Opryland — Nashville

• Save up to 20% with the Festive Favorites Pack. You can get access to "Ice!" featuring “Frosty the Snowman,” the Snowman Scramble Scavenger Hunt and ice tubing.
• Save up to 30% with the Holiday Deluxe Pack. Includes everything in the Festive Favorites Pack, plus ice skating, the Gingerbread Decorating Corner and hot cocoa.
• Save up to 40% with the Snow Day Fun Pack. On select weekdays, get access to "Ice!," the Snowman Scramble Scavenger Hunt and ice tubing.
• Save up to 40% with the Mistletoe Nights Pack. Includes access to "Ice!," hot cocoa and reservations for "A Country Christmas Dinner Show."
• Save up to 50% with the Ultimate Holi-Day Pass. Includes everything in the Holiday Deluxe Pack, plus the Snowball Build & Blast.

See all Gaylord Opryland offers

Gaylord Palms — Kissimmee, Florida

• Save up to 20% with the Festive Favorites Pack. You can get access to "Ice!" featuring “Elf,” the TwElf Days of Christmas Scavenger Hunt and Snow Flow Mountain ice tubing.
• Save up to 30% with the Holiday Deluxe Pack. Includes everything in the Festive Favorites Pack, plus the Snowball Build & Blast and the Gingerbread Decorating Corner.
• Save up to 30% with the Mistletoe Nights Pack. On select evenings, get access to "Ice!" featuring “Elf,” the TwElf Days of Christmas Scavenger Hunt and "Cirque: Spirit of Christmas."
• Save up to 50% with the Snow Day Fun Pack. On select weekdays, get access to "Ice!" featuring “Elf,” ice tubing, the Snowball Build & Blast, the TwElf Days of Christmas Scavenger Hunt and "Cirque: Spirit of Christmas."
• Save up to 50% with the Ultimate Holi-Day Pass. Includes everything in the Holiday Deluxe Pack, plus Elf Training Academy, Mrs. Claus’ Christmas Traditions and "Cirque: Spirit of Christmas."

See all Gaylord Palms offers

Gaylord Texan — Grapevine, Texas

• Save up to 20% with the Festive Favorites Pack. You can get access to "Ice!" featuring “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” the Reindeer Games Scavenger Hunt featuring Rudolph and the Misfit Toys, and Snow Flow Mountain tubing.
• Save up to 30% with the Holiday Deluxe Pack. It includes everything in the Festive Favorites Pack, plus the Gingerbread Decorating Corner and Snowball Build & Blast.
• Save up to 50% with the Ultimate Holi-Day Pass. It includes everything in the Holiday Deluxe Pack, plus ice skating and the Christmas Carousel.

See all Gaylord Texan offers

Gaylord National — National Harbor, Maryland

• Save up to 20% with the Festive Favorites Pack. You can get access to "Ice!" featuring “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” the Merry Snoopy Christmas Scavenger Hunt and Snow Flow Mountain tubing.
• Save up to 30% with the Holiday Deluxe Pack. Includes everything in the Festive Favorites Pack, plus access to the Gingerbread Decorating Corner and Mrs. Claus’ Christmas Traditions.
• Save up to 40% with the Mistletoe Nights Pack. On select evenings, get access to "Ice!" featuring “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” the Merry Snoopy Christmas Scavenger Hunt, ice tubing, Gingerbread Decorating Corner and "Cirque: Spirit of Christmas."
• Save up to 40% with the Snow Day Fun Pack. On select weekdays, get access to "Ice!" featuring “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” the Merry Snoopy Christmas Scavenger Hunt, ice tubing and "Cirque: Spirit of Christmas."
• Save up to 50% with the Ultimate Holi-Day Pass. Includes everything in the Holiday Deluxe Pack, plus the Snowball Build & Blast and fountain-level seating at "Cirque: Spirit of Christmas."

See all Gaylord National offers

JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country — San Antonio

• Save up to 15% with the Grinch Super Fan Pack. You can get access to "Ice!" featuring “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” The Grinch’s Wonderful Awful Idea Scavenger Hunt, and Feast with the Grinch Character Breakfast.
• Save up to 20% with the Festive Favorites Pack. You can get access to "Ice!" featuring “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” ice tubing and The Grinch’s Wonderful Awful Idea Scavenger Hunt.
• Save up to 30% with the Holiday Deluxe Pack. Includes everything in the Festive Favorites Pack, plus the Snowball Build & Blast and Mrs. Claus’ Christmas Traditions.
• Save up to 50% with the Mistletoe Nights Pack. On select evenings, get access to "Ice!" featuring “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” ice tubing, the Gingerbread Decorating Corner and The Grinch’s Wonderful Awful Idea Scavenger Hunt.
• Save up to 35% with the Snow Day Fun Pack. On select weekdays, get access to "Ice!" featuring “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” ice tubing and The Grinch’s Wonderful Awful Idea Scavenger Hunt.
• Save up to 50% with the Ultimate Holi-Day Pass. Includes everything in the Holiday Deluxe Pack, plus access to the Gingerbread Decorating Corner.

See all JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country offers

There are a lot of festive activities

The splendor of "Ice!" may be what gets you through Gaylord’s door, but the walk-through displays are far from the only thing you can do when you visit a Gaylord Resort during the holiday season. There are enough activities to keep your family entertained for a full day or an entire weekend.

The offerings vary slightly from property to property, but you’ll find experiences like snow tubing, holiday-themed scavenger hunts, gingerbread decorating, ice skating, ice bumper cars, family-friendly escape rooms, horse-drawn sleigh rides, photos with Santa, holiday character breakfasts and more.

After several years of visiting, our favorite activities are the "Ice!" walk-through, ice skating (they have pushchairs that you can use to balance and help young kids), the Snowball Build & Blast, snow tubing and ice bumper cars.

Most activities require an advance ticket purchase, but there are a handful of things you can do for free during your visit (whether or not you are a hotel guest). During our visits, we spend as much time marveling at the dazzling decor and Christmas trees in the glass atriums as we do building snowballs and sliding down the ice slide.

Dress appropriately

Spoiler alert: "Ice!" is cold. Very cold. It's 9 degrees Fahrenheit, to be exact. The kind folks at Gaylord will provide you with one of the lovely blue parkas pictured above, but you’ll also want to make sure you are wearing closed-toe shoes, pants and gloves so you can comfortably enjoy the experience.

The jackets have hoods, but you may also want to bring a hat to retain some much-needed body heat. If you have them, bring touchscreen-friendly gloves because there are photo opportunities around every corner, and frozen fingers don’t take the best pictures.

If you are also planning on tubing or ice skating during your visit, you’ll be happy you packed your cold-weather gear, even if the temperatures outside are warmer than they are inside. If you happen to forget a hat and gloves, you can purchase them at the resort.

Build in some downtime

After several holiday visits to "Ice!," we’ve learned a few things that influence how we plan our itinerary.

There is so much to do that we packed almost every available second of our first visit. When our youngest son was too exhausted to swim at the indoor water park and fell asleep in his stroller, I knew we should probably cut back a bit or add a second night to our stay.

Related: The best hotels to book in Nashville for the full Music City experience

The sheer size of most Gaylord resorts means lots of travel time between your room and whatever fun activity you are headed to. It can start to feel like you never stop to rest unless you intentionally build in some downtime.

This year, we spent two nights at the Gaylord Palms near Disney World and scheduled only two to three daily activities. We left time in between to return to our hotel room to get a snack or, after visiting the "Ice!" walk-through, to snuggle in our beds to warm up.

Even if you are only planning a daytime visit, I would recommend choosing a few activities instead of trying to do it all. Part of the fun of being at a Gaylord resort is exploring the shops, eateries and gardens that span the gorgeous glass atriums. You'll want to leave plenty of time for spontaneous wandering while you are there.

If you are staying on-site, I recommend taking an hour or so after you check in to do a lap around the resort and get the lay of the land. It’ll help ease the stress of trying to make it to any scheduled activities at the correct time.

Hotel guests receive extra perks

Other than the obvious perk of earning and redeeming Marriott Bonvoy points and enjoying free night certificates, overnight guests also receive "Ice!"-specific perks. All overnight guests can utilize the “Chill Pass” for front-of-line access and shorter wait times when visiting "Ice!" This complimentary perk is included with your stay, so other than purchasing a ticket for "Ice!," you don’t need to do anything additional to use it.

Overnight guests can also take advantage of the “Extra Cool Hour,” a benefit that allows hotel guests to enter "Ice!" one hour before it opens to day guests. Fewer people means shorter lines and more trips down the ice slide.

The easiest way to gain access to the event during Extra Cool Hour is to make your room reservation before you purchase your "Ice!" tickets or to book a room-and-ticket package.

If you book your room first, you should receive a code in your prearrival confirmation email that you can enter during the "Ice!" ticket purchase process. This code will allow you to choose a time during the first hour of the day. Alternatively, you can purchase a room-and-ticket package, and you will receive email instructions on reserving a day and time to visit the attraction.

Because entry to "Ice!" is timed, it didn’t feel overly crowded when we visited during normal operating hours. However, as we near the holidays or if you visit during the weekend, the Chill Pass and Extra Cool Hour may come in handy.

Book an atrium-view room

The unique glass atrium design is what makes staying in a Gaylord resort so special.

My family loves to wake up in the morning and throw open the balcony doors to hear the rushing waterfalls and see the decor. We usually eat breakfast out there, as well. When the sun sets in the evening and the atrium darkens, the twinkling lights and glittering ornaments take on an entirely different — and magical — appearance.

Staying in an atrium-view room can cost anywhere from around $70 to $100 more per night than staying in a standard exterior-view room, but I've gotten it for no additional cost — and you can, too.

As a Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite member, I am eligible for a complimentary room upgrade when I stay at a Marriott Bonvoy property, based on availability.

You can earn Gold Elite status with 25 eligible stays per year, but you can earn it much faster with a credit card that automatically grants you Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status (you will have to enroll online or by calling your card’s customer service and giving them your Marriott Bonvoy number), such as one of the following:

• The Platinum Card® from American Express
• The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
• The Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Credit Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card (see rates and fees) (when you spend $35,000 on purchases each account year)

I decided to roll the dice and booked an exterior-view room with the hopes of being upgraded to an atrium-view room. The upgrade typically can’t be guaranteed until check-in, but I figured it couldn’t hurt to call prior to our arrival and have them make a note on the reservation. I spoke with a friendly customer service agent who made a note on my account. I expected to have to wait until I checked in for the upgrade to be confirmed, but the next time I opened the Marriott app, my room type showed as an atrium-view room.

I’m not a huge gambler, but this one paid off, and I saved some cash.

The information for the Ritz-Carlton Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Bottom line

With five resorts across the country, there’s a good chance you aren’t too far from a Gaylord resort.

During the holiday season, each one offers festive activities, decor, treats and drinks (scientifically, a hot toddy can help you warm up after you’ve been in the cold) to help your family make lasting memories and traditions that will keep you coming back to Gaylord year after year.

Related reading:

• Marriott Bonvoy: Complete guide to the hotel loyalty program
• The best Marriott credit cards
• Marriott elite status: What it is and how to earn it
• The best credit cards to reach elite status
• The best hotel rewards programs in the world
• Best hotel credit cards