The Siberian American: ICE! at the Gaylord Texan: Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town

Monday, November 21, 2016

ICE! at the Gaylord Texan: Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town

Usually, I’m a strict no Christmas before Thanksgiving person, but there is one thing I love more than rules: bargains. When I heard that ICE! at the Gaylord was 50 percent off if you go before Thanksgiving, I knew we had to make an exception.


This year, the theme was “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town,” based on a classic TV special from the 1970s that none of us had actually seen. Still, the story and the characters carved out of the ice were adorable. I actually liked it better than ICE! exhibits from previous years. Usually, it’s characters from an animated movie (Shrek, Ice Age, etc.) dressed up in Christmas outfits, so it was nice to see a Christmas story this time.


One of my favorite parts of ICE! is the video at the beginning that explains how the exhibit is made. They use over two million blocks of ice, and amazing artisans come from Harbin, China to carve the designs. I am always amazed by how detailed each sculpture is.


It’s nine degrees inside the exhibit, so everyone is required to wear blue parkas to enter the exhibit. Gloves and hats are recommended, but they’re not required. I decided to skip the gloves for the sake of taking photos, but my hands were definitely frozen by the end.


ICE! is showcased at the four Gaylord hotels (Washington, D.C., Nashville, Tennessee, Grapevine, Texas, and Kissimmee, Florida), though the theme is different at each hotel. All exhibits are open now and run through January 1, 2017. If you are interesting in going, I suggest searching for a Groupon before you go.


Have you ever been to ICE! or any other ice sculpture exhibit?

19 comments:

  1. This is so cool - I've never heard of this! Love the Gaylord hotels though!

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  2. I love the Gaylord ICE events! That's awesome that there is a pre-Thanksgiving discount! I'll have to remember that for next year...

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  3. Such a fun display, and loving the theme! The theme at the Gaylord Palms here in Orlando this year is Snoopy/The Peanuts. Hoping I can find a great deal too <3
    Green Fashionista

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  4. WHOA WHOA WHOA. You've never seen Santa Claus is Coming to Town????? I grew up on those claymation movies! That one and The Year Without a Santa Claus and so many others!! (It kills me that Freeform/ABC Family doesn't really play them anymore.) I thought this was AWESOME when I saw your SnapChat photos! (I think that's where I saw them.) My dad and I would absolutely love this!

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  5. That's so neat! I love Santa Claus is Comin' to Town and they did a fantastic job! I wish I'd know there was a Gaylord hotel in DC, I'd have totally gone to see this when we lived in the area!

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  6. I've always wanted to see this!! It looks so pretty!!

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  7. Oh this looks like so much fun!! I would love to go to something like this! So Fun!

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  8. Haha I definitely never watched those claymation Christmas movies, and they actually might be the only Christmas movies that I actually turn off when they're on. They make for some beautiful ice sculptures though! I'm like you that it's usually no Christmas until after Thanksgiving, but I wouldn't have been able to pass up that deal either!

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  9. this looks amazing! i've never been to anything like this but would love to.

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  10. This is so fun! I love the idea of it, and it seems really unique. I've never seen ice sculpting exhibits anywhere! What a fun idea, and I totally would have taken advantage of the deal as well! hehe XO - Alexandra

    Simply Alexandra: My Favorite Things

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  11. It all looks SO amazing! We were planning to go (to the one in Nashville), but we had some family things come up and can't make it there for a weekend. We went last year and it was awesome! :)

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  12. What a fun thing to do! I think it's great that it's actually cold in there so you feel like it is Christmas! xo, biana -BlovedBoston

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  13. I cannot believe that's all ice! The artists behind the exhibit are seriously talented--I've never seen anything like that. I usually don't do Christmas before Thanksgiving either, but I think I would make an exception for a 50% discount! :D

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  14. That is so cool! I watch Santa Claus is Coming to Town every single year around the holidays and am amazed at how accurate the sculptures are!!

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    1. They are seriously so stunning in person! Everything is really detailed.

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  15. I've never been to ICE at the Gaylord here but I really need to! Your pictures are so stunning and it looks like so much fun! <3, Pamela Sequins & Sea Breezes

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  16. That is beyond amazing that all of those sculptures are made of ice!

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  17. oh wow, that is absolutely amazing! i've never seen anything like this before.

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