Seasons Greetings!
I am a huge believer in celebrating the holidays. There are so many magical components that make up the holidays such as: gift-giving, visiting friends and family, listening to Christmas music non-stop, baking cookies (but really just eating everyone else’s baked goods because I can’t cook), and of course, visiting theme parks to enjoy all of the holiday festivities! There are so many things that you can do during the holidays and I wanted to showcase some of my favorites that I like to enjoy at the parks.
First things first, the magic of the Walt Disney World Resort Hotels!
The resort hotels at Walt Disney World have decked their halls and the boughs of holly are absolutely everywhere! (fa la la la la) Yeah, I’m not funny.
Each and every one of the hotels on property are covered in beautiful decorations with a Christmas tree in every lobby and festive garland on every window! My favorites to visit during the season is the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa (pictured above), the Beach Club Resort, Art of Animation Resort, the Polynesian Village Resort, and the Contemporary Resort! Each of the hotels on property are themed differently and the Christmas decorations match those themes!
Some of the hotels have extra things you can see and do, like the Grand Floridian has a life-size gingerbread house in the lobby that is completely made of real gingerbread, frosting and candy! They also offer activities that you can do while staying at the resorts such as decorating gingerbread cookies, making ornaments and of course, you can always head to Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party hosted at Magic Kingdom! Because I live so close, staying at the resorts is not always something I can afford and isn’t really a necessity, but one day I would like to stay at one of these resorts during the holidays and enjoy ALL of the holiday offerings that they have during the Christmas season!
Onto my second favorite place to visit, Christmas Town at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay!
Busch Gardens has always been near and dear to my heart because it has been in my life since I can remember. With super affordable annual passes and the best rollercoasters, entertainment, and animal habitats in the state, my family would spend our weekends exploring the park and enjoying all it had to offer! As I grew up and found myself falling in love with singing, dancing and acting, I dreamed of being a part of the Entertainment team at this park and low and behold, I made my dreams come true! As I have begun my journey of becoming a social media influencer, I have had the opportunity to work with their social media team (another dream come true) for our wonderful holiday event, Christmas Town! Let me tell you a little bit more about the awesome things you can enjoy when you visit.
Christmas Town is on its sixth year as an event at Busch Gardens and has grown into a park-wide seasonal fest! With MILLIONS of lights and so many things to do it has become something I love to visit, as well as perform in! My favorite things to do at Christmas Town is try all of the amazing food in the Christmas Town Village. This year they added a mini-doughnut cabin where you can pick your own frosting and toppings and it is so delicious! Another favorite is visiting Santa’s House where you can meet Mrs. Claus, receive your very own elf-scort straight to see Santa, take photos, tell Santa all about your Christmas list and make sure you’ve secured your spot on the Nice list this year! At the end you get a sprinkle-covered sugar cookie which ends the visit perfectly and is a perfect holiday moment to share with your family and friends!
Busch Gardens is one of the leading-most environmental conservation contributors in the world. Recycling, saving energy, preserving nature and the animal species is of huge importance and one of the things that they do to help save energy during the holidays is all of the Christmas lights throughout the park are LED lights! There is the Carol of the Bells dancing light show that performs every 15 minutes on the Serengeti Overlook Restaurant and although it covers the entirety of the building, this show uses less energy in one performance than using a hair dryer for an hour! THAT IS AMAZING! Even more reasons to love and admire this beautiful park!
Now we’re off to Universal Studios Orlando with the magic of Christmas at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter! This was the first year that Diagon Alley was decorated for the holidays and it was one of my most favorite things I was able to enjoy this Christmas season. I have always been a huge fan of the Harry Potter book and movie series and when it was introduced into Universal Studios, I was absolutely ecstatic. Universal Studios has the ability to transport you to a completely different world, making you feel as if you aren’t even in a theme park with its immersive experiences and perfect little details. It is something I have always admired about this park and I can’t wait to see what more is in store in the years to come!
Another addition this year to the holidays at Universal was the Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts projection show on the Hogwarts Castle (pictured above)! This show performs from dusk until closing time, every 30 minutes in Hogsmeade which is located at Islands of Adventure. This new show is a little shorter than expected, but the projection mapping technology was spot-on and really painted a beautiful image of Christmas time at Hogwarts. My favorite spot to watch was by the stage where they have performances during the day, right in front of the castle! I don’t recommend going up any further because I personally don’t think the viewing area is as clear in that area.
I truly love the magic of Christmas and theme parks just make it even more special for me! Thank you for following along and I can’t wait for this new year to see all of the fun it will bring. I have linked all of my outfit details below and if you have any questions feel free to leave a comment!
Have an absolutely wonderful holiday and a happy new year!
Stay dreamy,
Allyson
magicandwishes.blog 