Disclaimer: My family were invited to attend a media event for Christmas at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center.  We received tickets to experience the wonder of Christmas at the Gaylord Palms in exchange for my honest review.  The opinions shared are my own.

Floridians do not handle cold well.  We complain when the thermometer drops below 70 degrees.  But someone how, 9 degrees seemed tolerable for my Florida family when we explored Christmas at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center.

You read that right. ICE! maintains a balmy NINE DEGREES.  Parkas are provided but I read numerous reviews online that recommended wearing warm clothing, a winter coat,scarf, hat and gloves.  Bundled up in all our winter gear, many of the Galylord Christmas elves commented on how prepared my family and I were for the event.  We were ready to experience this winter wonderland and frigid temperatures would not chase us away!

Prior to entering ICE!, we enjoyed the Luminescence, a Christmas stage show with over 2 million twinkling lights and an amazing 54-foot-tall Christmas tree in the center of it all.  Acrobats performed miraculous stunts while stage performers hit high notes singing some favorite Christmas tunes.  Each graceful spell-binding spin mesmerized the crowd below until a suspended drummer upstaged the acrobat performers.

After Luminescence, we visited the convention center where we discovered a reception offering mountains of cupcakes and flowing fountains of hot chocolate provided by Gigi’s Cupcakes and Dunkin’ Donuts.  My kids ate their fill and enjoyed creating their own hot chocolate concoctions with toppings at the hot chocolate bar.  I didn’t mind all the sugar because I knew they would need the calories to keep warm and would expend it all playing in ICE!

Each year, ICE! offers a new theme guaranteeing a unique experience for its visitors.  This year, a Christmas classic comes to life with a life-size exhibit retelling the adventures of Frosty the Snowman.  In this amazing colorful display carved by the talents of ice artisans, guests follow Frosty and his friends through more than two million pounds of hand-carved ice sculptures, ice caves and four ICE! slides.  My children loved exploring this winter wonderland playground where Frosty comes to life.

Since we were so well dressed for the occasion, we made the most of our time and slid down the icy slides multiple times.  Even the grown-ups, played on the ICE! slides until our fingers turned purple through our gloves and my camera fogged up.  My children loved every frozen minute and I had to bribe them with more hot chocolate to coax them to leave the frozen playground.

Frosty the Snowman was the perfect backdrop for ICE! Like the sad ending to this classic tale, we had to say good-bye to Frosty with a promise to return another day.

While leaving ICE!, we stumbled upon Santa and his jolly ol’ soul warmed us better than cocoa.

Experience the magic of Christmas at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center including ICE! featuring Frosty the Snowman until January 5th, 2014.  Purchase tickets and exclusive holiday packages by visiting marriott.com, or call (407) 586-4423.

Special rates for Florida resident for ICE! start at only $24.99 for adults (ages 13+) and $10.99 for children (ages 4-12) with promo code FLR13.
Marriott Rewards Member can save 20% on ICE! tickets with promo code MRICE13**. (**Discount available: November 24-December 19, 2013; excluding Saturdays.)