The holiday season is in full swing and what better way to spend it with friends and family than at one of the many theme parks and attractions in Tampa and or Orlando. From theme parks to zoos and aquariums, many local attractions have much to offer.<\/p>\n
Whether you are looking to walk through your favorite park sipping hot cocoa, or take family photos with Santa, the possibilities are endless when it comes to getting into the spirit.<\/p>\n
Check out our guide to holiday events in Orlando and Tampa Bay for 2025:<\/p>\n
Theme Parks Disney World has two separately\u00a0ticketed holiday events,\u00a0Mickey\u2019s Very Merry Christmas Party (SOLD OUT) and Disney Jollywood Nights<\/a>\u00a0on select nights throughout December.<\/p>\n Additionally, Disney World has plenty of holiday offerings through all four of its theme parks for guests of all ages to enjoy. At Magic Kingdom Park, visitors can look forward to the Frozen Holiday Surprise celebration at Cinderella Castle and the holiday-themed Jungle Cruise \u2014 known as Jingle Cruise. Park goers can also experience nightly holiday projections at Disney\u2019s Hollywood Studios\u2019 Hollywood Tower Hotel, EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays and Tree of Life Awakenings Holiday Edition and festive decor throughout all of the parks.<\/p>\n \u2728\u00a0Christmas Town<\/a> (Busch Gardens Tampa Bay) (MAP)<\/a> At this family-friendly event, which is included with park admission, guests can stroll through Busch Gardens, which will be decked out in festive decor and miles of sparkling lights. There will be themed food and beverages throughout the park including new offerings, along with holiday shopping and shows featuring ice skating, fireworks on select nights as well as a Hanukkah celebration, New Year’s Eve celebration and a Three Kings celebration.<\/p>\n \u2728\u00a0Holidays Celebration<\/a>\u00a0(Universal Orlando) (MAP)<\/a> The festivities will run daily and include Universal\u2019s Holiday Parade featuring Macy\u2019s, Grinchmas, \u201cThe Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle\u201d in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter \u2013 Hogsmeade and more.\u00a0The holiday events are included as part of admission to the theme parks.\u00a0In addition, all of Universal\u2019s hotels will be adorned with holiday d\u00e9cor and offer seasonal experiences.<\/p>\n \u2728\u00a0Holidays at Legoland<\/a> (Legoland Florida) (MAP)<\/a> This year at Holidays at Legoland, guests can visit a large Lego brick-built Christmas Tree, featuring almost 360,000 Lego and Duplo bricks towering over 30 feet tall \u2014 perfect for photo opportunities. There will also be additional new Lego decor this year, as well as new and returning shows and activities. Visitors can meet the festive Lego crew, comprised of Lego Santa Claus and others. Festive treats will also be in store for guests to enjoy, which include a menu of flavors available for a limited time.<\/p>\n Event List:<\/p>\n Festival of Flurries \u2728\u00a0Christmas Celebration<\/a> (SeaWorld Orlando) (MAP)<\/a> SeaWorld Orlando will transform into a winter wonderland as the park\u2019s Christmas Celebration<\/a> returns this holiday season. New this year is Clyde & Seamore’s Countdown to Christmas. Guets can also enjoy an outdoor ice rink\u00a0at Bayside Stadium and the \u201cSea of Trees,\u201d along with a 70-foot centerpiece holiday tree at the heart of the display.\u00a0The park\u2019s \u201cO Wondrous Night\u201d show returns this year, retelling the story of the Nativity with Christmas carols, life-sized puppets and live animals. New experiences include the Christmas decor at Journey to Atlantis Plaza, featuring sparkling lights and festive displays, including the Snow Globe Ballerina.<\/p>\n Guests can also visit\u00a0Mrs. Claus\u2019 Magic Kitchen, view the \u201cHoliday Reflections: Fireworks Finale\u201d display,\u00a0enjoy the Sesame Street Christmas Parade with favorite characters, the \u201cElmo\u2019s Christmas Wish\u201d show and Storytime with Big Bird, meet\u00a0Rudolph and Bumble in Rudolph\u2019s Christmas Town, visit with Santa Claus at the Wild Arctic gift shop and see the \u201cWinter Wonderland on Ice\u201d ice-skating show. More celebrations include a\u00a0Hanukkah celebration,\u00a0Kwanzaa festivities,\u00a0New Year\u2019s Eve party and\u00a0Three Kings celebration.<\/p>\n Area Festive Attractions Enjoy a holiday experience at the aquarium that is family friendly and is included with general admission. Guests can check out a holiday tree made from upcycled beach materials. There will also be interactive experiences, including festive holiday \u201ccaroling\u201d and character appearances. Outside, visitors will find sand sculptures and other festive photo opportunities. On select dates, there will be a special meet-and-greet and photos with Santa Claus on weekends from Nov. 28 – Dec. 21 and daily between Dec. 26 – Jan. 1.<\/p>\n \u2728\u00a0Christmas in the Wild<\/a>\u00a0(ZooTampa) (MAP)<\/a> The festive attraction at the zoo will run Nov. 28 – 29, Dec. 5, 6, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30 from 4 p.m. \u2013 10 p.m. The event is free for ZooTampa membership holders and Pay For a Day ticket holders.\u00a0General admission tickets after 4 p.m. are $29.95.<\/p>\n Christmas in the Wild<\/a> will feature illuminated animal sculptures, light shows, live entertainment and a visit from Santa Claus. New this year will be \u201cThe Realm of the Nutcracker,\u201d a retelling of the classic holiday through a modern dance party featuring Clara, the Nutcracker, the Rat King, and the Sugarplum Fairies. There will also be\u00a0story time with Mrs. Claus, along with \u201cThe Forest of Fantasy\u201d with appearances by the Snow Queen and her dancing snow fairies.<\/p>\n On December 31st there will also be a New Year Celebration from 9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.<\/p>\n \u2728\u00a0ICE!<\/a> (Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center) (MAP)<\/a> The theme at ICE! this year will feature scenes from the popular Christmas movie, \u201cRudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.\u201d<\/a> Guests will find extravagant ice sculptures carved from more than 2 million pounds of ice, with over 20,000-square-feet and 10 immersive scenes. Over 40 world-renowned master artisans hand-carved around 6,700 blocks of ice in over six weeks.<\/p>\n \u2728\u00a0Asian Lantern Festival: Into the Wild<\/a>\u00a0(Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens) (MAP)<\/a> The zoo\u2019s family-friendly event celebrates the Year of the Dragon this season, featuring dozens of new, hand-constructed lantern displays illuminated by thousands of LED lights on a 3\/4 mile path, highlighting the art of traditional Asian lantern festivals. There will also be exclusive food and beverages available to purchase. Santa will make visits on Dec. 21, 22, and 23. A New Year\u2019s Eve family-friendly countdown will take place at 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.<\/p>\n Tickets for the Asian Lantern Festival: Into the Wild must be purchased online in advance. Limited tickets are available per night.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The holiday season is in full swing and what better way to spend it with friends and family…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":68567,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[8564,4092,2405,19617,1191,6859,28,1186,2200,2204,19041,115,139,141,140,2043,275,135,106,278,2032,3435],"class_list":{"0":"post-70863","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-orlando","8":"tag-app-attractions-insider","9":"tag-app-things-to-do","10":"tag-attractions","11":"tag-busch-gardens","12":"tag-christmas","13":"tag-disney","14":"tag-florida","15":"tag-holidays","16":"tag-instagram-bn9","17":"tag-instagram-n13","18":"tag-legoland","19":"tag-news","20":"tag-orlando","21":"tag-orlando-headlines","22":"tag-orlando-news","23":"tag-seaworld","24":"tag-spectrum-news-staff","25":"tag-tampa","26":"tag-things-to-do","27":"tag-top-stories","28":"tag-trending-topics","29":"tag-universal"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70863","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70863"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70863\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68567"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u2728\u00a0Holidays at Walt Disney World Resort<\/a>\u00a0(Disney World) (MAP)<\/a>
\nThrough Dec. 31<\/p>\n
\nNov. 14 through Jan. 5<\/p>\n
\nThrough Jan. 4<\/p>\n
\nSelect dates through Dec. 31<\/p>\n
\nNorth Pole Postal Service
\nSanta’s Toy Build
\nHolly Hype Dance Party
\nHoliday Traditions Scavenger Hunt
\nSleigh Build Competition<\/p>\n
\nNov. 7 through Jan. 5<\/p>\n
\n\u2728\u00a0YuleTides<\/a>\u00a0(The Florida Aquarium) (MAP)<\/a>
\nNov. 28 through Jan. 4<\/p>\n
\nSelect nights in December<\/p>\n
\nNov. 15 through Jan. 4<\/p>\n
\nSelect nights from Nov. 14 through Jan. 18<\/p>\n