Gaylord Palms ICE! 2026 With Kids
The Polar Express at 9°F

Somewhere around day three of a December Disney trip, the parks start to blur together. Same crowds, same holiday overlays, same tired legs. ICE! at Gaylord Palms is the opposite of that — a 9-degree room full of glowing ice sculptures, where your Florida kids get to see their breath indoors and ride a slide made of solid ice.

For 2026, the theme is The Polar Express, back by popular demand after last appearing at Gaylord Palms in 2019. It’s a short experience, it isn’t cheap once parking and add-ons stack up, and the cold is real. But for the right family, it’s one of the most memorable things you can do near Disney during the holidays. If you want the full picture of the resort itself — the atrium gators, the water park, and the rooms — start with our Gaylord Palms family guide. This article focuses on ICE! and the Christmas activities around it.

What Is ICE! at Gaylord Palms?

ICE! is a walk-through holiday exhibit built entirely from carved, colored ice — roughly 2 million pounds of it across a 20,000-square-foot space. Each year it tells a different holiday story, and the sculptures are hand-carved on-site by a team of around 40 artisans from Harbin, China, the city famous for its international ice festival. They spend weeks building it before opening day.

It’s self-guided, so there’s no tour group to keep up with. You walk the path at your own pace, stop for photos, ride the slides as many times as your fingers can stand, and exit when you’re ready. The room is held at 9°F to keep the sculptures crisp, which is the whole point — and also the thing that decides how long your kids will last.

ICE! anchors the larger Christmas at Gaylord Palms celebration, which spreads holiday activities, shows, and more than 3 million lights across the resort. Most of those extras are ticketed separately, which we’ll get to below.

What to Expect Inside ICE! in 2026

How Cold Is ICE! — and What Should Kids Wear?

ICE! is held at 9°F. Yes, nine degrees. Gaylord hands everyone a calf-length, hooded blue parka at the entrance, and that does most of the work. What it doesn’t cover are hands, ears, legs, and feet — and those are exactly where kids get uncomfortable first.

Here’s what we’d dress kids in for the visit:

• Long pants: Jeans, fleece-lined leggings, or joggers. Shorts under a parka is a common Florida mistake.
• A warm mid-layer: A long-sleeve shirt plus a sweatshirt or fleece under the parka. Our what to wear to a theme park guide covers layering for kids if you’re building outfits for the whole trip.
• Gloves: The single most important add-on. Kids touch everything, and bare hands on ice end the visit fast. Pack a pair for each kid before you leave home — Gaylord sells them on-site, but at resort prices.
• A beanie: The parka hood helps, but a knit hat underneath keeps ears warm on the slides.
• Thick socks and closed-toe shoes: Pathways are carpeted, so you don’t need boots, but sandals and Crocs are a no for the slides.
• Hand warmers (optional): A couple of air-activated hand warmers tucked into parka pockets buy younger kids an extra 10 minutes.
• A small power bank: Between photos and cold-weather battery drain, phones die faster than you’d expect. We keep a compact 10,000mAh power bank in the bag — more picks in our power bank guide.
• Travel wipes: Not for the ice — for the gingerbread decorating and hot chocolate afterward. A pack of travel wipes handles sticky fingers before they hit the car seat.

You don’t need to buy winter coats for this. The parka is genuinely warm. Focus on the accessories, which pack small and are easy to forget on a Florida trip. Everything else we pack for the parks lives on our full Amazon theme park list. If ICE! is part of a Christmas trip, gloves and a beanie make easy stocking stuffers, and our Disney & Universal stocking stuffers guide has more ideas kids will use on the trip.

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Is ICE! Good for Toddlers and Young Kids?

Usually, yes — with one big caveat. The sculptures, colors, and lights hold toddlers’ attention easily. Whether they’re happy depends almost entirely on how they handle the cold.

• Ages 0–3: Free admission and a parka in their size. Expect a faster loop. Bundle them well and plan to carry or hold hands — the cold, not the walking, is what ends the visit.
• Ages 4–7: Arguably the sweet spot. Old enough to recognize the movie and love the slides, young enough to find the whole thing magical.
• Ages 8–12: They’ll be on the slides on repeat. Pair ICE! with Snow Flow Mountain tubing to make the trip feel worth it.
• Teens: Fun once, especially for photos, but a full bundle of activities may be more than they want.

The ice slides require kids to climb steps on their own, and many parts of the attraction are accessible, though not every element is. If you’re bringing a stroller or need wheelchair access, confirm the current policy with the resort before you go.

How Long Does Gaylord Palms ICE! Take?

Gaylord says most guests spend 20–40 minutes inside, and that matches what we’d expect for families. You can take as long as you want, but the cold usually decides for you. Families with younger kids tend to land on the shorter end; slide-obsessed older kids push toward 40.

That estimate is ICE! only. Add time for parking, the walk through a very large resort, and the parka line. If you’re pairing ICE! with tubing, a show, or gingerbread decorating, plan on half a day. Tickets are single-entry, so make sure everyone’s used the restroom before you walk in.

ICE! 2026 Tickets, Prices & Bundles

All ICE! tickets are sold online in advance for a specific date and entry time — there’s no box office at the resort. Prices vary by date, with weekends and the weeks around Thanksgiving and Christmas typically costing more and selling out first.

A few rules worth knowing before you book:

• Arrive at least 15 minutes before your entry time. Gaylord doesn’t guarantee entry if you’re more than five minutes late.
• Day-guest tickets are non-refundable, though you may be able to swap to another date or time (subject to availability) by replying to your confirmation email before your slot.
• A per-ticket processing fee, parking, and tax are all on top of the ticket price.
• Only one discount applies per ticket. AAA, military, teacher, and other offers are listed on the official offers page.

Are the Activity Bundles Worth It?

Gaylord offers four activity passes that combine ICE! with other holiday experiences like tubing, gingerbread decorating, and the scavenger hunt. The resort advertises savings of up to 40% or more versus buying each activity separately, depending on the pass.

The honest math: those savings only count if your kids would actually do everything in the bundle. If ICE! is the only thing you care about, a standalone ticket is cheaper. If your kids are tall enough for tubing and you’d book two or three extras anyway, a bundle is usually the better deal. Check current pass contents on the Gaylord Palms activity passes page before you buy.

Other Christmas Activities at Gaylord Palms

ICE! is the headliner, but the Christmas at Gaylord Palms lineup can easily fill an afternoon. Most of these are ticketed separately, and hours vary by day.

Even without extra tickets, walking the decorated atrium is part of the experience. The resort’s centerpiece Christmas tree and nightly light show make the whole place feel like a holiday event — and the live baby gators in the atrium are still there in December, which our Gaylord Palms guide covers in detail.

Day Visit or Overnight Stay?

You don’t need to stay at Gaylord Palms to see ICE!, and plenty of families do it as an evening outing from a Disney-area hotel. It works especially well as a rest day near Disney or a break between park days during the holidays — one of the reasons we like visiting in the holiday season despite the crowds. For the park side of a December trip, see our Disney World at Christmas with kids guide.

The trade-offs are cost and access. Day visitors pay for parking on every entry and don’t get the Chill Pass or priority dining. Overnight guests get those perks and can change or cancel attraction tickets up to five days before arrival. If a premium resort night already fits your budget, a one-night stay that includes ICE! is a fun mid-trip reset. If you’re watching every dollar, a day visit focused on ICE! alone is the leaner move — our Disney World budget guide can help you decide where an extra like this fits.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• ✕Showing up without tickets. There’s no box office on-site, and peak dates sell out.
• ✕Cutting it close on arrival time. Between parking, the walk, and the parka line, give yourself a real buffer — entry isn’t guaranteed if you’re more than five minutes late.
• ✕Wearing sandals or shorts. The parka doesn’t cover legs or feet, and closed-toe shoes are required for the slides.
• ✕Forgetting gloves. It’s the one item Florida-bound families almost always leave at home.
• ✕Buying the biggest bundle by default. It only saves money if your kids will actually do everything in it — and tubing has a 42-inch minimum.