Dates: November 16, 2012 to January 6, 2013
What is Gaylord National’s ICE!?
At the Gaylord National Resort at National Harbor, visitors step inside a winter wonderland created entirely of 5,000 BLOCKS of ice weighing 2 MILLION POUNDS! hand-sculpted by 40 international artisans and kept at a chilling nine degrees Fahrenheit. Produced exclusively for Gaylord Hotels, the attraction is fully interactive, allowing guests to roam inside, around and on-top of holiday scenes. See Photos of ICE! at the Gaylord National ResortThe indoor, walk-through attraction is housed in an enormous 15,000 square feet structure that is specially constructed and thickly insulated to help maintain its internal temperature of nine degrees. To stay comfortable inside, guests are loaned oversized winter coats to wear. It gets pretty chilly, so be sure to bring a hat and a pair of gloves.
History & Artistry
The master artisans who created Gaylord National’s ICE! are from Harbin, China - a city in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province that is world-famous for its annual Harbin International Snow and Ice Festival. Every winter, more than 2,000 sculpture artists carve a massive, 100-acre walk-through Ice Park and a full-size Ice City from blocks of ice taken from the nearby Songhua River. Gaylord National Resort brought 40 of Harbin's most talented master artisans to the U.S. to showcase their amazing talents in creating this one-of-a-kind attraction. They arrived in mid-October, staying onsite for more than 30 days, to build and hand-carve the attraction in time for its debut.Hours: Open daily, November 16, 2012 to January 6, 2013. (hours will vary)
Tickets: Adults $25-35, Kids (ages 4-12) $20-$30, Children ages 3 and under are free. Discounted tickets for military, seniors and group of 20 or more are available.
Walk-up ticket sales will be available during the attraction's regular operating hours, however, visitors are encouraged to purchase tickets online (in advance) as many days are expected to sell out. Visit www.ChristmasOnThePotomac.com or call (301) 965-4000.
Location: Adjacent to the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center at National Harbor. Onsite parking is available at the Gaylord Self-Parking Garage for a special rate of $10 (up to 3 hours).
See a map and directions.
Free Nightly Entertainment at the Gaylord National Resort
- Tree of Light – the centerpiece in the Gaylord’s Atrium is a tree made entirely of synthetic “candy” glass! This “must-see” is 60-feet tall, weighs 7,000 pounds and is suspended from the center of our atrium. By day, it looks like a spectacular stained glass window. At night, it glows brilliantly and creates a festive mood.
- Tree Lighting Show featuring the DreamWorks Characters - Every evening, the atrium comes to life with a Tree Lighting Show and Indoor Snowfall. The 15-minute show will feature the world-famous DreamWorks characters lighting the tree, plus Christmas music, a light show, and a dancing fountain that shoots 60-feet high. 6:30 p.m.
- Brightest Star Fountain Show – Hear a heartwarming narration of the classic Christmas story and watch as choreographed water “dances” to the music. The show also features whimsical lighting. 6:45 and 9:30 p.m.
- Northern Lights - Look up and be amazed by 50-150-foot light curtains hanging from the ceiling of our 20-story atrium. Choreographed to music, the lights appear to “dance” and change colors overhead just like the real Northern Lights. A sight to behold! Nightly between 5-10 p.m.
