The coldest spot in the United States this holiday season will likely be Central Florida, where temperatures are predicted to be 9 degrees Fahrenheit between November 19, 2007- January 3, 2008.

This “cold front” of winter weather is part of a flurry of holiday fun at Gaylord Palms Resort, located five minutes from Walt Disney World theme parks. At this landmark resort, visitors flock to ICE!, Orlando’s coolest holiday attraction, handcarved from nearly TWO MILLION pounds of ice.

Inside, guests explore a whimsical winter wonderland of larger-than-life, three-dimensional hand-carved ice monuments and sculptures, including fantastic frozen creations, slippery ice slides, and memorable holiday scenes.

In its fifth season, ICE! features several new or revised scenes, including a walk-through igloo and a towering gingerbread candy house, meticulously hand-carved from enormous blocks of colored ice. A guest favorite, the ICE! castle and slides, has been re-designed to reflect a South Pole locale with a colony of penguins surrounding the longest ice slide in the attraction’s history. The new slide, measuring 5 feet taller and 30 feet longer than previous years, curves around the exterior of the scene to provide visitors with a more exhilarating slide experience.

The enormous structure at Gaylord Palms Resort used to house ICE! is cooled to a chilly 9 degrees. To stay comfortable inside the attraction, visitors are loaned oversized winter coats to wear.

The attraction is carved by a team of 40 artisans from Harbin, China. The talented artisans spend nearly an entire month in Kissimmee creating this one-of-a-kind attraction. Harbin is best known for its annual International Ice and Snow Festival. Each year more than 2,000 sculptors carve a 100-acre walk-through Ice Park from blocks of ice taken from the Songhua River. Produced exclusively for Gaylord Hotels, the artisans’ work appeared for the first time in the United States in 2001, when a similar attraction debuted at Gaylord Opryland Resort’s "A Country Christmas" celebration in Nashville. The project expanded in 2003 to include ICE! at Gaylord Palms Resort.

ICE! is open daily during the holiday season and is accessible on the Exhibit Hall level at Gaylord Palms Resort, which is located at 6000 W. Osceola Parkway in Kissimmee.

ICE! tickets range from $9.99 - $24.99, depending on the type of ticket, and day of the week. Discounts are available for tickets purchased online in advance at www.gaylordpalms.com/ice.

Tickets went on sale in September.

For more information or reservations, call (407) 586-4-ICE.

		Special offer for ICE! available to Annual Passholders for select Florida theme parks! Beginning Sunday, December 23, annual and seasonal passholders for select Florida theme parks can receive a FREE child’s admission to ICE! for every adult admission purchased. This offer is only valid for admission before 2:00 pm, and is available by showing a valid season pass at the ICE! Box Office. This promotion is valid for passholders for the following theme parks: All Walt Disney World theme parks, all Universal Orlando theme parks, SeaWorld Adventure Park, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, and Cypress Gardens. Admission tickets must be purchased on site at the ICE! Box Office before 2:00 pm between the dates of December 23, 2007and January 3, 2008. No online ticket sales with this offer. For more information, please visit www.gaylordpalms.com/passholder

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