Two million pounds of ice are being cut, chiseled, scraped and sculpted into life-sized scenes from “The Polar Express” for what has become a Central Florida holiday tradition.
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A giant locomotive, the “hot chocolate” scene and the control room from the North Pole are glimpses of what visitors will see when visiting the “ice!” attraction at Gaylord Palms this holiday season. The exhibit is crafted over more than a month by a team of 40 artisans from China who spend a combined 12,000 hours meticulously carving and placing ice blocks.
“‘The Polar Express’ is so iconic,” said Niko Nickolaou, senior director of special events and creative for Gaylord Hotels. “There’s so many great characters in it and great thematic atmospheric moments. That’s where it translates so well into ice.”
“The Polar Express” returns to the Kissimmee resort as a popular fan favorite after the 2004 film served as inspiration for the 2019 event. The experience debuts Nov. 13 alongside Gaylord’s Christmas Cirque show “Pomp, Snow & Cirqueumstance,” the “#LIT” light show, a Mrs. Claus sing-along and Santa meet-and-greets.
The story
Among the first things guests see when they enter the 9-degree room is a life-sized “Polar Express” train made of black ice.
Guests can walk through a dozen vignettes from the movie, including the train’s arrival in front of the main character’s home, the Glacier Gulch room with four two-story ice slides and the North Pole where a towering tree awaits.
“There’s something about sitting at the top of the slide, seeing the train racing down the mountain and being able to slide down to it,” Nickolaou said. “We’re all kids at heart. That’s the scene that lets you be the kid.”
The conductor voiced by Tom Hanks, Santa, elves and the nameless “Hero Boy” are among film characters making appearances in ice. A nativity scene made of clear ice is found at the end of the exhibit — an annual tradition.
The artisans
The ice sculptors behind the event hail from Harbin, China — also known as the “Ice City” and host of the annual Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival.
The team of ice carvers traveled 7,000 miles to create the exhibit. There are more than 300 total artisans at the eight Gaylord Palms properties that host the “ice!” experience.
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A gingerbread man leads the way Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026 during the welcome ceremony for the master ice artisans from Harbin, China who are creating the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring “The Polar Express,” at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel)
The Wah Lum Temple’s Chinese Dragon Dance perform Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026 during the welcome ceremony for the master ice artisans from Harbin, China who are creating the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
The Wah Lum Temple’s Chinese Dragon Dance perform during the welcome ceremony for the master ice artisans from Harbin, China who will creating the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
The Wah Lum Temple’s Chinese Dragon Dance perform during the welcome ceremony for the master ice artisans from Harbin, China who will creating the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
The Wah Lum Temple’s Chinese Dragon Dance perform during the welcome ceremony for the master ice artisans from Harbin, China who will creating the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
The Wah Lum Temple’s Chinese Dragon Dance perform during the welcome ceremony for the master ice artisans from Harbin, China who will creating the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
The master ice artisans from Harbin, China pose for a photo following their welcome ceremony, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
The life-sized locomotive from “The Polar Express” is created from ice by master artisans from Harbin, China, working Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026 on the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction at the Gaylord Palms resort in Kissimmee. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
Master ice artisans from Harbin, China, at work during a media preview of the 20,000-square-foot “ice!” attraction, featuring The Polar Express, at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)
“This is generational artistry. A lot of these artisans are cousins, uncles, fathers and sons,” said Meghan Hash, director of special events and entertainment. “This is passed from generation to generation and this is what they do.”
Once the exhibit opens to the public, visitors can see an ice carver demonstrating techniques.
Behind the scenes
Each artisan has a dedicated skillset. While some work with engineering and structural elements — like melting together bricks of ice — and others give texture and definition to the scenes or work on the precise details of faces.
This is accomplished using specialized ice scrapers, picks, chisels, scoops and even chainsaws for the initial rough cuts.
The 20,000-square-foot exhibit room is filled with 6,000 blocks of ice that have been shaped into the attraction. These were formed at multiple ice plants across the country, where chemists focus on using food coloring to get hues just right to match the movie.
Tickets, please
Tickets for “ice!” are now on sale starting at $31 and up to $46 at peak times. Bundles are available including the Cirque show, ice tubing, snowball toss and more.
Guests can also explore gifts at Market Square; find games, shows and snacks inside the Alpine Village; tube down Snow Flow Mountain; decorate gingerbread houses; take photos with Santa; participate in the “Naughty or Nice Escape Room;” throw snowballs; and participate in a scavenger hunt. New for this year is a Christmas Carousel.
The “ice!” franchise is expanding this year, with new locations in San Diego and Phoenix, bringing the total to eight resorts. And three new intellectual properties are being introduced: “Home Alone” at Gaylord Opryland in Nashville, “The Nightmare Before Christmas” at Gaylord Rockies near Denver and “Harry Potter” at Gaylord Texas near Dallas.
More information: christmasatgaylordpalms.com/ice
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