ICE exhibit will showcase world traditions

UPDATE November 15, 2016: Get a sneak peak at this year’s show with the photos we recently added!

By Patricia Hall, FairfaxFamilyFun.com

Whew! It is really hot out there this week! As the metropolitan Washington DC area suffers through a crushing heat wave this week, where the heat index is making temperatures in the 90s feel like they’re actually in the 100s, suddenly winter is not looking so bad! Of course, when winter hits — and this year we’re expected to have another rough one — we will suddenly be longing for these very, very, very warm days.

Wouldn’t it be great to enjoy super-cool temperatures just long enough that you can walk away from when you have had enough? At ICE! — the annual show at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center — you can do just that. The world-famous ice sculpture exhibit lets visitors wall through a special gallery where amazing, giant sculptures are kept at just nine degrees throughout. Artisans from Harbin, China, travel more than 6,000 miles to hand-carve more than two million pounds of colorful ice into larger-than-life ice sculptures with different themes each year.

In 2016, visitors will be able to explore holiday traditions from around the world including the United Kingdom, Germany, Mexico, and more through Christmas Around the World.  This year’s theme is perfect for DC and its suburbs, as the capital region is home to 175 embassies. As usual adults and kids alike also can enjoy two-story ice slides, plus an enchanting Parade of Toys, larger-than-life ornaments and more, including a lovely, clear-ice nativity scene that looks like a gigantic crystal set.

ICE!, presented by Pepsi, will return to Gaylord National on select dates from November 19, 2016 through January 1, 2017, as part of the ninth annual Christmas on the Potomac celebration, which includes nightly holiday fountain shows with lasers and indoor snowfall, photos with Santa, an indoor train ride and attractions, an Elf on the Shelf® Scavenger Hunt gourmet holiday food and beverage offerings including a new Christmas Cookies Around the World class, winter spa treatments, gingerbread decorating, and more.

This year kids also will get a chance to meet their favorite Peanuts characters at Breakfast with Charlie Brown and Friends holiday meal and an exclusive Build-A-Bear Workshop experience with a cute polar bear plush, designed for Gaylord Hotels. Read our review of the 2015 ICE! show to get a better idea of what to expect (and if you can’t wait until then, see what in the meantime you can enjoy at Gaylord National and National Harbor in general this summer).

Early bird ticket pricing for ICE! during non-peak days is available now through October 1, starting at $24 for adults ages 12 and older and $16 for children ages 4 to 11. Tickets after October 1 start at $29 for adults and $21 for children during non-peak days; and $36 for adults and $29 for children during peak days. Kids 3 and younger are free. Military and group ticket pricing also is available. See details at www.ChristmasOnThePotomac.com.

As usual, the Gaylord National is offering holiday packages (starting at $199) that include including one night accommodations and tickets to experience ICE! featuring Christmas Around the World with unlimited, priority entry.  Get a sneak peak at this year’s exhibit through the photos below!

Disclaimer:  This post is shared just for informational purposes, but we have been hosted by the Gaylord National in the past for the ICE! show and the Pirates on the Potomac summer special.

All photos (c) P. Hall or Gaylord National Resort, as noted in captions