Ho-Ho-Holidays at the Parks: The Best (and Worst) Parks for Celebrating the Holiday Season!

By Brian

Saturday, December 17, 2022 - 05:54

'Tis the season for theme park magic! Yep, for many park-goers, semi-arid and sub-tropical climates in Southern California and Central Florida aren't enough to melt the magic of the Christmas season. Especially over the last few decades, Disney and Universal's parks have leaned hard into seasonal celebrations, with Christmas and the December holidays standing out as one of the biggest and most magical times to visit.

Every theme park has something on offer for the Christmas season... but if you could visit one park on Christmas Day with no crowds to contend with, which would give you the most holiday bang for your buck? Here's our countdown of the best (and worst) parks to visit to celebrate the holidays this year...

7. Disney's Animal Kingdom

Image: Disney

Aside from the massive Christmas tree that stands at its entrance and light decorations throughout Discovery Island, Animal Kingdom doesn't tend to do too much for the holidays. What they do do is very cute, though.

The most clever and beloved must be the Merry Menagerie, a set of wintertime-stylized puppets that spread throughout Discovery Island. The unique meet-and-greet is a very adorable, memorable experience, and feels like the perfect embodiment of how Animal Kingdom and its crafty, natural, hand-made style can meet the holidays head-on. The park also offers two Festive Flotillas – variations of the character-carrying watercrafts that encircle the park, now stocked with Santa Claus and the Discovery Island Drummers.

And of course, after you've experienced the bioluminescent beauty of Pandora after dark, you may notice that the nightly Tree of Life Awakenings has a Holiday variant where the short, unannounced interstitials show wintery animals arriving as the autumnal-colored tree becomes snowy and sparkly. It's a nice little moment, but obviously not meant to be the same kind of showstopping holiday entertainment you'll find elsewhere.

6. Magic Kingdom

Image: Disney

I know at first it might be very disappointing to see Magic Kingdom so far from the top spot on this list, but think about it...

Sure, Main Street and Cinderella Castle are beautifully decorated for the holidays. No question. And yes, the return of Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party in 2022 is great news. After all, the after-hours, upcharge event includes not just huge showstopping productions like "Minnie's Wonderful Christmastime Fireworks Show," "Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime Parade," and the "Most Merriest Celebration" Castle forecourt show, but specialized entertainment like the "Club Tinsel" dance party, holiday meet-and-greets, and quick-and-easy ride overlays like Space Mountain – Holiday Run (adding rockin' Christmas music and colorful lights to the ride) and holiday-themed twists on the Mad Tea Party and Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor.

But that's exactly the issue. Individual tickets for the Very Merry Christmas Party ranged from $149 to $199 per person... and sold out in mid-November. The result is that – very intentionally! – Walt Disney World locked its most iconic holiday sights and sounds behind an effective "paywall". Sure, if you can afford tickets to the Christmas Party (and manage to buy them before it sells out), you're in for a wonderful, magical holiday event. If not... Well...

About the only difference a daytime guests will notice is the Jingle Cruise, which at Magic Kingdom mostly amounts to Christmas jokes as opposed to Disneyland's retired version that included lots of festive decor. (It's widely understood that Walt Disney World avoids lavish seasonal ride overlays due to the resort's audience of once-in-a-while or even once-in-a-lifetime visitors, who want to see the real version of the ride, not a seasonal version.)

5. Disney's Hollywood Studios

Image: Disney

Like Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios doesn't pretend to be a centerpiece of Walt Disney World's holiday programming... but it's probably got the most holiday programming you can get without paying extra. First of all, the relatively small park makes it easy for holiday decorations to be pretty much ever-present. Hollywood Blvd., Sunset Blvd., and Echo Lake – the three lands that celebrate historic Hollywood – are dolled up in period-appropriate holiday decor that's sure to leave grandma and grandpa recalling the good ole' days. (Gertie the Dinosaur with an ornament hanging from her mouth is a favorite.)

The facade of the Hollywood Tower Hotel hosts Seasons Greetings, a playful, 10-minute musical projection show that's very well done (even if transforming The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror into a gingerbread house or a giant wrapped gift might take away from its intimidation factor). The show also ends with a good ole' fashioned Hollywood snow, which is a magical moment for all. Likewise on-theme is the Santa Claus Merry Motorcade, which escorts Santa through the park in a cherry-red convertible packed with presents.

Basically, Hollywood Studios kind of accidentally offers a really solid Christmastime lineup, and among the best "magical Christmas" moments you can get at Walt Disney World without paying extra... Speaking of which...

As for the top half...

4. EPCOT

Image: Disney

EPCOT obviously deserves to be in the top half of parks when it comes to the holidays if only because it hosts The EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays. Yes, EPCOT's ever-rotating festival booths get their final makeover of the year as they become "Holiday Kitchens". Also highlighting the event are the Holiday Cookie Stroll (sort of like a bar crawl, but for baked goods gathered from around World Showcase) and of course, the fabled Candlelight Processional – a reverent retelling of the Christmas story by a celebrity narrator, 50-piece orchestra, and Cast Member choir.

Thanks to the new "Beacons of Light" LED package applied to Spaceship Earth, 2021 also saw the launch of a new holiday light show interstitial on the icon. 2022 introduced Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind – Holiday Remix, a tepidly-received "overlay" that essentially just wipes out the brand new ride's rock 'n' roll audio in favor of a custom-made holiday song that's... not very good. Like, not-good enough that if your first ride on Cosmic Rewind occurs between November and January, you'll probably wish it didn't. And, if you count it, each year Figment adorns a nice blue holiday sweater in the park's infamous Journey into Imagination with Figment ride!

3. Disney California Adventure

Image: Disney

In general, Disneyland Resort is much better at celebrating the holidays than Walt Disney World. Frankly, that's because the two resorts tend to cater to very different audiences. Disneyland is (and probably will always be) a "locals park." Well known for its "local and vocal" audience, Disneyland is still largely a regional attraction drawing visitors from Southern California and the surrounding states. Pre-pandemic, estimates were that on any given day, half of Disneyland's visitors were Annual Passholders, who tended to use the park like a place to swing by on the way home from work for dinner or a show.

That reflects on the resort's attitude toward holidays, too. At Disney California Adventure, Santa Claus takes over the park's Redwood Creek – a multi-acre forested challenge zone inside Grizzly Peak National Park, offering a rustic, old-timey Christmas celebration. The park hosts Disney's Festival of the Holidays – a tribute to Christmas, Navidad, Hanukkah, Diwali, Kwanzaa and Three Kings' Day. Naturally, it includes a "Festive Food Marketplace." But California Adventure's festival goes much farther with the incredible ¡Viva Navidad!, a cultural street party that overtakes the park's Paradise Gardens Park. Focusing on Latin American holiday traditions, the event includes Coco and Encanto nods, meet-and-greets, and music.

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In addition to Buena Vista Street being wrapped in 1920s holiday decor, Cars Land goes big for the holidays with a land-wide re-theme that's jaw-droppingly involved. Even the land's two flat rides are transformed into Mater's Jingle Jamboree and Luigi's Joy to the Whirl, with custom Christmas songs underscoring the spinning and dancing attractions. And of course, each day ends with World of Color – Season of Light, a festive overlay of the spectacular nighttime show. Altogether, that's a pretty involved set of offerings to roll out each year and not lock behind a "party paywall."

2. Universal Orlando Resort

Image: Universal

Credit where credit's due, Universal Orlando really knows how to celebrate the holidays. Actually, December is sort of "go-time" when it comes to deploying some of the best of Universal's family-friendly entertainment, deploying substantial decorations from Port of Entry to Production Central with a Holiday Tree Hunt scavenger game that's spread across both theme parks and CityWalk.

At Universal Studios Florida, Universal's Holiday Parade featuring Macy's rolls through the park's recreation of New York City. Seriously one of the best holiday parades at any theme park, the enormous spectacle includes giant balloons of DreamWorks and Illumination characters, massive light-up floats, and of course, a finale appearance by the big man himself, Santa Claus. Universal Studios also hosts a concert series from the best-selling Christmas music artist of all time Mannheim Steamroller. And the park's recent penchant for going all-out with its Tribute Store sees the half-retail, half-walkthrough experience transform into a legit New York department story of whimsy, magic, and holiday spirit.

Image: Universal

Meanwhile, at Universal's Islands of Adventure, Grinchmas overtakes Seuss Landing, decking the pastel port out like it's Whoville. Meet-and-greets with the wise-cracking, heart-two-sizes-too-small Scrooge of a Grinch have become social media sensations (so much so that the Grinch has even taken over the resort's call center in Office-esque parody mini-series). Likewise, the The Grinchmas Who-liday Spectacular is a stage show tradition that gets bigger and bigger every year.

Image: Universal

And of course, we can't mention Universal's commitment to the holidays without mentioning Christmas in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Across both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade, wonderful holiday decorations abound. Wreaths and candles and warm lights overtake the fantastical Scottish village and London streetscape, as does Hot Butterbeer. In addition, fan-favorite acts like The Frog Choir and Celestina Warbeck and the Banshees unveil holiday performances that can't be missed. And of course, The Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle is a jaw-dropping projection show that serves as a perfect "kiss goodnight" for Christmas.

1. Disneyland

Image: Disney

Walt's "original magic kingdom" is a pretty sensational place to spend any holiday, but particularly at Christmas, the park is truly transformed. Of course, the park is decked out in magical decorations that transform Main Street and Sleeping Beauty's Winter Castle. But Disneyland also launches the Believe... in Holiday Magic fireworks show (which of course ends with a sprinkling of snow) and A Christmas Fantasy Parade. Naturally, these get major props because they aren't "paywalled" behind an upcharge holiday party or limited-ticket event. Instead, they're offered for all guests (which shouldn't be a big deal, but is)!

Of course, what really astounds fans about Disneyland's holiday offerings are two world class ride overlays. One is "it's a small world" Holiday – a lovely, "merry" version of the classic that sees the Sherman Brothers famous singalong intertwine with "Dashing Through the Snow," "Joy to the World," and other Christmas classics.

Image: Disney

The other, Haunted Mansion Holiday, sees Jack Skellington and the cast of The Nightmare Before Christmas "wreck the halls" of the park's esteemed Haunted Mansion. Anyone who's ridden will tell you that Haunted Mansion Holiday is different enough from the typical ride to really be considered something entirely new. (That said, plenty of fans – this author included – feel that after 20 years of overtaking the Mansion from mid-September to mid-January, it might be time to give Haunted Mansion Holiday a rest... After all, the real ride hasn't been around for a Halloween since the year 2000!)

Add that to the annual Candlelight Processional and park-wide decorations and entertainment, and that's a substantial commitment to Christmas at Disneyland! We really hope to someday see it expand with "Life Day" celebrations in Galaxy's Edge and beyond...