Tickets are Now on Sale for ICE! as the Magical Holiday Experience Returns and Makes Premiere Debut in South Texas
The JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa is thrilled to announce tickets are now on sale for ICE! featuring Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas!. The frozen attraction will be making its debut at the Resort from Nov. 23, 2024, through Jan. 5, 2025. The holiday tradition of ICE!, created by Gaylord Hotels, will be featured nationwide across six locations this Christmas season. Kept at a frosty 9 degrees Fahrenheit, the winter wonderland experience will bring to life the whimsical world of Who-ville in the form of life-sized sculptures and walkthrough scenery hand-carved from more than 2 million pounds of ice. ICE! featuring Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! will be part of the resort’s annual Hill Country Christmas celebrations and will be open to resort guests and the public. Tickets and special room packages for ICE! are now on sale and available at www.JWHillCountryChristmas.
A team of 40 master artisans will travel nearly 7,000 miles from Harbin, China to San Antonio, Texas and dedicate 30 days to crafting the ICE! experience from 6,700 massive blocks of ice using skills passed down through generations. The attraction will span nearly 20,000 square feet with carvings ranging from intricate details to towering scenes over 30 feet high. Life-size ice sculptures, immersive walk-through scenes, two-story ice slides, a life-size Nativity scene, and photo-worthy moments will be featured. Characters from Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! will be depicted like the Grinch, Max, Cindy-Lou Who, and other festive Whos from Who-ville. A state-of-the-art chilling system will maintain the festive attraction, and to stay warm, guests will be provided with signature blue parkas to wear while enjoying the experience.
Beginning Nov. 23, 2024, through Jan. 5, 2025, the resort’s Exhibit Ballroom will completely transform into “Reindeer Ridge,” featuring 40,000 square feet of beloved Hill Country Christmas activities. Returning activities include Snow Flow Mountain, a multi-lane tubing hill made of real snow and providing hours of alpine fun for all ages; and Snowball Build & Blast, an interactive game where guests can make and throw snowballs to score points, boosting the power of the snow-making machine. Mrs. Claus’ Christmas Traditions hosted by Mrs. Claus will also return and include a retelling of “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” and a sing-along of holiday carols, complete with Santa’s favorite cookies and milk. Guests will be able to decorate gingerbread houses with sweets and treats at the Gingerbread Decorating Corner with an opportunity to meet Nutmeg the gingerbread man.
Build-A-Bear Workshop® has been adding a little more heart to life for more than 25 years! Visit Build-A-Bear® to experience the fun of personalizing furry friends and taking part in our one-of-a-kind Heart Ceremony. Add adorable outfits, sweet scents and fun sounds to make any furry friend the perfect gift or a cuddly Christmas keepsake! The Resort will also debut a new holiday scavenger hunt, “The Grinch’s Wonderful Awful Idea Scavenger Hunt” which will send guests searching for hidden clues of the Grinch’s mischievous plan to ruin the holiday. Guests will be able to find clues and solve riddles to help save the joy of the season and receive a special stocking stuffer when they complete their quest.
Other traditional favorites at Hill Country Christmas include the Shine Light Show, a nightly display of thousands of dancing lights synchronized to holiday music. The Polar Plunge will be available in several pools for those wanting a chilly challenge, along with visits from Santa’s live reindeer. Guests can indulge in holiday treats at the festive s’mores station and write letters to Santa to share Christmas wishes. Personal visits with Santa along with a keepsake photo will also be available. Guests can visit JWHillCountryChristmas.com to learn more and make reservations for a memorable holiday stay.
Exclusive ICE! Stay & Play Packages are available for advance online reservations. These packages offer overnight accommodation and two tickets to ICE! for each night’s stay, using booking code 1GC at JWHillCountryChristmas.com. Guests can add a round of golf to the ICE! Stay & Play Package using booking code ZJ4. Overnight guests will be able to access resort-only benefits including the Extra Cool Hour and Chill Pass, which allow overnight visitors early admission into ICE! and the Christmas Village, as well as front-of-the-line access to the attraction. Visit JWHillCountryChristmas.com to learn more and make reservations.
To experience everything the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa has to offer this holiday season, guests are encouraged to book an overnight stay and receive exclusive access to luxury amenities such as the 9-acre River Bluff Water Experience with temperature-controlled pools and hot tubs; eight dining outlets; two PGA TOUR 18-hole championship golf courses at TPC San Antonio; world-class Lantana Spa; award-winning culinary experiences; Topgolf Swing Suite; sports courts to play tennis, basketball and pickleball; walking trails with stunning hill country views; and famous Texas starry night skies.
