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An Old Time Christmas takes title of Best Theme Park Holiday Event for second time
Best Theme Park Holiday Event (2017)
These American theme parks pull out all the stops as they deck their halls – and attractions – for the holidays. Winter visitors enjoy parades, seasonal live entertainment, visits with Santa and plenty of holiday cheer.
We asked our readers to vote for their favorite seasonal events, and the results are in. The top 10 winners in the category Theme Park Holiday Event are as follows:
- Christmas Town Tampa - Busch Gardens Tampa - Tampa
- Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party - Magic Kingdom - Orlando
- WinterFest - California's Great America - Santa Clara, Calif.
- SeaWorld's Christmas Celebration - SeaWorld - Orlando
- Holiday Lights - Kennywood - West Mifflin, Penn.
- Christmastime - Santa's Village - Jefferson, N.H.
- Christmas Town Williamsburg - Busch Gardens Williamsburg - Williamsburg, Va.
- Holiday In The Park - Six Flags Over Texas - Arlington, Texas
- Smoky Mountain Christmas - Dollywood - Pigeon Forge, Tenn.
- An Old Time Christmas - Silver Dollar City - Branson, Mo.
Photo courtesy of Busch Gardens Tampa
No. 10:
Nine dazzling shows pair with lights, rides and of course, Santa, at Busch Gardens Tampas beloved annual event. Carol of the Bells is one such dazzler, coordinating tens of thousands of Christmas lights to holiday music while the We Three Kings show pulls together talented singers who harmonize the tale of that famous road-trip to Bethlehem. The Holiday Hills band, meanwhile, injects jazz into the classics.
Photo courtesy of Kent Phillips / Walt Disney World
No. 9:
Held in the shadow of Cinderella’s Castle, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party could very well be Orlando’s most festive fete of all! Watch Elsa transform the famed bastion into a glimmering ice palace amid A Frozen Holiday Wish as Disney characters gather for a Mickey’s Once Upon A Christmastime Parade down Main Street where you’ll meet Pooh, Goofy, Jiminy Cricket and Tigger while gingerbread men dance and elves cavort.
Photo courtesy of California's Great America / Facebook
No. 8:
WinterFest, California's Great America holiday party, features ice skating, magnificent lights displays with some 7 million lights, live holiday shows, Santa's workshop and Mrs. Claus's kitchen, festive holiday treats and the Bay Area's largest Christmas tree.
Photo courtesy of SeaWorld Orlando
No. 7:
The colorful lights of decorated trees reflect in the lake during SeaWorld's Christmas Celebration in Orlando. Visitors are invited to watch world-famous skaters twirl across the ice, visit with Santa, shop a lakeside Christmas market, sample holiday treats, snap a photo with Rudolph or Countdown to Christmas with sea lion celebrities Clyde and Seamore.
No. 6:
Kennywood is illuminated with some 2 million lights during the Holiday Lights celebration. Local choirs perform holiday favorites while guests take pictures with Santa, ride the Gingerbread Express, watch The Polar Express 4-D Experience or gape at a choreographed spectacle of lights over the lagoon.
Photo courtesy of Santa's Village
No. 5:
While it's Christmastime year-round at Santa's Village in Jefferson, New Hampshire, the park pulls out all the stops for its annual Christmastime celebration each winter. Park goers can ride 18 different rides during the event, while the park is illuminated in holiday lights.
Photo courtesy of Busch Gardens Williamsburg
No. 4:
When Christmas Town takes over Busch Gardens Williamsburg, park guests are in for a holiday treat! More than 8 million twinkling lights comprise America's largest Christmas light display, while guests enjoy festive food and drink (like the park's signature peppermint fudge hot chocolate), holiday shows and visits with Santa at the North Pole.
Photo courtesy of Six Flags Over Texas
No. 3:
On select days throughout the holiday season, Six Flags Over Texas transforms into a winter wonderland during Holiday in the Park. A giant 60-foot tree of trees, made from 70 Christmas trees, is illuminated with tens of thousands of lights, while visitors can race down Frosty Snow Hill, foot stomp at a Honky Tonk Christmas, ride the SantaLand Express to meet Saint Nick or take a photo op beneath a lit-up canopy of the Texas flag.
No. 2:
Celebrate the season Dolly Parton-style at a Smoky Mountain Christmas in Dollywood. In addition to the Smokies' most spectacular lights display, festivities include a live stage performance, nightly lights parade, It's a Wonderful Life stage show and meet-and-greets with Rudolph and his friends.
Photo courtesy of Silver Dollar City
No. 1:
Branson's Silver Dollar City gets decked in 6.5 million colorful, twinkling lights during it's annual holiday celebration, An Old Time Christmas. Festivities center around a 5-story-tall special effects Christmas tree, with 1,000 other decorated trees around the park, two Broadway-style holiday productions and an illuminated parade featuring Rudolph and his reindeer friends.
Congratulations to all these winning holiday events!
About 10Best Readers' Choice Awards
Nominees are submitted by a panel of experts. 10Best editors narrow the field to select the final set of nominees for the Readers’ Choice Awards. Readers can vote once per category, per day. For any questions or comments, please read the FAQ or email USA TODAY 10Best.
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USA TODAY 10Best provides users with original, unbiased and experiential travel coverage of top attractions, things to see and do, and restaurants for top destinations in the U.S. and around the world.
