5 Festive Facts about the Holidays at Walt Disney World
This month, we’ve delved into the world of holidays past with a look at the Country Bear Christmas Special and the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights, but it doesn’t do to live in the past forever (even if Disney makes it comfy, cozy, and oh-so-easy to get lost in the memories). So, this week we’re taking a look at Christmas Present, especially some of the stunning numbers that go into Walt Disney World’s stunning holiday displays.
A Holiday Forest!
What would Christmas be without Christmas trees? The glittering lights, shiny baubles, and decorative garland are as much a part of the festivities as Jolly Old Saint Nick and have been around since the Middle Ages.
For their part, Disney takes the tradition to a whole different level, with a veritable forest of trees spread out across Walt Disney World. Just how many are we talking? There are 29 icon trees that range from 15 to 70 feet tall and another 596 trees that range from two to fourteen feet tall.
Those are pretty impressive numbers, but it doesn’t stop there. The toppers on the tree can be as wide as seven feet and weigh more than 200 pounds. Disney’s Contemporary resort tree weighs over 33,000 pounds and has 1,200 branches. That’s a lot of branches, but they’re more than needed for the 16,000 lights and more than 200 custom ornaments it holds.
The park as a whole is home to over 12,000 Christmas tree branches. And altogether the resort’s trees consist of over 110 tons of steel, which are decorated by north of 15,000 ornaments and 260,000 lights.
Hung with Care
Garland has been used in decoration since the days of ancient Egypt and can be found around the world from India and Nepal to England and the United States. There are almost 5,000 garlands hung at Walt Disney World during the holidays, and they stretch almost nine miles.
Wreaths are another ancient tradition, dating back to the Persian empire where they were worn by royalty. It’s safe to say those royals would have been impressed by Walt Disney World’s collection, which totals 1,700.
Good Enough to Eat
Trees and decorations aren’t the only holiday delights. There’s also gingerbread. Most folks are probably familiar with the massive gingerbread mansion that comes each year to the Grand Floridian Resort. It’s a mammoth structure that hides 23 Hidden Mickeys and an 85-pound chocolate Santa Claus. It takes over a ton of honey to build the structure, along with 800 pounds of flour, 600 pounds of powdered sugar, 600 pounds of chocolate, 140 pints of egg whites, and 35 pounds of spices. It takes 400 hours of baking and 160 hours of construction to put the whole thing together.
Venture over to the Beach Club resort and you’ll find another stunning gingerbread creation: a carousel! This year it is themed to Disney Princesses. To continue your delicious tour, you simply have to hop over to the Contemporary resort to spot a 50th Anniversary gingerbread version of Cinderella Castle, and there’s a gingerbread boardwalk located at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn. If that’s not enough for your sweet tooth, take a trip to Animal Kingdom Lodge and you’ll see life-size gingerbread versions of a baby giraffe and baby zebra. If you want a little history with your sweets, you can also find gingerbread versions of the Lincoln Memorial and Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial at the American Adventure in Epcot’s World Showcase (along with a confectionery replica of the American Adventure building itself!).
A Rich Tradition
One of the most beloved Disney Christmas traditions is the Candlelight Processional. The parks have hosted the event since 1958, when singers from 16 choirs processed down Main Street to the Plaza where they performed with the Dickens Carolers.
When Walt Disney World opened in 1971, its inaugural holiday season included the Candlelight Processional, though at the time it was held at the Magic Kingdom. In fact, it wouldn’t move to its current location in Epcot until 1994.
As D23 explained in its history of the event, “It has grown from a simple procession of candle-lit carolers into a magnificent classical concert featuring a thousand voice massed choir, “The Living Christmas Tree”, orchestra, fanfare trumpets, bell choir, soloist, sign-language interpreter, guest conductor, and celebrity narrator.”
In the 80s, actor Howard Keel narrated the ceremony, but today you’ll hear a variety of celebrity narrators perform the Christmas story. In 2022, some of the personalities featured are Raúl Esparza, Simu Liu, Josh Gad, Neil Patrick Harris, Gloria Estefan, and Angela Bassett.
There are typically 3 shows a night for over thirty nights, meaning it is performed almost 100 times each year.
It Takes a Village
You might be wondering what it takes to install and maintain so many decorations. Fortunately, Disney has given us the answer. A team of 50 year-round and 90 seasonal Cast Members is used to install the holiday decorations, a job that begins immediately after Halloween and isn’t fully completed until Thanksgiving.
The team decorates 780 locations spread across 41 properties, including the Disney Cruise Line Ships, its terminal in Port Canaveral, Cast Away Cay in the Bahamas, the Vero Beach Resort, and the Hilton Head Island Resort.
When the decorations aren’t on display, they are house in the Disney Holiday Services’ warehouses, which are located behind the Magic Kingdom. There are three warehouses in total, and they hold roughly 40,000 pieces of decor, pieces for every season.
A Holly Jolly Christmas
As impressive as all of these facts and numbers are, they don’t fully capture the magic of the holidays at Walt Disney World. To understand that you’ll simply have to visit. Meander down Main Street U.S.A. and soak in the ambiance, listen to the Dapper Dans sing holiday songs, enjoy the snow on Hollywood Boulevard, or pay a visit to Santa Claus in Epcot. It’s the most wonderful time of the year.
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