The first shipment of ice arrived today, and is now being stored inside the "Florida Fridge" Today's ice was delivered on 32 pallets that were transported in two refrigerated semi-trailers.
The ice for ICE! is created using a special "recipe" (yes, this ice has a recipe!), and it will arrive in 36 truckloads over a 21-day period, about as fast as the ice factory can produce it. In the end, nearly two million pounds of ice will be used to create this cool Orlando attraction.
Three types of ice are used in the construction of ICE!, the attraction at Gaylord Palms:
So, you need about two million pounds of ice to create ICE!
Not just any ice... about 5,000 blocks made to your exact specifications, including ten different colors (above). And some of the ice has to be so clear it could mistaken for Waterford Crystal.
Where do you go?
You go to Georgia.
Right over the Florida border, you'll find an ice factory in Adair, the supplier of the namesake material for the Gaylord Palms attraction. Beginning mid-October, the ice makes the journey across the Sunshine State to Kissimmee via freezer trucks. Specifically, two truckloads a day for 15 days.
The specifications (and recipes) for the ice are exact:
White ice: To get this opaque ice, the blocks are frozen quickly, in about a day and a half. By freezing the block under these conditions, the water molecules don’t have time to line up, and freeze haphazardly, creating white ice. This is similar to what ice cubes at home might look like. In the attraction, it is often used to represent snow, like on top of these mountains in last year's Penguin Pointe scene.
Clear ice: This ice is made of extremely pure water. In fact, the water is first de-ionized and is highly filtered, resulting in pure H20 without any additives whatsoever. This block is then frozen very slowly, over about 3 day's time. In addition, the temperature remains constant, just below 32 degrees F. This "perfect storm" allows the water molecules to line up perfectly and create pristine glass-like ice.
Colored ice: These giant popsicle-like blocks are made with simple food coloring that is added during the freezing process. Although it sounds simple, there's a catch. The water must be constantly stirred to ensure a consistent color throughout the block when it is cut.
When you visit ICE!, you'll now be able to marvel at its beauty AND know where the ice began!
After this year's ICE! orientation, the entire team retreated to the Florida Fridge for a group photo. Yes, it takes a whole lot of people to make ICE! and ICE! Skating a reality!
Click the photo to see a larger version.
At the exit to ICE!, Gaylord Palms features a popular retail shop called "ICE! House Gifts."
The shop is a labor of love for Gaylord Palms Retail Manager Carol Frisch, who spends the entire year searching for the hottest holiday gift items.
Many visitors to ICE! comment that they look forward to the shop almost as much as the ICE! attraction! Now that's incredible!
Here are a few of our favorite items found on this year's shelves:
Gnomes, gnomes everywhere! Last year, the store's "gnome population" flew off the shelves. This year, Carol included The Roaming Gnome, from the Travelocity commercials (and also star of Gaylord Palms' Hidden Holiday Gnome Hunt!)
What is a Florida Christmas season without... flamingos! You'll find dozens of these pink birds here, including several Christmas ornaments.
The shelves are filled with elaborate decorations for the home!
If you love to visit ICE!, tell the world with these "flashy" pins. They are also available with other sayings, including NAUGHTY, NICE, QUEEN, and PRINCESS!
With the hit "Penguin Pointe" scene, these birds are bound to be popular. This year, you'll find plenty of penguins to purchase.
Our favorite? Anything that requires you to push a button to hear a song play!
Every year, we celebrate the first guests to visit ICE! For the past few years, it has been a Florida resident. For instance, in 2005, it was the Mays Family of Palm Bay, Florida. The couple was staying at Gaylord Palms for the weekend, enjoying a holiday package with their grandchildren.
This year, our first official guests came all the way from England! The group included Mike and Mary Daniels, traveling with Jessica and Mia-Mai (21 months old). The family was very excited to visit, and little Mia-Mai was eagerly anticipating the scene featuring her favorite animal... penguins!
Here's a shot of Mia-Mai and her grandfather checking out the live webcam feed of Penguin Pointe:
As one of the premiere art events in Central Florida, ICE! is a big deal to the local community. Ever year, we celebrate the newest design with a special VIP & Media Family Preview. It's our way of kicking off the Christmas season in Orlanod. Consequently, Sunday Night was the official (pre-opening) premiere of the ICE! attraction, as well as "Luminescence - A Christmas Fantasy."
Here are a few pictures from this year's event:
The attraction quickly came to life as dozens of families took their first "road trip" through ICE! And we're proud to report that the new "record-breaking" ice slides got a universal "thumbs up" from this group!
The show "Luminescence - A Holiday Fantasy" wowed the group, too. The Orlando Sentinel even mentioned the premiere in their popular theme park blog.
More pictures after the jump...
Three types of ice are used in the construction of ICE!, the attraction at Gaylord Palms:
Carving inside Orlando's ICE! attraction is going well! Wow! This year's design is so much fun. Here are a few fun photos we snapped this week, without giving away too many secrets:
Penguins have invaded the all-new slide area:
This giant ice cream cone towers over your head! Candy Land is amazing!
The Winter Wonderland gazebo will make an excellent photo spot... it's also a romantic place for our new marriage proposal program!
More to come! Also, watch for updates about Christmas in Orlando and Christmas events at Disney theme parks at the website ChristmasInOrlando.com
First the bad joke:
Q. What kind of glue is most popular inside this year's ICE! attraction?
A. That's easy: igloo.
Get it? Go ahead and groan.
Speaking of this subject, here are a few pictures of the amazing walk-through igloo that is currently under construction at the Orlando ICE! attraction.
Now, the neat trick:
Q. What kind of glue is most popular inside the ICE! attraction?
A. You'd be surprised to learn that it's ordinary water! Yup... H20! At 9 degrees cold, the water quickly freezes, adhering one piece of ice to another while forming a solid bond. Elmer's has nothing on us! In the 9-degree Florida Fridge, that's all it takes to get two pieces of ice to stick to one another.
In fact, when visiting last week, we found two of the artisans "gluing" shutters onto the colorful new Candy Land house:
First, they placed out the yellow shutters, which were created by slicing a piece of ice from a larger block of colored ice. One of the artisans then sprinkled "snow" onto the surface (below).
His partner then used the magic "water glue," carefully poured from a time-worn metal pot (below).
Finally, the two then carefully lifted the shutter onto the Candy Land house facade, where it stuck with no problem.
Water as glue? Just one more reason why you shouldn't lick the ice when visiting.
