Snowbird Christmas: Holidays in Florida (AP)
ORLANDO – If you're one of those snowbirds who heads to Florida this time of year, you'll find lots of holiday displays — even without the cold weather.
St. Augustine celebrates Nights of Lights through Jan. 31 with light displays, a Winter Wonderland area with ice skating, a refrigerated ice slide, and sleigh rides. St. Augustine Historic Inns is sponsoring a Bed and Breakfast Holiday Tour Dec. 12-13, with a dozen inns showing off their holiday decorations each day. Each inn partners with a local culinary establishment to provide a signature treat for participants, and most will offer opportunities to meet local artists. Old Town Trolley provides free transportation for tour participants who prefer to ride instead of walking to each inn on the tour. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased online at http://www.staugustinebandbtour.com.
In Delray Beach, a 100-foot-tall artificial tree, lit Dec. 3 with 15,000 lights, is a holiday centerpiece at Old School Square. A holiday parade follows on Dec. 12 with 70 floats along Atlantic Avenue.
In Orlando, balloons and floats from Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City are on display for a daily Christmas parade at Universal Studios, Dec. 5-Jan. 1. A holiday concert series at Universal features Mannheim Steamroller (Dec. 5), Chris Isaak (Dec. 12), and Natalie Cole (Dec. 19). And at Universal's Islands of Adventure, Seuss Landing turns into Grinchmas, with live performances of "How The Grinch Stole Christmas," Dec. 5-Jan. 1. For more information, visit http://www.universalorlando.com.
Also in Orlando, guests at Walt Disney World can attend Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, a separately ticketed event at Magic Kingdom, which this year includes a new stage show, "A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas!" Also at Magic Kingdom, Cinderella Castle is adorned with 200,000 sparkling crystals as part of the Castle Dreamlights holiday display; the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights offers colorful lit-up and animated displays at Disneys Hollywood Studios, and a lifesize, 16-foot-high gingerbread house can be seen in the lobby of Disneys Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. At Epcot, you can learn about international traditions at Holidays Around the World, and hear the Christmas story told by celebrity narrators like Whoopi Goldberg and Abigail Breslin, with a choir and live orchestra, as part of the Candlelight Processional. Dates for some events vary; check http://www.disneyworld.com/holidays.