'Tis the season for hotels to deck their halls with winter wonderlands and grandiose displays dedicated to the magic of Christmas.
From life-size gingerbread houses to intricate Christmas light shows, these seven hotels are spreading holiday cheer with their decorations this month.
Guests can enjoy a coastal Christmas in Galveston, Texas, with the Grand Galvez's decorations throughout its 100-year-old halls. The hotel's high tea service has a holiday twist for the rest of the year, as does the weekly brunch, including a special Christmas Day brunch that includes a 150-foot spread of seafood, desserts, meats, sides and more.
Omni Hotels rolled out a cohesive effort to Christmas decor across its properties — with all of them lighting their trees simultaneously. The Omni Homestead in Hot Springs, Virginia, features a special pop-up bar, Blitzen's, with specialty cocktails designed by award-winning mixologist Julie Reiner. There are also two special booking packages — Magical Memories, featuring a discount and a food-and-beverage credit, and Santa's Landing with cozy holiday decor.
The hotel team at the Four Seasons Hotel Houston is providing a plethora of programming for guests and Houstonians alike to enjoy throughout the month of December. These special events include carolers, gingerbread tea service, Christmas brunch, mahjong game nights and more. Additionally, the hotel's food-and-beverage concepts are offering specialty cocktail and coffee menus featuring winter flavors.
New York City in December is magical at every turn, and The Peninsula held nothing back this year with a slew of special events, dining options and add-on packages to make each guest's stay merry and bright. The Peninsula Spa & Wellness Center also has three Holiday Retreat of Warmth and Wellness packages that guests can indulge in to rest and recharge from the city's Christmas chaos.
Of course, the Bellagio's lights stun year round on the Las Vegas Strip, but each season the 14,000-square-foot Botanical Gardens is transformed into a special showcase. This year's holiday display features The Bellagio Express, a Christopher Radko-inspired toy train guided by Elvie the Elf. The nostalgic decorations also include a storybook gingerbread house and the Peppermint Express, a snack cart with popcorn, hot chocolate, and peppermint bark.
Each year, Gaylord Hotels converts five resorts into holiday destinations, and the Gaylord Opryland Resort's transformation begins in July when the first lights are hung and continues into early November. The Nashville hotel's display includes over 5 million lights, 15 miles of garland, a 48-foot Christmas tree and thousands of poinsettias. In addition to the decor, the hotel offers performances, ice skating, ice tubing and more.
For more than 100 years, the Fairmont San Francisco has decked its halls for Christmas, and the hotel's biggest delight is its two-story, life-sized gingerbread house that's constructed by artist Gary Walton. He uses more than 8,000 gingerbread bricks, pipe icing made from 1,000 pounds of powdered sugar and 150 gallons of egg whites, and 1,900 pounds of candy to build and decorate the house. Parties of up to 10 people can book dinner or tea service inside the house that sits next to a 23-foot Christmas tree in the main lobby.