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The Walt Disney World Resort is an amazing place to visit during the Christmas season, and Disney Springs is no exception!
Disney Springs is a dining, shopping, and entertainment complex. (If you’ve been to CityWalk at Universal Orlando or Downtown Disney at Disneyland, Disney Springs is similar to those places.) Unlike the theme parks at Disney World, you don’t need a ticket or park reservation to visit Disney Springs.
Disney Springs at Christmas time is a lot of fun. There are a number of entertainment options – and some special Christmas food offerings as well!
We’re going to go over the holiday things to do and the different Christmas treats available. And then we’ll share our advice on the best places to stay if you’d like to visit Disney Springs this holiday season.
Disney Springs Christmas Activities
There are a number of fun things to do at Disney Springs during the holiday season!
Disney Springs Christmas Tree Stroll 2022
The Christmas Tree Stroll is back at Disney Springs in 2022!
In the past, you may have visited its previous version, the Christmas Tree Trail. Prior to 2020, all of the Disney Springs Christmas trees were located in one section so that you could walk down the trail and enjoy them all.
Now, the trees are located at various points throughout Disney Springs. There are 20 Christmas trees in all, each with elaborate, themed decorations. Those themes include:
- Encanto
- Haunted Mansion
- Moana
- Star Wars
- Disney World Annual Passholder
- Frozen
- Mickey & Minnie Mouse
- The Lion King
- The Nightmare Before Christmas
- Raya and the Last Dragon
- Black Panther
- Toy Story
- The Princess and the Frog
- Coco
- Guardians of the Galaxy
- Disney+
- and more!
You can pick up a special map to help you find them all. These maps are distributed at the following locations:
- The BOATHOUSE
- City Works Eatery & Pour House
- Planet Hollywood
- UNIQLO
- Crystal Arts by Arribas Brothers
You can also see the map for yourself here, even before you visit Disney Springs.
How the map works is that once you find a Disney Springs Christmas tree, you place its corresponding sticker on the tree’s location on the map. When you’ve found all the trees, bring your map back to one of those 5 locations, and you’ll receive a special prize!
Meet Santa
Santa is at Disney Springs again this year!
You can meet him at Once Upon A Toy now through December 24, 2022. You’ll need to enter a virtual queue, which has been implemented to keep wait times down. You can join the virtual queue through the My Disney Experience app on your phone.
How it works is you’ll need to be in Disney Springs at 9:00 AM, 12:00 PM (noon), 3:00 PM, or 6:00 PM. At one of those times, select the hamburger icon (the one with three lines) in the bottom right hand corner of the app. Then, scroll down a little to select Virtual Queues.
Choose Join Virtual Queue, and then select Disney Springs to access the Meet Santa Virtual Queue.
Once you’ve joined the queue, you’ll wait for a push notification on your phone. (If you’re like me and you limit which apps can send notifications to your phone, make sure your permissions allow the MDE app to push notifications.)
The push notification will come when it’s your group’s turn. You’ll then need to get in line, but you should be able to spend a lot less time in line than if you had to wait at the toy store the whole time. You’ll also get a digital entry code with the notification. If you are having trouble finding your digital entry code, go back to the Virtual Queue part of the My Disney Experience app using the same steps you did to join it in the first place.
Please note that your group can have up to 10 people.
Holiday Drum Corps and Brass Band
You can enjoy live music in the Town Center section of Disney Springs. The type of music depends on the day of the week you visit. On Sunday through Wednesday, you can listen to drummers keep the beat. And on Thursday through Saturday, a brass band will be playing holiday tunes. This takes places intermittently between 6:00 PM and 10:00 PM. These musical performances will last through December 24.
Stilt Walkers
See impressive stilt walkers (and maybe take some photos) in Town Center, from now through December 25. Toy soldier stilt walkers appear on Sunday through Wednesday. On Thursday through Saturday, you can marvel at holiday ice stilt walkers. Keep an eye out (or up?) for them, as they will appear intermittently between 6:00 PM and 10:00 PM.
Cast In Bronze
This is a truly special music act which features a memorable musical instrument, a Carillon. The Carillon features 23 cast bronze bells (think church bell tower) and is played by using your feet and fists to operate a mechanical keyboard.
Cast in Bronze will be appearing now through December 29 in Aerophile Park, located in the West Side of Disney Springs. Enjoy classic holiday songs Tuesdays through Sundays, played periodically between 6:00 PM and 10:00 PM.
DJ Dance Party
Who doesn’t love an elf who’s also a DJ? And this elf plays music from a strolling DJ sleigh (naturally). You can join the dance party each night between now and December 24 at the following times:
- 6:00 PM
- 7:00 PM
- 8:00 PM
- 9:00 PM
Snow at Disney Springs
There is something so special about experiencing a snowfall in Florida! You can enjoy a nightly “snowfall” in Disney Springs Town Center. This happens several times every night between 6:00 PM and 10:00 PM and will continue through December 25.
Other Entertainment
Whether you visit during the day or at night, there will often be a musical act performing at some point at the AdventHealth Waterside Stage. (This is the stage across from the World of Disney store.) Check the sign behind the Stage’s seating for the day’s performance times.
Disney Springs Christmas Treats
If you’re looking for special Christmas food at Disney Springs, you’re in luck! There are a number of special seasonal snacks and menu items you can enjoy at some of the Disney Springs restaurants.
Disney Springs is divided into 4 sections: Marketplace, The Landing, Town Center, and West Side. Let’s go over where you can find these Christmas treats at Disney Springs. And they will be available between now and January 30, 2023, unless otherwise stated.
Marketplace
Dockside Margaritas
- Candy Cane Margarita – 1800 Silver Tequila, lime juice, peppermint beverage syrup, and a float of cranberry juice
Ghirardelli Soda Fountain and Chocolate Shop
- Peppermint Hot Cocoa (available through December 25)
Marketplace Snacks
- Santa Mickey Mouse Bubble Sundae – Mickey Mouse bubble waffle, Mickey Mouse Santa hat, Chocolate Pocky Stick, chocolate sauce, chocolate cookie pieces, and vanilla soft-serve
Swirls on the Water
- Frozen Hot Chocolate with Peppermint Soft-serve – White chocolate peppermint bark, Peppermint soft-serve, and frozen hot chocolate
- Peppermint Chocolate Bark Soft-serve Nachos – Chocolate soft-serve, Peppermint soft-serve, and waffle chips, with chocolate sauce, M&M’S chocolate candies, and whipped cream on top
The Landing
The Boathouse
- Christmas Old Fashioned – Holiday drink with cranberry simple syrup, Heaven’s Door Whiskey, and rosemary (available through January 15)
The Ganachery
- Gingerbread Ganache Square
- Milk and Dark Chocolate Peppermint Bark
- Minnie Mouse Reindeer Piñata
- Olaf Hot Cocoa Surprise
- Rowdy Reindeer – Milk chocolate reindeer (with alcoholic and non-alcoholic options)
Gideon’s Bakehouse
- Cookie Vom Krampus – A rich triple chocolate cookie, covered in cool chocolate mint and infused with peppermint (available through December 31)
- Kris Kringle Cookie – White chocolate coffee bean cookie with caramel, coconut, and vanilla bean notes topped with magic glitter and coarse sugar crystals (available through December 31)
Jock Lindsey’s Holiday Bar
- Boughs of Holly Flatbread with Ham & Brie – Black forest ham, Brie cheese, pomegranate seed, Granny Smith apples, lemon vinaigrette, and watercress
- Claus Mo – Cosmopolitan, with a Santa hat made out of marshmallow and a strawberry, and with a red sugar rim
- Grandma’s Revenge Venison Sliders – Bacon cranberry jam, venison sausage patty, tomato, and watercress on a Parker House roll
- Here We Come A-Croquetting – Holiday croquettes with stuffing and turkey topped with cranberry jam and bacon and turkey gravy on a bed of pureed sweet potatoes
- Hot Chocolate Grail Flight – Peppermint hot chocolate, white chocolate hot chocolate, and traditional spiced butterscotch hot chocolate
- “Naughty or Nice” Deviled Eggs – These deviled eggs with crispy ham can be “naughty” (with spicy honey glaze) or “nice” (with sweet honey glaze)
- Pomegranate Gin & Tonic – Pomegranate juice, St. Augustine Gin, and tonic soda
- Post-Flight “Milk” and Cookies – Coquito and assorted Christmas cookies
- Yule Mule – Fever Tree Ginger Beer, Bombay Sapphire Gin, rosemary simple syrup, cranberry juice, and holly leaf sugar garnish
Vivoli il Gelato
- Bah Humbug Milkshake – Milkshake with red velvet cake, cake batter gelato, and a red velvet cake on top (available through January 4)
- Santa’s Little Helper Sundae – Two scoops of chocolate, mint chocolate chip, whipped cream, chocolate sauce, and crushed peppermint (available through January 3)
- Spiced Apple Cider Float – Cigar City Homemade Apple Pie Cider and spiced apple cider gelato (available through January 3)
Town Center
Amorette’s Patisserie
- Holiday Mickey Mousse – White and dark chocolate mousse, white chocolate crisp pearls, and chocolate chiffon cake
- Holiday Wreath Pastry – Candied hazelnuts and salted caramel spiced mousse on top of a gingerbread cookie cake
- Ornament Mousse Dome Cake – A graham cracker chiffon cake with hot chocolate mousse and toasted marshmallow on top
- Santa Clause Petit Cake – Chocolate chiffon cake, vanilla mousse, and chocolate chip cookie cake
Please note that while it isn’t specifically holiday themed, taking a cake decorating class at Amorette’s Patisserie is a fun thing to do while at Disney Springs.
D-Luxe Burger
- Bacon & Blue Burger – Bacon, blue cheese crumble, two pressed signature blend patties, onion jam, tomato, and lettuce on a Parker House roll
- Peppermint Cookies & Cream Shake – Peppermint beverage syrup, cookie crumbles, and vanilla gelato
West Side
Everglazed Donuts & Cold Brew
- Half Dozen Christmas Donuts – 6 yeast donuts decorated with luscious buttercream, holly jolly edible décor, and colorful toppings with seasonal images (available through December 31)
Splitsville Luxury Lanes
- Poinsettia Spritz -Cocktail made with allspice dram liqueur, fresh lemon juice, prosecco, sugar plum jam, and plum-infused vodka (available through January 2)
Throughout Disney Springs
At Carts and Kiosks
- Mickey Mouse Snow Globe Sipper Cup
- Musical Holiday Tin Premium Bucket
At Outdoor Bars
- Fireside Cider – Stoli Vanilla Vodka, Fireball Whiskey, grenadine, ginger ale, white cranberry juice, and garnished with a half rim of cinnamon sugar
- Red-Nosed Margarita – Cointreau, cranberry juice, pomegranate juice, lime juice, sweet and sour, pure cane syrup, and Patron Silver
Where to Stay Near Disney Springs
My family loves staying at an official Disney World hotel in the Disney Springs area. You get to enjoy boat transportation to Disney Springs, which we find more peaceful and enjoyable than a bus ride.
There are two deluxe Disney resorts near Disney Springs:
If you’d like to stay at either of these hotels, we highly recommend using David’s Vacation Club to book your stay and have had great experiences using them. In fact, we just stayed at Old Key West a couple of weeks ago thanks to David’s Vacation Club! You can find great prices that are often more in line with what you’d pay at a value resort if you booked directly through Disney World.
The two moderate resorts close to Disney Springs are:
These are beautiful hotels that, like Old Key West and Saratoga Springs, have boat transportation to and from Disney Springs. Unlike Old Key West and Saratoga Springs, though, you cannot book them through David’s Vacation Club. We’ve used Undercover Tourist to stay at Port Orleans in the past as they also offer more affordable prices.
In addition to the official onsite Disney World resorts, there are a number of other hotels that are within walking distance of Disney Springs:
- Holiday Inn Orlando
- B Resort & Spa
- Wyndham Lake Buena Vista
- Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista
- Drury Plaza Hotel Orlando – Disney Springs Area
- DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando
- Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista
- Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace
