Our Walt Disney World Holiday Guide is a comprehensive post sharing everything that is offered at the parks, Disney Springs, and hotels during the 2026 season. We’ll cover all of the Christmas festivities at the four theme parks, Disney Springs, and the resorts while adding in bits of commentary along the way. There will be entertainment, decor, food, and more to explore during the most wonderful time of the year!

The 2026 holiday season runs from November 13th through January 6th, 2027 with only a couple of things differing from those dates. Walt Disney World hosts two hard-ticket parties, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Magic Kingdom and Jollywood Nights at Hollywood Studios. Both have already started, with Very Merry running until December 22nd and Jollywood Nights ending on January 5th.

Additionally, Epcot’s Festival of the Holidays doesn’t begin until November 27th. There are certain holiday offerings that will be in place before then but that’s when much of the World Showcase entertainment begins.

We’re happy to see everything extend into the first week of January. The season is short compared to the Halloween season even though there is far more to do at Walt Disney World during Christmas time. Here is all of the specialty food that will be offered at the parks during the holidays.

Let’s get to those offerings! We’ll run through each park, sharing what they offer during the holiday season.

Magic Kingdom

The resort’s most popular park rings in the season with beautiful decorations up and down Main Street, U.S.A. Wreaths hang off each side of the street, snow (or snoap) falls nightly, and a gigantic tree will really drive the point home! We’ll continue to mourn the loss of Cinderella Castle’s Dream Lights, as the current lighting package just isn’t nearly as good. But the rest of Main Street, and decor stretching into other lands, looks fantastic! Here’s what else is offered at the park during the holidays.

Frozen Holiday Surprise!

While we’re on the subject of Main Street, Guests can join Frozen friends from Arendelle as Olaf and over 100 of his snowgie siblings add garlands, ornaments, wreaths, and more to Cinderella Castle during Frozen Holiday Surprise! The show features appearances from Anna, Kristoff, and a magical moment from Elsa as she transforms Cinderella Castle into a glowing ice palace. It takes place each night!

We like Frozen Holiday Surprise but don’t love it. It’s a clever way to get the castle all lit up and to see the snow fall on Main Street, but the actual show is not much more than a device for those things.

Jingle Cruise

The world-famous Jingle Cruise returns in 2026 for a festive-yet-familiar adventure, as a trusty skipper expertly navigates guests through some of the world’s most treacherous waters. This ride overlay promises plenty of holiday-themed gags along the 10-minute, 10,000-mile journey.

The fun starts as soon as guests enter the queue. Before boarding your canopied tramp steamer, you’ll see that the skippers have also decorated the loading area with plenty of lights, sights, and sounds for the holidays. Look out for some hidden details as you prepare to board your boat— you never know what you’ll discover next about the shenanigans happening each day at the Jungle Navigation Company.

We really enjoy Jingle Cruise and are glad that it’s seemingly found a permanent holiday home at Magic Kingdom. What’s better than bad jokes while on a boat surrounded by animal animatronics? Bad holiday jokes while surrounded by animal animatronics!

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party

Magic Kingdom’s Christmas Party is a tradition for many guests. At this separately ticketed event, you’ll enjoy festive entertainment, overlays on classic rides, a storybook holiday atmosphere, sweet treats, and so much more. We shared the menus earlier this month and the party is in full swing now, with only a few dates still available to purchase!

Epcot

Almost all of Epcot’s offerings revolve around Festival of the Holidays. This doesn’t start until November 27th, since Food & Wine goes until November 21st. Some decor will be up before then but the rest of Epcot’s offerings start later. Don’t let the shorter dates fool you though, Epcot offers some of the best holiday entertainment around!

Festival of the Holidays

One of our favorite Epcot Festivals showcases holiday traditions around the world, with traditions, food, and decorations featured in each World Showcase Pavilion. This is led by our favorite Walt Disney World Christmas tradition…

Candlelight Processional

One of EPCOT’s most beloved holiday traditions returns with the Candlelight Processional, a moving retelling of the Christmas Story featuring a celebrity narrator accompanied by a live orchestra and massed choir. Performances take place nightly during the EPCOT international Festival of the Holidays, offering a heartfelt way to celebrate the spirit of the season.

2026 Candlelight Processional Narrators:

• Nov. 27 & 28 – Jordan Fisher
• Nov. 29 – Dec. 1 – Gary Sinise
• Dec. 2 & 3 – Benjamin Bratt (NEW)
• Dec. 4 & 5 – Whoopi Goldberg
• Dec. 6 & 7 – Robin Roberts (NEW)
• Dec. 8 & 9 – Jason Kelce (NEW)
• Dec. 10 – 12 – Neil Patrick Harris
• Dec. 13 & 14 – Josh Groban (NEW)
• Dec. 15 & 16 – Lauren Daigle
• Dec. 17 – 19 – Ralph Macchino
• Dec. 20 & 21 – Henry Winkler
• Dec. 22 & 23 – Lacey Chabert (NEW)
• Dec. 24 & 25 – Jodi Benson
• Dec. 26 & 27 – Simu Liu
• Dec. 28 – 31 – Eva Longoria

Here are more details on this exceptional show.

Holiday Storytellers

Storytelling is at the heart of the holiday season and is one of the important ways we build bonds between generations, connecting through tales and legends passed down for hundreds of years. Guests can experience this tradition with the Holiday Storytellers throughout World Showcase.

Each day of the festival, these storytellers will bring holiday tales to life, entertaining and educating guests on how diverse cultures celebrate this special season. Here’s where you can find all of these storytellers.

• Mexico Pavilion – Las Posadas Celebration
• Norway Pavilion – A Mischievous Magical Barn Santa
• China Pavilion – Chinese Lion Dancer
• Germany Pavilion – Adventskalender
• Italy Pavilion – La Befana
• Japan Pavilion – Daruma Storyteller
• Between the Morocco and France Pavilions – Hanukkah Storyteller
• France Pavilion – Père Noël
• United Kingdom Pavilion – Father Christmas
• Canada Pavilion – Canadian Holiday Voyageurs

We love going around to the pavilions and catching at least a few Storytellers each time we’re in Epcot during this season. A few are more elaborate than others, but it’s an entertainment offering that feels very personal.

Guests are also able to meet Santa in Epcot at CommuniCore Hall, as well as Goofy dressed as Santa (no one is getting presents in that alternate timeline where Goofy is actually Santa Claus) in The Odyssey.

JOYFUL! A Celebration of the Season

Get ready to clap along and feel the rhythm of Christmas and Kwanzaa with JOYFUL! A Celebration of the Season. This high-energy performance blends gospel, jazz, and R&B to highlight holiday traditions with a lively, soulful twist. It’s a musical celebration that’s sure to have everyone smiling.

Voices of Liberty Dickens Carolers

The beloved Voices of Liberty return in festive fashion as the Dickens Carolers, performing classic holiday tunes in the style of Victorian-era England. Their rich harmonies and timeless charm make this a can’t-miss performance during your visit.

Epcot’s Decor & Gingerbread Spaceship Earth Display

There’s plenty of holiday decor throughout the park, maybe more than any Walt Disney World park. That includes a beautiful and giant tree near the center of the park, as well as each pavilion having a few extra decorations. Spaceship Earth gets in on the fun, with some special lighting packages for the season.

Be sure to check out the Gingerbread Spaceship Earth display and countdown celebration, where culinary artistry and holiday magic come together in a deliciously detailed creation. It’s a must-see (and must-smell!) experience that celebrates one of Epcot’s most iconic landmarks.

Festival Kitchens

Like all Epcot festivals, this one includes food! We’ll share the menus for the 2026 Festival of the Holidays in the coming days.

Living with the Land – Glimmering Greenhouses

Hop aboard a festive version of Living with the Land during Glimmering Greenhouses! This relaxing boat ride is transformed with twinkling lights and seasonal decor throughout the greenhouses, offering a peaceful and beautiful holiday experience with a unique Epcot twist.

Living with the Land is a treasure no matter the time of year, but the holidays make it extra special! This is a wonderufl ride overlay, not changing the idea of the ride but brightening it up with Christmas lights and decor. We recommend riding this at night, to make you feel all of the warm holiday fuzzies.

Christmas Songs Added to Cosmic Rewind

Living with the Land isn’t the only Epcot holiday overlay this year! Guardians of the Galaxy – Cosmic Rewind will feature a Christmas soundtrack beginning on November 25th. We are unsure if the overlay will be more than that but we’re excited to hear these songs regardless. One of these 3 tracks will play on the ride from November 25th through January 6th:

• “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” by Andy Williams
• “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24” by Trans-Siberian Orchestra
• “Christmas Wrapping” by The Waitresses

All of this makes for a wonderful Festival of the Holidays at Epcot. It’s our favorite Walt Disney World park to experience during the Christmas season.

Hollywood Studios

Step into old Hollywood to see some of the quirkiest decorations Walt Disney World has. A massive, ice cream selling dino with a Santa hat on? They have it! Some creepy looking porcelain dolls in Christmas attire? You bet! The Muppets spreading holiday cheer on a building called Tower of Terror? Absolutely! Hollywood Studios has fun with Christmas decor and the entertainment follows suit!

Holiday Overlay Coming to Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets!

From November 4, 2026 through January 6, 2027, The Electric Mayhem is putting its own spin on the season with Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets: Obligatory Holiday Overlay, a limited-time experience turning their already legendary concert into a festive celebration filled with seasonal tunes and new surprises. Here are the songs that will be used:

• Holiday Road – The Electric Mayhem ft. Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear
• Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) – The Electric Mayhem ft. Jennifer Hudson
• Silver Bells – The Electric Mayhem ft. Cyndi Lauper
• Little Saint Nick – The Electric Mayhem

I’m thrilled to see Walt Disney World add a holiday overlay to the reimagined ride. The Muppets have already improved the coaster and adding some holiday cheer will only make this more memorable!

Holiday Tunes Added to Alien Swirling Saucers

This holiday season, DJ Lilypad is debuting a playlist of new holiday tunes at Alien Swirling Saucers: Lilypad’s Jams. From November 4 to January 6, honorary toys can spin it back with new takes on festive favorites while swirling with everyone’s favorite little green aliens, featuring:

• Deck the Halls
• Toyland
• Swirling, Swirling, Saucers
• Joy to the Swirl

Gaze in Wonder During “Sunset Seasons Greetings”

As night falls, experience the return of Sunset Seasons Greetings at Disney’s Hollywood Studios with nightly holiday projections.

Get ready to play the music and light the lights each evening, as holiday magic transforms the famous Hollywood Tower Hotel into a Muppets gingerbread masterpiece, a Toy Story toy hotel, a snowy corner of Arendelle and a Dickensian village from Mickey’s Christmas Carol.

This is one of our favorite offerings at Hollywood Studios. The projections look great, as do the lights coming off of the Tower. It’s also easy to stop and watch one of these little shows without having to plan any time around it. If you’re in the area then it will be hard to miss!

Classic Disney Holiday Movies at Walt Disney Presents

Walt Disney Presents is shining for the season with a holiday installation celebrating favorite Disney stories. Guests can explore festive displays featuring props and artifacts from beloved holiday films. That includes the Muppet Christmas Carol, which everyone knows is the best Christmas movie.

Once in the attraction’s theater, a few seasonal movies will play! These holiday-themed short films include Walt Disney’s On Ice, Pluto’s Christmas Tree, and The Art of Skiing starring Goofy.

Minnie’s Holiday Dine

Spot Minnie Mouse and friends at Hollywood & Vine during Minnie’s Holiday Dine, which hosts sensational soirees that mix festive music, decor, and tantalizing menu items. Guests of all ages can celebrate the holidays with additional Disney Characters perfectly dressed for the season, while munching on great dishes.

Selections include oven-roasted herbed chicken, carved beef tenderloin, seared salmon, spice-rubbed pork loin, and a plant-based roasted mushroom-farro risotto. Make sure to save room for some showstopping desserts as well, including seasonal bread pudding, Mississippi mud pie, and more. Advance reservations are recommended.

Jollywood Nights

Hollywood Studios also hosts Jollywood Nights, a separately ticketed holiday party that features exclusive entertainment, characters, and more. We love Jollywood Nights and think it’s a holiday party that skews a little more adult compared to Mickey’s Very Merry. Here are the menus for this year’s party as well as more details on what’s new in 2026. Select dates in December are still on sale.

Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom is a surprise winner during the holiday season. The park has a few festive events that make Discovery Island come to life, as well as bits of decor throughout other lands. It’s the cutest of the four parks, thanks in large part to…

Merry Menagerie

For a truly enchanting holiday experience at Disney’s Animal Kingdom amidst beautiful holiday decor, artisan-sculpted puppets of arctic animals come to life around Discovery Island during the Merry Menagerie. Guests can spot penguins, reindeer, foxes, and polar bears, setting up the perfect photo opportunity for your yearly holiday card.

This experience is hard to describe because I can tell someone that “all of these Christmas-y puppets are around” and all I get in return is a blank stare. Yes, I might like puppets more than the average person but I think everyone finds this experience enchanting. The puppeteers do a wonderful job to play for the kids, cameras, and anyone else wanting to interact. Merry Menagerie really livens up Discovery Island during the day.

Tree of Life Awakenings Holiday Edition

After the puppets go to bed, Animal Kingdom’s park icon lights up! A dazzling visual display full of bright colors and animated imagery, the “Tree of Life Awakenings Holiday Edition” lights up Animal Kingdom. This runs each night, once the sun goes down.

Accompanied by a series of wintry tales and a heartwarming holiday-inspired musical score, this holiday evening experience is delightful. The show begins at sunset and occurs approximately every 10 minutes until the park closes, so make sure to catch a quick peek before heading back to your hotel after a day of fun.

Between this and Merry Menagerie, there isn’t a better time in Animal Kingdom’s Discovery Island. Tree of Life Awakenings is beautiful and it’s a shame it doesn’t run year around. The Holiday Edition has some gorgeous vignettes and is a peaceful way to end a day at the park.

Meet Santa & Other Characters

Have a jolly visit with Santa Claus at Santa’s Holiday Grove, which is all new in 2026! Venture across from Finding Nemo: The Big Blue… and Beyond! at Theater in the Wild to find a magical trail with intermittent snow flurries and Santa himself. Explore specialty food and beverage items and enjoy a seasonal soundtrack that will keep your toes tapping.

At Adventurers Outpost, meet and pose for a photo with world travelers Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse at their exploration headquarters, dressed in their best holiday outfits. I mean this as a compliment – Mickey is dressed up like how I picture every recent retiree who goes on a safari and then his wife adds a little bit of Christmas theme to his outfit without him knowing. He looks classy and so does Minnie.

Disney Springs

The holiday fun doesn’t stop at the parks, as Disney Springs gets in on the action with some restaurants, shops, and entertainment!

Disney Springs Christmas Tree Stroll

Discover a wide collection of extravagantly decorated Christmas trees throughout Disney Springs, including elaborately themed Christmas trees inspired by Disney, Pixar Animation Studios, and Star Wars favorites. These trees are spread throughout the shopping district and are easy to stumble upon. There are generally maps to show where each are, as well!

We liked the Christmas Tree Stroll more when it was more condensed to a pathway that was lines with trees. That felt more like an attraction than it does now, where the trees are scattered all over. Even so, the current iteration is fun to see, with all of the different decorations and themes. Even if the Stroll isn’t your purpose for visiting Disney Springs, it’s easy to spot a few Christmas trees along the way.

For even more fun once you’re done searching for your favorite tree, make sure to also check out the magical nightly snowfall in the Town Center. You can get snoap’d, again! Might be good enough to take the place of a shower?

Jock Lindsey’s Holiday Overlay

Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar will be celebrating the holiday season from November 10th through January 11th. I’m not sure what went into the decision to keep the festivities going for an extra weekend relative to the rest of Walt Disney World’s calendar. Maybe it goes to show how well the holiday overlay plays and that Jock Lindsey’s makes more money during that time of year. Either way, I’m happy to see that the bar has a long runtime.

Along with the specialty food that you can see here, this spot will feature plenty of Christmas decor to fit into the backstory. That story, as told by Disney, goes, “Indiana Jones and his easygoing pilot Jock Lindsey stumbled on Disney Springs in 1938 while chasing down a mythology-based tip in Central Florida. Before long, this home base became a popular stopover and watering hole for world travelers and locals alike, full of dusty mementos of glorious holidays gone by.” The bar is a blast anytime of year but is especially fun during this season!

Entertainment and Santa Claus!

During the holiday season, Disney Springs will enter into a winter wonderland full of festive roaming entertainment. On select nights, guests will find a rotating lineup of regional and local bands playing live tunes on first-come, first-served seating at the AdventHealth Waterside Stage.

Santa Claus will also be stopping by Disney Springs through December 24, where you can take festive photos and share holiday wishes with jolly old St. Nick. From November 11 through December 24, 2026, a virtual queue will be in place to meet Santa Claus near Disney’s Pin Traders in Disney Springs (subject to availability).

You can use the My Disney Experience app to enter the virtual queue. A standby queue will not be available. There will be multiple opportunities to enter the virtual queue throughout the day, including:

• 9:00 AM
• 11:00 AM
• 1:00 PM
• 3:00 PM
• 5:00 PM

Looking for even more yuletide fun? Visit Once Upon a Toy where you can write a letter to Santa Claus and mail it directly to the North Pole!

Giant Christmas Trees, Gingerbread Houses, & More at Walt Disney World Resorts

One of our favorite pastimes during the holidays at Walt Disney World is going around to all of the hotel lobbies to see the different decorations. A number of the deluxe resorts have gingerbread displays that are well worth a special trip! The bulk of those are just outside of Epcot, at the Crescent Lake hotels.

Wilderness Lodge, The Grand Floridian, Animal Kingdom Lodge, and Port Orleans – French Quarter are some of our favorite resorts to explore during this season. They all offer their own flair, with gorgeous tress and lights. Wilderness Lodge during Christmas is unmatched in terms of the vibes!

No matter if you’re at Walt Disney World to soak in the Christmas cheer for a week or stopping in at one of the hotels for a meal and to see some decorations for a few hours, the holiday season has something to offer for everyone. It’s our favorite time of year to visit WDW and we hope this guide helps you find offerings that fit how you want to celebrate!

Are you excited for the holidays at Walt Disney World? Let us know, along with any questions you might have, in the comments below. For those planning a trip to Walt Disney World, check out our guide to help you along the way! If you’re looking for discount tickets then this site has you covered. If you enjoy what you are reading here on Wandering in Disney please share this post with your friend and like our social media pages. You can also subscribe to the blog via WordPress or email. All of those links are on the right side of this page. Thank you for reading, we really appreciate it!