It still feels like T-shirt-and-shorts season outside. But step inside Moody Gardens’ Ice Land: Christmas Around the World, where you’ll be handed a thick winter coat and gloves and suddenly, you’re being transported to winter around the world.
It takes 37 days to build this frozen Christmas playground. What you walk into is a jaw-dropping, globe-hopping ice adventure—full of color, detail, and pure holiday magic.
I stopped by Ice Land on Thursday to check in on the artists as they race to finish everything by next Friday, the 21st, just in time for opening day on November 22nd. It was 83 degrees outside and then I stepped inside… straight into a freezer.
While I was thawing out my fingers, these master carvers were in their element, shaping enormous blocks of ice. Watching them work is like watching a composer bring a symphony to life, big, bold cuts to set the structure, then delicate chiseling and rasping to create all the tiny details.
The results are stunning: intricate figurines, sweeping landscapes, and icy scenes that catch the holiday lights and explode them into shimmering color. Because the whole experience is indoors, everything stays perfectly preserved and beautifully lit. And trust me, you’ll feel the warm-outside, freezing-inside contrast the second you zip up your coat and step into this frosty world.
This isn’t your average weekend craft project. Moody Gardens brings in 2 million pounds of ice to build Ice Land. That’s 7,000 giant blocks, each tipping the scale at 300 pounds, all hauled in from College Station.
Then come the artists, 30 master carvers from Harbin, China, the world-renowned capital of ice carving. They show up with chainsaws, hand tools, and serious skill. Over 37 intense days, they turn those frozen blocks into unbelievable sculptures, scenes, and characters.
And here’s the fun twist: those vibrant colors in the ice? They’re created using milk.
Visitors glide past scenes from the North Pole, Big Bend, Egypt, China, and (of course) the United States, all sculpted inside a giant tent kept at a bone‑chilling 9 degrees! That’s not a typo: it’s 9 degrees inside the tent, while the world outside stays noticeably warmer. It’s the ultimate holiday contrast, cocoa in hand, breath visible like a little cloud, and sculptures that catch light like frozen stained glass.
The result is the largest indoor holiday ice sculpture attraction in the United States, and the 11th annual Ice Land Experience proves it keeps getting better. Oh, and there’s a fun ice slide for the kids, because someone has to test how slippery that masterpiece really is. This is a picture from last year when I visited with my family.
If you’re craving a holiday outing that feels like stepping straight into a giant snow globe, this is the one. It’s warm outside, wonderfully frozen inside, and every turn is another “wait, take a picture of me here!” moment. If you want a mix of art, wonder, and just enough teeth-chattering cold to make it feel like real winter (the fun kind), you’ve found your spot.