The holidays are just around the corner, and whether you’re looking to spend a few days in the snow, lounge by the beach, or browse colorful Christmas markets, many of the best hotels for Christmas are already stringing up lights and decking the halls to create a magical holiday environment for families.
The Best Hotels for Christmas Getaways
It’s not too late to take advantage of these festive seasonal promotions, either. From viewing holiday decorations and light displays to enjoying breakfast with Santa, there’s so much to do at these Christmas-themed hotels for the holidays.
FIND A DEAL: 10 Best Hotel Booking Sites for Cheap Prices
1. Hotel del Coronado
Coronado, California
With its bright white exterior and rust-red roof, California’s Hotel del Coronado is already one of the most visually striking hotels in the country. But during the holiday season (from about mid-November through January 1), the hotel takes things up another notch with more than 2,000 ornaments, 10,000 lights, and 20 themed Christmas trees.
POLAR EXPRESS: 10 Christmas Train Rides Guaranteed to Get You in the Holiday Spirit
With a beachfront ice skating rink and rink-side lounges with fire pits and food and drink service, you can enjoy a classic winter wonderland experience right on the California coast. Nightly light shows, holiday movies on the beach, photos with Santa, and a New Year’s Eve masquerade cement The Del’s place as one of the best hotels for Christmas.
2. Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center
Aurora, Colorado
Gaylord hotels around the country are known for their “ICE!” experiences themed around the classic holiday films like A Christmas Story or A Charlie Brown Christmas. At Gaylord Rockies Resort, you can combine that frozen fun with snow-capped mountain views for the ultimate Christmas setting.
SEASON’S GREETINGS: 10 Magical Christmas Vacations for Families
Inside the Gaylord Rockies Resort, you’ll find two million pounds of colorful carved ice sculptures depicting scenes and characters from A Charlie Brown Christmas, along with kid-friendly activities and attractions like slides made entirely of ice. When it’s time to warm up, families can enjoy making s’mores around the fire, building a gingerbread house, or trying to break out of a holiday-themed escape room. This year’s ICE! celebration runs from November 18 through January 1.
3. Eau Palm Beach Resort and Spa
Palm Beach, Florida
If your idea of the perfect Christmas getaway is escaping to one of Florida’s best beach resorts, the Eau Palm Beach Resort and Spa should be at the top of your list. Starting a few days before Christmas (on December 21), adults can enjoy a holiday cocktail class while the kids visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus. This sunny retreat also offers a holiday breakfast buffet on Christmas Eve and a Christmas brunch on Christmas day.
NO HIDDEN FEES: 7 Best Florida All-Inclusive Resorts for Families
The seasonal festivities keep going through New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, too. Enjoy a Champagne toast at midnight while the kids have a pajama party they’ll never forget in the resort’s Loggers Kids Club.
4. Primland Resort, Auberge Resorts Collection
Meadows of Dan, Virginia
Situated in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Primland Resort is a collection of luxury cottages, tree houses, and an upscale lodge brimming with rustic charm. The resort kicks off the holiday season with a Thanksgiving 5K around its onsite golf course, but that’s just the beginning. Its holiday experience also includes s’mores by the fire pit, cozy holiday drinks, and steaming hot toddies for the adults.
WINTER WONDERLANDS: 11 Best Winter Vacations in the U.S. for Families
Throughout November and December, guests can take part in a private Wine and Wreath Workshop, learning to make festive wreaths while sipping on a curated selection of wines. And from December 15 to 24, you can have a Christmas tree set up in your room for the duration of your holiday stay at The Primland. Cocktails and live music at the Great Hall are a prelude to Christmas Eve and Christmas Day prix fixe dinners.
5. The French Quarter Inn
Charleston, South Carolina
Lowcountry charm and Southern hospitality are on full display during the holiday season at Charleston’s French Quarter Inn. When Christmastime arrives, the hotel decks the halls with its famed Sleigh Bell Suite, which is decorated with a Christmas tree, garland, lights, and even mistletoe.
GREAT OUTDOORS: 13 Best National Parks for Families to Visit in Winter
Every evening, freshly baked cookies with milk can be enjoyed next to the roaring fireplace. And for something a little stronger than milk, there’s also a bourbon-spiced eggnog station right in the room.
6. The Driskill
Austin, Texas
Austin’s The Driskill has been welcoming guests to the city’s downtown since 1886. This holiday season, the hotel will start decking the halls for Christmas with a tree lighting ceremony accompanied by live music and cocktails on December 1. The 16-foot tree keeps the lobby jolly and bright all season long, and kids will love mixing and mingling around the lobby’s gingerbread village, decorated by the children at Dell Children’s Hospital and the hotel staff.
LONE STAR STATE: 9 Best Family Resorts in Texas with Kid-Friendly Amenities
Over the holidays, the hotel’s famous Afternoon Tea service gets new seasonal flavors paired with bottomless tea. As night falls, adults can head to the Driskill Bar for seasonal cocktails and live music.
7. The Roosevelt
New Orleans, Louisiana
A beacon of the holiday season in the bayou, the opulent Roosevelt New Orleans is decorated to the nines with rows of sparkling lights and trees (to say nothing of its holiday brunches). But what really makes this one of the best hotels for the holidays is its signature Teddy Bear Tea, in which families are greeted by Santa and Mrs. Claus before sitting for traditional tea service.
ESCAPE THE COLD: 14 Best Indoor Water Park Resorts in the U.S.
During the tea, which features sweet and savory delights as well as sparkling wine for the adults, Santa and friends will share stories and take photos with the kids. At the end of the celebration, each child gets a Roosevelt teddy bear to take home.
8. The Plaza New York
New York, New York
Already one of the most iconic hotels in the country, The Plaza New York goes above and beyond with its annual holiday season festivities. But what else would you expect from the hotel made famous to moviegoers everywhere with its starring role in the Christmas classic, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York?
JOY OF GIVING: 16 Travel Gifts for Someone Whose Passport Goes with Them Everywhere
This Christmas season, the celebration kicks off on November 29 with the hotel’s Christmas tree lighting. Throughout November and December, guests can partake in holiday afternoon tea and browse at a pop-up shop themed to the beloved story Eloise at The Plaza. (For an extra dose of storybook charm, book a stay at the hotel’s popular Eloise Suite.)
Staying at The Plaza also means you’re in the middle of the best of what New York City has to offer for the holidays, including the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting (November 30) and The Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring The Rockettes.
9. Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa
Orlando, Florida
Nowhere else in the world celebrates the holidays quite like the Orlando theme parks. At Walt Disney World, whimsical theme park decorations and very merry Christmas celebrations take center stage, and the Disney hotels in Orlando always get in on the seasonal fun too.
DISNEY MAGIC: Everything You Need to Know about Disney Genie and Genie+
At Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, guests are greeted by the smell of fresh gingerbread and a towering Christmas tree as they enter the lobby. There’s a full-sized gingerbread house decorated by Disney’s talented pastry chefs, which doubles as a fun place to get holiday treats like Mickey-shaped gingerbread cookies.
10. InterContinental The Willard Washington D.C.
Washington D.C.
Stepping into The Willard during the holidays is like stepping into a scene from a Christmas movie. Strands of lighted garland, bright red poinsettias, and towering Christmas trees fill the hotel, and at the Round Robin Bar guests can delight in holiday cocktails, including an exclusive in-house barrel-aged bourbon Negroni.
LEARN TO SKI: 11 Best Family Ski Resorts in the U.S. for Kids and Beginners
Thanksgiving and Christmas Day will see a full brunch spread for guests. If you plan on staying anytime from December 1 through 23, you can enjoy a full choir singing the songs of the season each night from 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.
