TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – The Downtown Tampa Winter Village, presented by the Tampa Bay Lightning, will open for the holiday season on Nov. 18 at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park.
The winter village, complete with its outdoor ice rink, will open for its sixth season and will feature a new winter pastime of street curling.
Visitors can slide in to Tampa’s version of curling for free on a special non-frozen court that simulates ice. The experience will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.
The winter village will once again be filled with activities, shops, festive food and drink options and nightly holiday light shows.
Tickets to ice skate, which include skate rental, must be purchased online in advance.
Shopping and dining options include the Café at Winter Village, which features food from the Icicles Craft Kitchen, Kahwa Coffee, Whatever Pops and specialty drinks.
Nightly 360-degree light shows can be enjoyed at the top of the hour from 7-10 p.m.
The Curtis Hixon Choo-Choo, presented by TGH Children’s Hospital, will return. The 12-seat, three-car trackless train will make loops around the park Fridays through Sundays from 5-10 p.m.
The Winter Village Express will also return. The family-friendly streetcar excursion takes guests from Downtown’s Whiting Station to Ybor City and back. The trip is one hour and features a holiday sing-along, holiday trivia, milk and cookies and more surprises. The Winter Village Express runs on Sunday evenings can tickets can be purchased online in advance.
Santa sightings will take place on Dec. 2, 9 and 16, where guests can meet jolly ol’ Saint Nick and Mrs. Claus and pose for photos.
Tampa Theatre will present two holiday classic movie showings at the park. “Arthur Christmas” will be shown Nov. 19 and “Disney’s A Christmas Carol (2009)” will be shown on Dec. 16. Both movies begin at 7 p.m.
The Downtown Tampa Winter Village will be open Monday through Friday from 4-11 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. through Jan. 4. During school holiday breaks, the village will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
A team-based curling league will begin Nov. 30 and run through Dec. 28 in collaboration Rec Rec and Shuffle Tampa. Registration is $200 and can be reserved online. The league will meet weekly on Wednesdays from 6-10 p.m.
