Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens
Transforms into Shimmering Winter Wonderland on Dec. 2
Transforming into a magical winter wonderland, Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens unveils its spectacular holiday display, rich in tradition and filled with picture-perfect botanical creations, on Dec 2. In the center of it all, a magnificent holiday tree will stand tall sending gazes soaring while musical sounds and seasonal colors evoke the holiday spirit.
The majestic centerpiece of the winter exhibit, a stately 42-foot Shasta White Fir, will be decorated with more than 1,700 gold and silver holiday ornaments and ablaze in more than 13,500 twinkling white lights. Beneath the holiday tree, floating ornaments will bobble along a lazy river, which will be enclosed by thousands of bright-red poinsettias. Overhead, 24 over-sized gold and silver bells will hang gracefully from the Conservatory’s all-glass ceiling.
“The winter display at Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens is our most popular display of the year, exhibiting the spirit and traditions of the holiday season,” said Randy Morton, President and COO of Bellagio. “Each day more than 22,000 visitors visit the Conservatory to enjoy this spectacular setting and commemorate a special time of year.”
New to the display this year, a group of five animated penguins will ice skate on a patch of arctic terrain among a life-like family of 34 adult and baby penguins. An animated penguin will examine the construction blueprints for an igloo “in progress” while another will be hard at work as it moves blocks of faux ice between its flippers.
In the north garden, a scene of family bonding will play out with a trio of topiary polar bears adorned with “fur” coats made of more than 35,000 hand-applied white carnations. A whimsical five-car toy train, equipped with a live webcam, will whirl on its tracks in the midst of three illuminated white trees.
Upon entering the Conservatory, a brick-lined path will be surrounded by pink and red poinsettias, inviting guests to stroll underneath eight streams of dancing water and two pergolas adorned with sparkling white lights. In the Giardini corner, a floral greeting card made of more than 3,000 carnations, will bestow well wishes for the holiday season.
Inquisitive guests strolling through the Conservatory are invited to visit with Bellagio horticulturists designated as “Mr. and Mrs. Green Thumb” from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. daily to receive holiday decorating tips along with additional information about the exhibit.
On view through Jan. 2, 2012, the winter exhibit within Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens is complimentary to the public and open seven days a week, 24 hours a day.
Winter Exhibit Fast Facts: Display dates: Dec. 2, 2011 – Jan. 2, 2012 Total flowers on display for duration of the exhibit: 43,000 Total types of flowers on display: 14 Total plants and shrubs on display for duration of the exhibit: 350 Holiday Tree: Origin Mount Shasta, Calif. Height 42 feet Lights Approx. 13,500 Ornaments Over 1,800 Penguins: 34, of which nine are animated Polar bears Covered with hand-applied white carnations Father bear: 18,000 flowers Mother bear: 12,000 flowers Baby bear: 5,000 flowers Bellagio’s Conservatory & Botanical Gardens’ 2012 Calendar- Chinese New Year: Year of the Dragon Exhibit: January 9 – March 3
- Spring Celebration: March 11 – May 13
- Summer Garden Party: May 21 – September 8
- Autumn Display: September 16 – November 24
- Winter Display: December 2 – January 5, 2013