The Gaylord Texan in Grapevine dropped the news Thursday morning that Harry Potter is coming to town. The resort will debut “ice! featuring Harry Potter” as the marquee attraction in this year’s Lone Star Christmas. Martha Neibling, the resort’s director of marketing and public relat ions, said putting Harry on ice has never before been done, and Texas gets it first. “I think this is one of the most popular locations in the country for our ice experience. We have so many local families that have made it a tradition to come here year after year,” Neibling said. A rendering shows how elements inspired by the wizarding world will come to life in 2 million pounds of hand-carved ice. “Luckily, working directly with the Harry Potter team at Warner Bros, they’ve gone through so much effort to get everything exactly right, which I think is what is going to make fans love it so very much,” Neibling said. “But there’s already been so much speculation around this theme coming. We’ve had so many people chatting and hoping and praying that it’s going to be Harry Potter this year. So we’ve been just waiting to get to today so we can finally announce this really exciting news.” Some of that speculation Neibling talked about came from a filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation back in June. Details included a project called “ICE Event 2026-Harry Potter” at a cost of slightly more than $1,000,000. Artisans arrive from China in October to start sculpting the ice blocks into beloved characters like Hedwig and iconic scenes such as Hogsmeade Station and the Forbidden Station. The 9-degree ice! experience and the 22nd annual Lone Star Christmas run November 13th through January 3rd.Starting today, visitors can purchase tickets or book early bird packages online. ...read more read less