Some may grumble about the early arrival of the holidays, year after year, but consider this: Ocean liners have long been grumbling exempt.
Here's why: When crew is prepping a ship to head out on a long voyage, items needed in the coming months are loaded. Meaning that an ocean liner disembarking in October or November is, yes, probably hauling holiday decorations.
Thus a pre-Thanksgiving kick-off to the festive proceedings is entirely fitting with a certain landmark Long Beach boat's past. The Queen Mary's holiday season opens on Friday, Nov. 22 with the start of Chill.
Though Chill is a bit more wintry than holiday in theme. Picture great sculptures made of ice and ice slides and an ice rink and ice tubing and an icy replica of the ship (smaller scale, natch). Picture "The Nutcracker," too, told through shimmery artworks, and picture ice creations that tower (some up to two-and-a-half stories).
You might have constructed huge snowmen during your lifetime, but were they over two stories tall? If they were, we doff our ear muffs to you.
Oh, and if you're pondering "gloves or not?" before your visit, let's suggest that you land very much on the side of "gloves." It's nine degrees Fahrenheit inside the igloo.
Chill'll keep it super, uh, chill through Sunday, Jan. 5. And is there a Chill-related stay-over deal going on? Of course. We only phrased that as a question to be cheeky, because one feels a little cheeky during the sprightliest time of the year.
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But if you're looking for straight-up Christmas tradition, be aboard the ship on Wednesday, Dec. 4. That's when the big tree gets lit up, and it does feel, in a way, that you're back on the Queen Mary, say, in December of 1952.
Holiday traditions and regal ocean liners? They're a longtime twosome that will twinkle on for a good many years to come.
