Jolly Creek Holiday Festival & Marketplace Offers Fantastic Entertainment in a Laid-Back Setting for the 2020 Season

November 22, 2020 Denise Boggy Creek Airboats, Jolly Creek

Hi everyone!

We were invited out to media night at the Jolly Creek Holiday Festival & Marketplace, in its first year at Boggy Creek Airboat Adventures. The event runs on select nights through January 2nd, 2021. Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect except that the Jolly Creek Society Orchestra would be playing (the orchestra members are best known for playing for 30 years at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort) and that there would be other entertainment. This event runs many nights through November and December and tickets can be found here.

Here is a look at the event! We will have a video overview in the next day or so posted (and embedded here).

This may have been my first time here, although Boggy Creek Airboat Rides is a popular location for tourists. The event is next to the swamp where airboats go out, and we heard them occasionally during the event (we were invited to ride but didn’t due to the rain).

The decorations and lights are festive for the season.

The first thing we did was meet Santa.

Santa was sitting in an airboat and greeting guests from a distance.

There is a sign for Boggy Creek Airboat Rides.

We have seen Santa around the theme parks, and guests can take photos with him here. While guests and most staff & performers wear masks, Santa did not (I wish he did).

The location feels so much like it is in the middle of nowhere, but it is nicely set up for an event like this and looked pretty with all the lights.

There are also baby alligators to the right hand side.

The performances were all fantastic! There are three different groups that perform, but not each night. The Grand Floridian Society Orchestra is the one constant. Most nights you also can see either the Vocalitas (below) or the Mistletones. The entertainment schedule is out and you can choose a date based on who is there.

It is nice to see live music – great live music.

The highlight was seeing the Jolly Creek Society Orchestra. During their second set, they played through a light rain. The chairs had been full during the first set while we sat in a bench further back.

Jolly Creek helps support local entertainers as well as businesses.

There was a lot of energy on media night.

There was a lot of snoap also (mixed in with the rain).

A fake alligator was covered in it.

There are drinks available for purchase, and everything was reasonably priced.

There are some food items also for purchase. We had the opportunity to try a couple of items. The tots with turkey is actually really good! If we went back, I would probably order the turkey sandwich.

There are social distancing reminders. I was asked a few times about how comfortable I was at the event in regards to safety. First, we had our temperatures taken. Masks are required. I don’t know how busy it will be on a normal night, but I found a bench pretty far back to watch music from and felt good staying there for a while. Bring an umbrella if it might rain – one area got a bit crowded briefly when it started raining (better to have your own cover). It was a mostly comfortable, relaxed evening.