I used to love Christmas but in recent years the season has mostly left me feeling a bit flat. My children are all grown up and so there's no excited little ones performing nativities or concerts and they are more interested in a lie in than getting up to see if Santa has been. But this year I got an early boost to my festive spirit at Blenheim Palace where only the worst Scrooges would declare:" Bah, Humbug."
You can choose to do as little or as much as you like but I recommend making a day of it to get the full festive feels. Let me tell you what to do and see.
Inside the famous historic palace there's a walk-though Wonderful Wizard of Oz-esque experience. From flying monkeys to a peek of the "wizard" himself this is a nostalgic walk along the yellow brick road with lots to excite and entertain all ages.
Outside there's a lovely traditional Christmas market, lots of food and drink options including German style sausages and mulled wine, an ice rink (complete with penguins to hang on to if you are not so steady on skates), vintage fairground rides including a carousel and an observation wheel.
This is all very lovely and I could feel my holiday cheer levels rising. Even my teen who claims to have no joy and whimsy was enjoying herself.
But the highlight for of Blenheim at Christmas has to be the truly spectacular light trail. I wrote about the Halloween trail at Blenheim Palace a few weeks ago and that was lots of fun but the Christmas trail is another level.
Just steps in I was buzzing with excitement. I'm going to digress and tell you a bit about my past now. And this will probably not mean much to many but I'll give it a go.
When I was a child I lived in the West Midlands and every year I would go with my family to an event called Walsall Illuminations. Or Walsall Lights as we called it in the town's Arboretum. It was an evening I looked forward to all year and I still have vivid memories of the displays, the illuminated trees and the lights reflected on the lake.
I loved it so much I took my older children there and was sad to hear the annual illuminations had been cancelled just over 15 years ago. Word has it Midlanders say it's the one thing they want resurrected as so many people have such happy memories of it.
Anyway, back to the point. The feeling I got at Blenheim was incredibly nostalgic and I actually felt a bit emotional. Bigger, better and far more spectacular than the lights I remember in Walsall in the '70's and 80's but that feeling of a family outing which will be remembered fondly for a lifetime was the same.
The trail has been cleverly curated so you bounce between modern, pop, carols and classical music and the light displays are many and varied. We loved the illuminated tunnels and the uplit woodland. The waterfall was a real wow moment and the "Polar Express" music and lights show was mesmerising.
There are so many different displays I can't list them all but I must mention the amazing water fountain show with illuminated fountains dancing along to a very famous song from Frozen which I watched three times over before my daughter told me to "Let it Go" and move along. Luckily there are plenty of viewing areas so we didn't feel we were blocking anyone else's view even on a busy Saturday evening.
I hope I'm getting across how wonderful I think this event is. I arrived feeling rather flat, tired and anxious and left feeling happy, uplifted and excited-emotions which in my mind are priceless.
Fancy an injection of Christmas cheer?
You can check ticket prices and book here. Remember children aged 0-2 are free and you can get a free carers ticket if a member of your party is in receipt of any component of DLA, PIP or Attendance Allowance. There is also Blue Badge parking which is charged the same as normal parking (£10 per car) but is much closer to the Palace. Book in advance when you buy your event tickets.
We did see pushchairs, wheelchairs and a couple of mobility scooters on the trail but bear in mind some of the trail is sloping and slightly uneven and on the night we went it was quite muddy in parts. The light trail is almost 3kms long and would take the average person around 90 minutes to walk round. There are some seats around halfway round where you can get food and drinks.
We thought prices were reasonable for this kind of event - a luxury hot chocolate for example, with cream and marshmallows, was £6.50. If you want to make it an extra special day you could book the festive afternoon tea at the palace with oz-themed sweet treats and pigs in blankets!
We had an absolutely lovely evening and would definitely add it to the wish list for next Christmas - move over Walsall, Blenheim has my heart illuminated now.
Disclaimer: We were gifted three tickets to the Palace of Oz and the Light trail so I could visit then write this honest review.