A visit to Winter Wonderland requires three things:
1) Stamina,
2) The willpower to resist Earth, Wind & Fire’s Boogie Wonderland repeatedly entering your head; and
3) A ticket.
As with last year, they’ve ditched the ol’ free-for-all policy in a bid to control crowd numbers, which is good news because it also (at least hypothetically) means you’ll have fewer queues to endure before strolling through an enchanting ice kingdom; sipping mulled wine at the Christmas market; and indulging your love of European rollercoasters.
You’ll find Winter Wonderland, as always, set up in Hyde Park, taking up a colossal amount of space and packing into it:
ENTERTAINMENT
In the form of traditional family favourite Zippo’s Circus (now featuring furry inflatable bears) and the less traditional Cirque Beserk, who are prepared to put multiple motorcycle riders inside a ‘Globe of Death’ for your amusement.
WINTER ACTIVITIES
We’re talking ice skating on the largest outdoor rink in the country, festooned with fairy-lights and accompanied by occasional live music from the Victorian bandstand; a walk-through ice kingdom featuring frozen statues sculpted from over 500 tonnes of ice and snow; DIY ice-carving workshops; a real ice slide (which you can descend on a rubber ring); a fairground filled with rollercoasters, ferris wheels and pendulum rides that can swing you full circle in 4 seconds; and – all new for 2022 – that festive favourite, the three-storey Canadian Mountie Funhouse.
FOOD & DRINK
This year Winter Wonderland boasts a street food village – so you can browse the Christmas market’s 100 miniature chalets with something from Made of Dough, Chick’n’Sours or The Mac Factory to keep you going – as well as a Viking-inspired tipi bar with firepits and mulled wine; a Bavarian beer hall with “non-stop dancing”; an Arctic lodge with roaring fires; a subzero 1980s cocktail bar crafted entirely from ice; and a bar set on a rotating carousel.
Strangely, the drinks there can leave you a bit dizzy…
NOTE: Winter Wonderland is open daily between 18th November – 2nd January 2023 (except Christmas Day), 12-8pm. You’ll need to book entry in advance this year which costs £5/7.50, but if you pre-book £25-worth of activities you’ll get free admission. You can find out more, and book, HERE.
Winter Wonderland | Hyde Park, London W2
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Carpe Diem!