Christmas Events at Merlin UK Attractions

To follow on from our Halloween Events at Merlin UK Attractions, I thought it might be a good idea to showcase the upcoming Christmas Events.

In the blog, we will be looking at Alton Towers, Chessington World of Adventures, Legoland, Warwick Castle, Shreks Adventure, SeaLife, London Eye and Cadbury’s World. (Click the links to jump to the section you are interested in reading!)

During the Christmas period, the theme parks tend to shut down a lot of their major rides and only offer selected attractions, but they have sections of the parks that are dedicated to the festive period.

Similarly to the previous post, I will be listing the UK Attraction or Theme Park and what they will be offering up during the festive period.

Alton Towers (Selected Dates from 24th November 2023 until 7th January 2024)

Alton Towers Resort is delighted to announce the festive season with an extraordinary Santa Sleepover offer. It’s a magical opportunity for guests to experience 1-day Theme Park entry, a truly unique visit to Santa’s Grotto, a traditional panto, Christmas activities, relish a delicious evening meal and entertainment, savour a delightful buffet breakfast, and enjoy access to the themed waterpark. Prices for this experience start from £85 per person.

Without the Santa Sleepover, guests can visit the Theme Park and partake in the Christmas Entertainment on Towers Street, access to CBeebies Land with all the rides available in this land. CBeebies Land are also offering live entertainment which includes CBeebies Land Christmas Show. The World of David Walliams rides and also a couple of rides in Mutiny Bay are also available. With the limited rides available, the prices reflex this and prices start from £18.

https://www.altontowers.com/short-breaks/offers-packages/santa-sleepover/

Chessington World of Adventures (25th November until 31st December 2023)

Chessington World of Adventures always make a huge effort when it comes to their Christmas celebrations and this year it seems like they have added more things to do. We attended last year and were blown away with the effort that was made with the decorations and the actors!

So this year, you can meet Father Christmas by making your way through a snowy woodland (which is very similar to the effects that are available at Lapland UK), step into the charming grotto, then onto the Toy Workshop to receive an early Christmas gift. New for this year, is the inclusion of the Enchanted Hallow at Christmas which will use the same area used over the Halloween period (which I thought was super cute, and really well decorated and made). It is like being taken into an underground town where you encounter lots of underground creatures.

As with every Chessington event, there will be so much entertainment going on throughout the day. There is a Christmas Panto on the Mane Stage and Christmas sing-a-longs on the Mini Stage which is suitable for all ages.

The rides available are selected throughout the festive period but at the moment we know they will be, the World of Jumanji, Gruffalo River Ride Adventure, Blue Barnacle, Jungle Rangers and many more. Also a reminder that the zoo and SeaLife are also included and open!

All the extras are included in your price for admission, which I think is a really good deal – we will be visiting over this period and are really looking forward to it again!

https://www.chessington.com/explore/events/christmas/

Legoland (Selected Dates from 25th November)

Legoland is a great place to go to a theme park over the festive period. There is so much to do and so many rides to enjoy!

To start your day, there will be a huge Duplo Christmas tree to get a wonderful photo in front of, there are multiple characters to meet throughout the day and also Miniland will have a hidden festive scenes for everyone to find before handing over to the Brick for some fun with the Elves, as they help you make some builds. Throughout the day you will be able to Father Christmas roaming the park on the back of his sleigh, some Lego make and takes (we love those), and live shows that are mind blowing and wonderfully Christmassy!

There is also an opportunity to meet Father Christmas as an upcharge of £20 per child, we have used our Annual Passholder membership to get this for £15 instead. You get to meet Father Christmas in his magical grotto and every child gets a special Lego gift.

We are booked to go to Lego again this year and are really looking forward to experience Christmas there again!

https://www.legoland.co.uk/explore/special-events/legoland-at-christmas/

Warwick Castle (25th November 2023 until 7th January 2024)

Warwick Castle always looks magical over the Christmas period, it always has a lot to offer and this year is no different. With a standard ticket, you are able to have full access to the castle which is decorated to get you into the festive mood.

The upcharge activities are ice skating which is located in the stunning settings of the castle grounds. An after dark light trail which is an illuminated magical light trail through the castle grounds and gardens, it is 45 minutes long but there are stop off for festive foods from the Christmas Market stalls. This extra can be purchased on its own or as a bundle with the castle ticket too. Finally the most magical experience is Stories with Santa, this begins with joining Santa’s cheery elves in their Elf Workshop, then making your way to the library to meet Santa and Mrs Claus for a magical Storytime, complete with a Christmas gift for the kids and a mince pie for the grown ups.

https://www.warwick-castle.com/explore/events/christmas/

Shreks Adventure (1st December until 24th December 2023)

Shrek the Halls is the family friendly Christmas experience from Shreks Adventure in London. This festive season you get to experience the grotto inspired by the Christmas special, Shrek the Halls.

You take part in a 70 minute walk-through experience where you go on an adventure in search of Shrek, including a magical 4D flying bus experience.

At the end of your experience (on dates between 2nd and 24th December) you will get the chance to meet Santa Shrek and get a picture with him to mark the special occasion.

https://www.shreksadventure.com/whats-inside/events/christmas-experience/

SeaLife – Various Location (From 25th November 2023 until January 2024)

SeaLife are offering several different events at their multiple locations across the UK. For example, in the London branch, there is a trail where the children in the group will look to “Help Save Fish-mas” and have a chance to win a prize. In the Birmingham branch, you can meet Santa and his cheeky elves in his grotto, the experience is at an additional charge. In Brighton and Manchester, there is the opportunity to meet Snowy the snowman where you can take part in the artic themed trail and take on challenges and answer some tough questions. There are lots of photo opportunities available and some incredible theming throughout the aquariums.

I would advise to look at your locate SeaLife to see what they are offering over the Christmas period.

https://www.visitsealife.com/london/explore/events/christmas-at-sea-life/

https://www.visitsealife.com/birmingham/explore/events/visit-santa-in-birmingham/

https://www.visitsealife.com/manchester/explore/events/snowy-s-conservation-crew/

https://www.visitsealife.com/brighton/explore/events/join-snowy-s-conservation-crew/

London Eye (From December 2023)

The London Eye is a great option in London to see all of London’s most iconic landmarks, also the area is decorated beautifully. Not too far from the London Eye, you can visit the Southbank Centre’s Christmas Market which is taking place at the same time (https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/festivals-series/winter-festival). There are plenty of photo opportunities and especially in the evening, the London Eye is lit up and looks stunning!

https://www.londoneye.com/whats-on/seasonal-holidays/christmas/

Cadbury World (Weekends from 18th November to 23rd December & 21st-22nd December 2023)

A new addition to the Merlin Attractions in the UK is Cadbury World. We have visited on a couple of occasions, once at Christmas in 2019 and have had a thoroughly good time (Cadbury World, Birmingham (Christmas visit collaboration) – Garcia Family UK)

Cadbury World will be offering a live stage show filled with festive fun and Christmas jingles, there will be lots of chocolatey gifts for all the little helpers and is entertainment for the whole family.

To celebrate the festive period, Cadbury World will be transformed into a winter wonderland with a chocolate Christmas Tree and lots of decorations throughout the reception area!

https://www.cadburyworld.co.uk/whats-on/upcoming-events/christmas-at-cadbury-world/