I went to one of Yorkshire's biggest winter light shows and felt the warm glow of Glastonbury

You would be forgiven for wondering if you had wandered into one of Glastonbury’s backfields as you move around Yorkshire Wildlife Park’s Winter Illuminations. It may seem a strange comparison to make, but the Doncaster attraction’s 2024 effort delivers warmth, charm, variety, attention to detail, organisation, space and creativity synonymous with the world-famous music festival.

No, you’re not going to stumble into a tent full of drunken revellers basking in the genius of a three-piece Irish folk band, but it’s the bits between the music that pull at those heartstrings. The one-and-a-half-mile route is made up of wide thoroughfares, lined with fairy lights, filled with happy, excited, awe-inspired families going on the same journey with you. And that’s before you even get to the magical illuminations themselves.

It’s a shared experience, even beyond your own family. It’s a one-way route around this sprawling park and it’s impossible not to share in what those people in front and behind you are making of it all. Again, like Glastonbury, everyone is there to have a good time and it’s hard not to.

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The sheer depth in quantity and quality of what Yorkshire Wildlife has put on is hard to fathom. This year, they have taken inspiration from Jules Verne’s iconic novel Around the World in 80 Days and there is no stone left unturned in your journey across six continents.

There is, of course, a Christmas theme running through much of the exhibition, but it’s a criminal understatement to say this is a little more than Father Christmas and his elves. From the pyramids of Egypt to astronauts in space, the colour and detail in every display had you stopping in your tracks.

There are nods to The Lion King and Finding Nemo, with associated music, along with vast dinosaur exhibits and even Big Ben alongside the Tower of London. There is something for everyone here, though it feels more like everything is for everyone. My partner and I were just as impressed as our six and two-year-olds.

There is a particularly impressive finisher I would rather not spoil too much involving the park’s vast lake and projectors. That will consistently have groups of visitors stopping to take it in throughout the coming festive period.

It’s not a cheap evening out, that has to be said. A family of four is looking at nearly £100 before you even come to food and drinks, of which there are several options dotted along the route. We got a hot chocolate, mulled wine and two kid’s juices for £11, for example.

The entry fee is steep, but most of you will take more than 90 minutes to get around this attraction. They really have put so much into it and it doesn’t feel like a cheap event as you go around. Corners do not appear to have been cut, but as a one-off festive treat to get your family in the mood, perhaps you can stomach the expense.

This remains a really special pull to get you and your family out the door as the cold temperatures draw in across Yorkshire this winter.

You can find the latest news about events happening in Yorkshire and nearby by visiting our What's On homepage. There you can also find days out guides for things to do across the region.

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