This year is the fourth Christmas season I’ve enjoyed in Manchester, and it really does just get better every year! From the festive, German-esque markets scattered around town to the Medic’s Panto and obviously the end of lectures, Christmas time brings with it many amazing things to enjoy. Although, this year I decided to visit a winter wonder that I had never experienced before.
Dunham Massey is a National Trust site located about half an hour away from Fallowfield by car. In the spring, it is a beautiful stately home which is surrounded by an abundance of green gardens with a population of wild deer who aren’t afraid of humans.
But from the 30th November to the 30th December, it becomes the home of over 100,000 lights to create a magical Christmas spectacular. The whole thing is wonderfully executed, with every bit of the park being dressed up to glow, sparkle and shimmer. What I found even more impressive was the coordination of festive and classical music with the changing colours of the lights.
As you travelled around the park, you also could find all of Santa’s reindeer dotted around your trail. Each one had it’s own name badge, so you could easily check each one off your list as you went around. A perfect activity for anyone with little ones, small siblings up for a visit or just those of us who are still young at heart!
As well as these life size illuminated reindeer, there were a few that were larger than life sized too…
The poor lady we asked to take the photo for us could barely fit all 20 feet of this giant reindeer in the frame!
Obviously with all this great lighting, comes great Instagram opportunities too.
Overall, I loved my time at the light show and I definitely think I would go again next year. It is quite pricey at £16.50 per person, but I did feel like it was value for money. Also, the National Trust is a very worthy cause to support, so don’t let the price put you off too much! Even though it was pouring with rain, I still came out of the experience with a smile on my face which says a lot considering how much we Brits like complaining about the weather. It’s a shame that it isn’t easier to get to, but if you have a friend who has a car then I’d definitely encourage you to go check it out before it’s gone!