MORE than 200 emergency workers including NHS staff and army personnel enjoyed a special preview of Warwick Castle’s magical new Light Trail, festive Winter Market and ice rink.
They were invited to the big switch-on on Friday December 4 ahead of the official public opening on Saturday December 5. The Castle has extended its Christmas event and for six weeks through to January 17 2021.
Operations Director Liam Bartlett said: “While reopening following a national lockdown and entering the new Tier system has been challenging, we wanted to make sure we marked this important new milestone in a special way by saying thank you to our brilliant local emergency workers, NHS staff and army personnel for all their hard work over the last year.
Having them here at the Castle to celebrate the beginning of the festive season and witness the lights being switched on was a fantastic way to open our outdoor Christmas attractions, so our guests can still enjoy some Warwick Castle festive cheer at the Ice Rink, Light Trail and more.”
Set against the beautiful backdrop of the Castle’s East Front the ice rink returns after a successful debut last year with even more space to skate.
The new Light Trail weaves around the historic estate with multi-coloured illuminations bringing the history of the castle to life after dark, including the mighty trebuchet, boathouse and glamping fields. A multi-sensory experience includes an immersive light tunnel, woodland trail interactive light installations and projections accompanied by spoken word and musical recordings – plus picture-framed ‘selfie spots’.
The Winter Market with independent stall-holders from across Warwickshire and the surrounding area is free to visit and open to all – not just Castle ticket-holders. Open daily until January 17 2021 from 10am to 8pm.
With so much Christmas fun cancelled due to Tier 3 restrictions the castle hopes to bring a bit of Christmas and New Year cheer for all the family.
Mr Bartlett said: “We’re so excited to reopen with such a great collection of festive fun. All of these new attractions have been organised with guest safety as priority – they’re outside in the open air, with timed slots and strict capacity limits to ensure that everyone can socially distance as well as temperature checks on arrival and plentiful sanitising stations.”
Book entrance online at: www.warwick-castle.com
