As dusk falls on a chilly November evening, a little corner of West London is a-glow with twinkling lights and winking glitter balls. The atmosphere is giddy with beaming little faces, chilled out families, friends and loved up couples. Where are we? A gorgeous little pop-up event that runs for just 3 weekends every year in November. It’s the Syon Park Enchanted Woodland.
For the last 4 years my mum has wanted to take Little Button to the Syon Park Enchanted Woodland event. Something has always come up in the past, but this year, with bells and whistles on we decided to book tickets for the family to go. It was a good job we booked in advance, as the event tickets go like hot cakes. We picked a Saturday (the second weekend of opening) for 6.30pm, the later viewing time. Tickets were £10 for the grown ups and £5 for Little Button. Which we would say was pretty reasonable for an event like this.
On the website it says parking is very limited, but knowing the area, we took a chance and drove. I sneakily got everyone in the car with a full hour and a half spare, just in case we did run into parking issues. There weren’t any. Syon Park had opened up a few fields for parking to ensure everyone got a space. Which we think was super nice of them. Commuting on public transport to Syon Park (in the evening) isn’t particularly great, so double thumbs up to Syon Park for this initiative.
Little Button was thrilled to go squelching through the car park fields when we got there. Good job everyone was in boots!
The entrance to the Enchanted Woodland is just a little bit of a walk from the fields, past the garden centre and walking away from Syon House. An unassuming ticketed entrance lets you through to a little courtyard where you can buy drinks, burgers and hot dogs and some glow stick type merchandise. There are also toilets at this point (none during the walk so make sure the little ones have been). We decided to head straight into the Enchanted Woodland after buying a glow necklace for Little Button which she used as a torch for the walk (not that one was needed, but it was fun).
I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I have to say it was stunning. The grounds were lit up tastefully, and along the route magical installations took over pockets of space. It was beautiful and very whimsical. Almost like ‘fairies meet Alice in Wonderland meet Wind in the Willows’.
Little Button keenly took in the sights and sounds, yes there was even music, and it was so lovely to see how excited she was.
Her face lit up when she spotted a fairy tree house, and she spent ages trying to peer inside the little windows.
We were all taken by the glitter balls that cast winks of dancing light around the woodland and Little Button was sure she might have caught a glimpse of the fairies.
Overall, we loved how you could take everything in at your own pace, and it only felt a touch busy towards the end section of the mile long walk.
There were a couple of really interesting, submersive style installations towards the end of the walk and of course the finale in the Great Conservatory. But by then Little Button, Nanny and Grandad Button were ready for a pit stop and somewhere to put their feet up so we whizzed through those bits and ended up back where we started. The walk (with stops) took us about 45 mins.
Once you come out of the Enchanted Woodland, you’ll find yourself by the garden centre cafe (seating is very limited) and the outdoor pit stop for burgers, hotdogs and hot drinks (expect London prices). Unfortunately it had been raining, so there was nowhere dry and warm for us to sit at the time. It was a shame that the large outdoor seating area hadn’t been covered with a gazebo of some kind. But we hadn’t come for the food particularly, so this didn’t put us off the event.
1. If you’re planning to go, don’t wait to book. The event is very popular so bookmark it for next year and as soon as tickets are available, go for it! In the past I have seen some ticket deals through Little Bird (none this year though). It’s still worth keeping an eye out for these, but there’s no guarantee any will come up.
2. On a practical note, part of the walk was pretty soggy and mucky during our visit. The ground is typically quite soft in November so I would definitely recommend welly’s and warm layers with a waterproof and umbrella tucked in your bag, just in case.
3. Bring wipes and antibacterial gel to clean up mucky pups hands after the walk. There are toilets at the end of the trail where hands can be washed, but the ques tend to be pretty long!
4. Once booked, you can’t move your tickets to another date even if it’s pouring with rain. But don’t let that put you off! Just make sure your suitably dressed for the weather.
5. Buggy’s will bump along quite nicely through the trail, so don’t be afraid to bring one for younger viewers if needed. Just be prepared for operation mud clean afterwards. Oh… and please be kind to non-bugging walkers! No one likes a leg full of muddy buggy wheel or a squashed toe (she says grimly).
6. But above all, just relax and enjoy the experience. It’s pretty amazing.
WILD is now out in Spanish!
WILD – Our debut children’s picture book
Dad blogger Ross Good from The Stented Papa is the official storyteller for WILD!
Happy book birthday WILD!
This looks positively amazing! I want to fly there just to attend this event! The fairy house was so cool, I would have been peeking into every window also. #DreamTeam
Thanks Heather, it reminded me of the Enid Blyton book – Up the faraway tree!
This looks amazing. I’ve not heard of it before but now I really want to go! #dreamteam
It’s closed now for this year, but I think Kew Gardens have something similar running right now 🙂
This reminds me of The Enchanted Forest in Perthshire – I visited a number of years ago and it was amazing. Given my daughter’s strict 7:30 bedtime, I think we need to wait a few years before taking her, though. #dremteam
So nice to hear other grounds are running events like this. It was a late one, but worth it x
Oh wow how beautiful! What a place to visit! So many beautiful pictures #dreamteam
Thanks Kayleigh. I can’t believe we didn’t think to bring the proper camera! Maybe next year 🙂
Wow this looks so magical! I love all the colours and the twinkling lights on the bridge. What a great way to kickstart Christmas! #dreamteam
Thanks Lucy, though billed as not a Christmas event, it did feel very Christmas like x
This looks really magical! I’ve never heard of this event before so thank you for sharing. I think it’ll be one to visit in the future 🙂 Your photos are stunning – I particularly love the first one #DreamTeam
It’s a bit tucked away and I don’t get the impression that they advertise. But then again, they don’t have to 🙂 x
This looks like an amazing experience and with all the cool things – it is obvious that it is very popular. Thanks for sharing.#dreamteam.
Thanks Noleen, it was loads of fun x
It looks really magical 🙂 x #DreamTeam
It really was! Thanks for stopping by x
I saw this advertised on Facebook and it looks stunning – so magical. Su #DreamTeam
Me too! That’s how I got the reminder to book (finally). It’s definitely worth a trip if you’re in the area x
Wow this looks so enchanting! I would love to take my three here to visit #dreamteam
It’s a lovely event for the little ones, especially the interactive bits 🙂
It looks beautiful! Definitely somewhere to bear in mind as my little gets bigger!
Erin x
#dreamteamlinky
Hi Erin, it was really beautiful. There were loads of very little ones visiting when we were there, but as it’s quite late, I’m glad we waited till the Button was 5! x
My parents-in-law live near to Syon Park and we’re visiting over Christmas so I think I may add this to our list of festive trips! Thanks for the heads up, it looks so magical – can’t wait to see it in person. #DreamTeam
That looks like so much fun! They have a similar enchanted forest at Westonbirt near us. #dreamteam
Oh wow! It looks magical!! Those photographs are just gorgeous. Great top tips for planning a visit too #dreamteam
Wow. LIke a fairy land! I bet it was amazing! #DreamTeam
What a delightful way to spend an evening, I love the different colour trees, glad to see that used the nearby fields for the parking.
Oops, forgot #dreamteam, sorry.
This looks so amazing, I do want to go!! xxx
This looks very special and a great way to get into the festive spirit. Sounds simple yet effective. Ticket prices seem reasonable too.
#DreamTeam
This looks fabulous, they do a similar thing in Sussex at Wakehurst Place and it really gets us in the Christmas spirit. Looks like it was worth the wait #Dreamteam
Wow, I love this kind of thing, it looks an incredible experience X #dreamteam
Oh my goodness my boys would love this! I miss the UK at Xmas #DreamTeam
This looks magical! We have a lovely light show close to us and I can’t wait to take my son. It just absolutely captures the imagination of little ones doesn’t it.
I like festivals with light effects. It looks like a great well organized and executed event to get you into the festive spirit. #Dreamteam
This sounds like an amazing place to go! Gonna remember this for next year! #dreamteam
I’ve never heard of this event, it looks amazing. #dreamteam
Wow! This looks right up my street! Shame it’s not, right up my street!
#DreamTeam
Never heard of it but looks totally magical and great tips too. #DreamTeamLinky
This looks magical! So reasonably priced too. We have a similar event near to us but it’s quite expensive so can be quite costly for the 5 of us!
#dreamteam
It sounds like a very popular event and we can see why! We’d love to visit Syon Park Enchanted Woodland next year but as it’s only on for a handful of weekends we need to be quick! Sorry we didn’t get chatting much at #ytbritmums hope the channel is going well and tou’re brimming with ideas x hopefully see you at the next event x #DreamTeam
It’s very popular, and I think the price being so reasonable makes it even more so! It’s a lot for your money. Yes, definitely catch up at the next event xx
This looks so beautiful! Lovely place to take the family #dreamteam
It really was. Thanks for stopping by x
I love pop up events like this, this one looks so magical and perfect for families. Shame it’s not closer x
#dreamteam
I’ve been hearing that there’s quite a lot of these type of pop ups. There might be one near you 🙂
Sounds like you had a lovely time! I’d Elaine it’s the perfect event to kick off the festivities. I always wanted to go to this event before we moved home but I think the kids are only just old enough now. Maybe we will go back some year. #DreamTeam
It’s a lovely one for children. Though if your not in the area any more, I think quite a few places with grounds do this type of light show x
This looks so magical Annette. I love that it only runs for 3 weeks of the year too. Makes it all the more special. Thank you for being such a brill host. #DreamTeam xx
I hadn’t thought of that Dawn. Next year we are planning to try out the Kew Gardens one. Apparently that’s also amazing. x
This sounds like a lovely experience similar to one we went to recently.No wonder it sells out quickly. #DreamTeam
I hope you had a lovely time. There seems to be quite a few of these pop up style light displays happening at the moment.
How magical. I’d never heard of this, but it looks amazing. I can see why the tickets sell out fast! #dreamteam
It’s a lovely little evening out 🙂
It looks like a beautiful place to visit, so magical at night for children to see all the lights #dreamteam
This looks amazing, all those lights are beautiful. Glad you all had a lovely time xx #dreamteam
This just looks magical!!! What a lovely evening out. Definitely one that’ll make lovely memories!!! #DreamTeam
This looks very magical and fun! We have something nearby, Longwood Gardens, that does a similar nighttime affair. I may have to indulge! Lovely photos too! So glad everyone had fun! #dreamteam xoxo
Thanks Lisa, I love these type of events. x