A must-visit for families this half term is Winchester’s Enchanted Light Garden which will see Abbey Gardens in the city centre transformed with dazzling light-up tunnels, fairy tale creatures and flowery delights. It will open on the 11 February until the 5 of March. On the 18 and 19 walkabout artists will entertain the crowds with their sparkling performances.After you have finished exploring the magical gardens why not pay a visit to these places…
Wonder at the breath-taking Northern Lights experience or face weird and wild weather at the Winchester Science Centre. They are both part of Zero Degrees, a seasonal wintery wonderland, free with general admission.
Children of all ages can enjoy special half term performances at the Theatre Royal Winchester. Iggety ziggety zaggety zoom! Young readers will be thrilled to jump on board a broom with Meg, Mog and a whole assortment of characters in Room on the Broom. Then, Flash, Bang, Wallop: what a musical! Award-winning Encore Youth Theatre’s 2023 production of KIPPS Half a Sixpence is a “youth-sized packages of brilliance”. More abracadabra follows with the astonishing and enigmatic show The Greatest Magician.
Kids can make their own magic next door at The Arc. Workshops are on for kids from 5 – 9 to fashion their own felt hero mask or cardboard super-shield from scratch with parents invited to join in. Kids over 9 can create their own Guatemalan Worry Dolls or even invent their own manga-inspired cartoon character.
The Arc is also the hub for COWfest 2023 (The Children of Winchester Festival) opens the city to its smaller citizens on the 11 February. There are free activities for babies, toddlers and parents. Everything from baby massage sessions to story time and exciting & creative competitions across the city.
The Arc also has an onsite café that caters for the family and of course, Winchester is known for an extraordinary variety of family-friendly independent cafes and restaurants to keep all taste buds very happy. If patrons eat at The Square, the City Museum is a few steps away where on the 17th and 18th February the museum is being taken over by Anglo Saxons. They will be on hand to tell visitors more about what Saxon life was like. Visitors get great value too because the same ticket covers their entrance to The Westgate Museum and is valid for a full year. At half term, the former debtor’s prison gives visitors the chance to try on some replica armour or crack the prisoner graffiti trail.
Explorers can also witness Anglo-Saxon Winchester with the immersive 878AD brought to life with spectacular graphics from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla® and Discovery Tour: Viking Age. Visitors can also meet and take sefies with their favourite characters from iconic fantasy films and TV shows at Fort Nelson, Fareham.
Another historic venue within easy reach of Winchester is Chawton House. Jane Austen’s home and garden hosts Snowdrop Sunday on the 12 February amongst their fabulous trails and family fun area. Gilbert White’s House and Gardens also celebrate snow drops with half price admission on the 11 and 12 of February. For those in love with nature, the famous Natural History pioneer’s home and gardens are blooming with and activities this half-term. Nature lovers can visit Marwell Zoo too where lots of little animal babies are being born just before the spring.
Wonder at the breath-taking Northern Lights Experience or face weird and wild weather at the Winchester Science Centre. They are both part of Zero Degrees, a seasonal wintery wonderland, free with general admission.
Winchester is surrounded by beautiful market towns and countryside so holiday makers could have plenty to occupy them on a mini-break in a cosy family-friendly inn or self-catering space with the kids. Parents can rest easy whether it comes with a spa treat at Winchester Hotel and Spa close to the city centre and train station or a larger space in the countryside Inadown Farm Holiday Homes for families to enjoy together.
As the cost of living rises, the government has introduced a £2 single fare price cap on most routes, helping families to save money and make greener travel choices. The offer runs throughout January, February and March.
Visitors can get details here:
