London is a year-round destination, suitable for all ages and traveler groups. One of the world’s most visited cities, London has something for everyone: from history and culture to fine food and good times. Despite having visited London twice previously, I had yet to visit the Buckingham Palace, so I set out to do it on this trip in Dec 2018. Anyway, this article will be more about Hyde Park and the main event of the year which is the Winter Wonderland.

Hyde Park has a long history as a site of protest, and still hosts rallies and marches today. Visit Speakers’ Corner on a Sunday morning to hear people from all walks of life share their views. When we visited Hyde Park on our way to Winter Wonderland, there were people standing on stools and airing their views to the public, be it political or religious. I gave up trying to hear what they were trying to say because most of the speakers on that day were preaching about religion.

Hyde Park is one of London’s eight Royal Parks and covers an area of 350 acres. It has something for everyone. You can enjoy swimming, boating, cycling and skating. There are pitches for team games, tennis courts, tracks for horse riding and a spectacular children’s playground. Hyde Park is home to a number of fascinating buildings and monuments, such as The Serpentine Bridge, the Joy of Life fountain and the famous Archiles statue. And with the Diana Memorial Fountain and open air events throughout the year, there’s always something to see and do.

For over 10 years, Hyde Park’s Winter Wonderland has been spreading the Christmas spirit throughout London. The winter festival has become a landmark event for Londoners and tourists alike. With humble beginnings as an open-air Christmas market in Hyde Park, Winter Wonderland has since grown into an extravaganza with ice skating, shows, roller coaster rides, street food stalls, festive bars and live music. It is still free to enter the Winter Wonderland grounds and take in the joyous atmosphere. With over 100 spectacular rides and attractions, it is no wonder why thousands of visitors return to Winter Wonderland each year to celebrate the Christmas season.

From November to January each year, the six-week attraction “Winter Wonderland” in Hyde Park is full of winter festivities, shows, ice-skating, circus acts and more. Due to the recent terror attacks in UK, the organisers have stepped up security checks. All visitors have to undergo a bag check which explains the long queues in front of the entrance. Water or liquids were not allowed inside, so I finished up my bottle of water as I did not want the security guards to confiscate my bottle.

Once we were inside the park grounds, it was a photo-taking opportunity at every turn. Visitors are spoilt for choice when it comes to fun, games and food. From chocolatiers to bratwurst to crepes, there is lots of food to go around for the hungry ones.

I liked the concept of this revolving bar on a carousel. The beers, ciders, mulled wine etc are served in the middle which is fixed, so people are actually rotating and visiting different bars as the carousel moves. Don’t worry, the speed of the carousel is not so fast, you would not be tipsy after a few drinks and start throwing up everywhere.

Me and my friends tried the Biergarten, which is a German game. It is a house with a maze of events, such as conveyor belts or spurts of gas as you walk past the checkpoint. It is fun for all ages and we were laughing like crazy as we cleared each stage. Since my friends were not daring enough to go on the roller coaster, we decided to do this instead.

After spending a few hours roaming around the big fairgrounds and have loads of fun in the German maze house, it was time to look for a dinner place. Despite the cost of the rides, we were prudent in choosing one game to play and one ride to experience, so overall we enjoyed ourselves at Winter Wonderland. Hope to come back again to experience their 13th edition this year, but this is still pending due to the upcoming Brexit issue.

For the past 12 years, ride operators and traders from Great Britain, Germany, Belgium, France, the Netherlands and other European nations have worked together in harmony at the Hyde Park event. Whether they will face extra red tape in shipping their equipment to their home country after UK leaves the EU in March 2019, like so many things with Brexit, remains unclear.