WINTER WONDER
Millie Reeves enjoys the lights at Bluestone National Park and gets a welcome break from the darkness of winter
After the twinkling glow of Christmas, the winter can seem quite bleak. Go to work in the dark, come home in the dark and get used to that unrelenting drizzle and chill. But at Bluestone National Park resort in Pembrokeshire, the black sky is a cause for celebration as it creates the perfect backdrop for the Winter Lights. Winter Lights is the first of Bluestone’s five ‘seasons’ and takes place between January and the end of March. embracing the early dusk, the attraction centres around its forest setting. the usual woodland walk that guests can enjoy during their stay is given a touch of magic with illuminated sculptures, string lights, fairy houses, luminescent foliage, sound effects and interactive displays. In short, think Alice in Wonderland meets Tron. the result is a visual feast that any member of the family can delight in, from the baby to the dad (who definitely didn’t jump when the giant wicker snake in the tree started glowing). to coincide with the main Winter Lights trail, there are a number of additional activities on offer, as well as the facilities Bluestone has all year round. Youngsters can get crafty with either the willow lanterns or dream lights workshops. the former creating paper lights they can carry on the walk, the latter making bedside lamps in the shape of houses - apparently with magical powers to fend off bad dreams. If you’re looking to escape the winter chill, Bluestone also has the Blue Lagoon - a tropical climate water park that is free to use for all guests, regardless of how many times you wish to take a dip during your stay. the park has plenty of big slides for thrillseekers as well as a ‘nipper pool’ for tots that has a small slide and fountains, basketball hoops and a rock pool. there is also one pretty powerful wave machine, a Jacuzzi, jets, and a ‘lazy river’ which takes swimmers outside into the open air and back to the main pool. Other attractions at the resort include the Adventure Centre which has a large soft play area that will keep even pre-teens entertained, as well as indoor sports like rock climbing and mini golf. During our stay, we took advantage of the seasonal dinner show. each of the previously mentioned five seasons has an accompanying stage production that guests can enjoy while having a meal. Winter Lights has Merlin’s Magical
Dinner Show - a lighthearted homage to Wales’ best known wizard. The food was simple yet wellexecuted, although it took a backseat when it came to the presentation of the evening as well as the entertainment. The room itself was fantastically spruced up, with balloons and wizard hats. The main stars of the show - Merlin himself and Torch the dragon - were engaging and had the younger half of the audience following them around the dinner hall enraptured (much to the delight of parents who could eat their meals in peace, albeit to songs from Aladdin and The Greatest Showman). The show also had plenty of magic tricks (well, he is Merlin after all) and some lively theatrics that you couldn’t help but enjoy. Our home for the stay was the Skomer lodge. The detached Nordic-style cabin was very open planned and slept six comfortably. It had three bedrooms, two of which were twins. The kitchen and living space was great for self-catering and gave mealtimes a real homely vibe even though we were only there a few days. The lodge also comes with a ‘cwtch’ - a little nook upstairs with a television, which proved to be a great place for the little ones to unwind in the evening. However, the one thing that really makes the accommodation great is its setting. Sometimes, when you walk around Bluestone you forget you’re staying at a resort at all. It is so in tune with the wildlife and nature surrounding it that you’re immersed from the moment you arrive to the moment you leave. Multiple times during our stay we woke up to find ducks sitting on the decking outside or rabbits eating on the grass. Further afield, on a forest walk, there was plenty of telltale signs of other wildlife, as well as the odd bat swooping from the trees. If you’ll looking to get back in touch with the natural world, but also want to come back to some home comforts at the end of the day, Bluestone National Park Resort is the place for you.