Christmas at Stourhead Review
DISCLOSURE – THIS EXPERIENCE WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST/S FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW.
Reviewed by Helen O
Having been to the annual Christmas at Stourhead event a few years ago, we were absolutely delighted to be offered the opportunity to visit once again, to see the fabulous gardens of the Stourhead Estate festively lit up to kick-start this year’s festivities for our young family. As with our previous visit, Christmas at Stourhead certainly didn’t disappoint.
This year’s event runs between 28th November and 31st December 2025, with lots of different trail times – the trail opens at 4.30pm, with last entry at 7.30pm, so there’s plenty of opportunity to visit and see this wonderful spectacular.
There’s a limited capacity for each available time slot, which is brilliant, as it means there’s a steady flow of visitors, rather than everyone descending at the same time. Which gives everyone attending a bit of guaranteed space to enjoy the lights and take in the wonders on offer. It makes for a far more pleasurable experience. At no point did we feel over-crowded at any of the illuminations – it was great to be able to spend as long as we wanted at each point, without being hurried along.
Upon arrival, the car parking for the event was clearly sign-posted. We had been advised that we needed to purchase the car parking at the point of booking and download the parking ticket onto our phones, due to the poor signal on-site. This info prior to the event, made this aspect easy to navigate and we were shown to a parking space quite near the entrance.
Access to the light trail was easy too – we showed our pre-downloaded tickets (QR codes) to the member of staff, were scanned in and off we went. I liked the fact that the trail was one way and we were guided in the direction to go.
There were staff members positioned at several points throughout the trail and they were so helpful and friendly, chatting with guests—particularly to accompanying children, which I thought was lovely.
The light trail was a wonderful mix of different colours, fixed illuminations, lights that lit up in time to music, it was absolutely fantastic and very beautiful. We particularly enjoyed the stars which illuminated in time to the music, it was spectacular. My daughter enjoyed walking through the fixed illuminated star arch and my son enjoyed dancing on the lights projected onto the pathway.
I also loved the accompanying music – such variety from Elton John’s ‘Step into Christmas’ to ‘Ave Maria’ – it all added wonderfully to the ambiance.
I was heartened to see that this year’s light-up trail offering had different illuminations from our previous visit 3 years ago. This would definitely encourage me to return again.
About halfway along the trail there is a bar serving a variety of drinks and then shortly afterwards, there was a marshmallow stand, where we purchased 3 giant marshmallows on a skewer and toasted them ourselves on the accompanying fire pit. The marshmallows cost £5 for 3, which on first glance seems expensive, but actually the experience of toasting these yourself over the fire pit, was worth the cost.
There are plenty of opportunities to purchase a variety of food and drink dotted throughout the trail and at the start and finish of the trail. Refreshments are not included in the entry price.
My children were so excited to see Father Christmas make an appearance on the trail and enjoyed their interaction with him.
On 30th November and 4th December 2025 there is a ‘quieter access’ session for adults and young people who prefer a calmer environment, when there will be a more limited capacity. These will take place at twilight (4pm) before the illuminated trail opens to the wider public.
To walk the full trail takes approx. 1 to 1 and a half hours, depending on how long you spend at each set of illuminations and if you have any refreshment breaks.
The cost of the tickets is from £16 for a child and £22.50 for an adult, with a family ticket costing £74, so the experience isn’t cheap and is perhaps not an affordable thing to do every year, but it certainly gives you a festive feel-good feeling.
The trail is suitable for any age and the venue is generally accessible to all, although given condition of some of the pathways and the presence of steep slopes, they could be difficult to navigate for some. However, there were plenty of guests pushing buggies and a few guests with mobility scooters. I thought it was great that the estate had identified some of the more uneven areas of ground and ensured these were highlighted with spotlights, to reduce the risk of tripping hazards.
I’d definitely recommend Christmas at Stourhead for anyone looking for a festive family outing, to get them into the Christmas spirit!
Rating: 5/5
Tickets cost from: £16 (child), £22.50 (adult) and £74 (family)
Tickets can be booked by visiting: https://premier.ticketek.co.uk/shows/show.aspx?sh=CSTXMAS25
Venue address: Stourhead, Wiltshire, BA12 6SH