Winter Funland At Olympia London Review
DISCLOSURE – THIS EXPERIENCE WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST/S FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW.
Reviewed by Mel Randle
Last night, myself and my daughter (9) headed off to London to top up our Christmas spirit at
Olympia’s new attraction Winter Funland. Promising a ‘magical Christmas experience’, they have packed a fun fair, circus tent and real ice rink all under one roof in Olympia’s Grand Hall.
The venue is easy to reach by all public transport links. We drove in (note it is within ULEZ) and used the My Parking Space app to find a great affordable car park at the nearby Livat shopping centre, a 15 minute walk away. Hammersmith Road had some great festive lights for us to enjoy on the way including an awesome ‘Christmas Train’ at Hammersmith Underground!
On arrival at the venue, we passed through security and into a waiting area decorated with gorgeous festive displays. The event runs in sessions of 3.5 hours (there may be some exceptions) so we had a 10 minute wait for our session to start. There is the opportunity in this time to put coats in the cloakroom for £2 per item, use the toilets and for the children to write and post a letter to Santa. It is a large space and wasn’t overcrowded so it made for a really enjoyable experience.
Once our session started, all attractions were included in the ticket fee. At first, the £37 price tag seems like a lot until you consider what is on offer. The funfair has rides for all ages from Merry-Go-Rounds and soft play for the little ones to thrill seeking rides for the older and braver ones. There is a gorgeous carousel and dodgems as well as vintage swing boats and a giant slide. We went on approx. 10 rides in our time and didn’t really queue for any, other than waiting for the previous ride to finish. Do note that some rides have height restrictions of 1.2 or 1.4 metres so you can manage your child’s expectations in advance!
An hour into our session, we headed to the big top for the circus show. There are 2 per session and are approx. 30 mins long. I wasn’t expecting anything amazing given that it was included in the price so I was delighted to discover this is a great show with quality acts, as good as any other circus I have seen. I won’t give any spoilers but you can expect laughs as well as jaw dropping and edge of the seat moments! It is a proper big-top with tiered seating around the circus ring, so you have a great view from anywhere. People were able to come and go as they pleased, so you can manage what attractions you see in your session time and there was no stress about being on a ride and missing the start of the show.
The final element of the included attractions is the ice rink. This is the only thing where we were a little disappointed. The rink is a great size, real ice, no overcrowding, skate aids available if needed and staff on the ice to help. But, the ice skates were the most uncomfortable we have ever experienced. It may just be us – perhaps we have been spoilt at other venues, but they were so hard and so uncomfortable that we only managed two laps before wanted to get them off our feet! Had we not been restricted by session time, we would possibly have gone back and tried a size up to see if they were any better, but we didn’t want to waste our precious time putting ice skates on and off – a gruelling task at the best of times!
As to be expected at any event, there are lots of vending stalls at an extra cost. I would suggest setting a budget for extra spending before you go because there are lots of things to entice children in such as Hook-A-Duck, face-painting, helium balloons and sweet stalls. There is an array of food on offer – everything from Greek to burgers to churros and bars serving alcohol and there is plenty of seating all around the hall and facilities, toilets and baby changing etc, are readily available.
We had a lovely evening together and my daughter thoroughly enjoyed herself. This felt as thrilling as a theme park without all the yucky elements- overcrowding and bad weather!! All staff (and Santa’s elves) were happy and helpful throughout. I would really recommend this for a great family outing this Christmas, but go with intent – you haven’t got time to be wandering round to see what’s there and if you don’t set a budget, it could turn very expensive very quickly!!
Rating: 5/5
Winter Funland is open at London’s Olympia until Sunday 4th January 2026
Ticket prices from £37 plus booking fee. Under 3’s and carer tickets free.
For more information and to book, visit https://www.winterfunland.com/london/