tried & tested

Last weekend we were invited to do a Tried and Tested review at Shuttleworth for their ‘Shuttleworth in Lights’ event.

For over 5 years, Shuttleworth has been running the Lights events from the end of November through to mid-December.

When the sun goes down, the Garden and Hangars are illuminated in a wonderful display of big, bold, colour, showcasing the wonderful natural features of the landscape and heritage.

Upon arrival, you can either head to the café for hot chocolate, mulled wine or delicious food and treats, or go straight to the box office van at the entrance to the Swiss Gardens to check in. Here you can also purchase glowsticks for the kids, which ours loved.

Following the signs, you enter the Swiss Gardens near the lake, which is breath-taking! We were lucky to go on a beautiful clear evening with a bright moon, that created a beautiful reflection from the trees across the lake.

Follys, fountains, bridges, vases, trees, shrubs and mini houses - the Swiss Garden was constructed 199 years ago and is even more breath-taking when lit up at night.

The kids loved the mini houses you could go inside with little light displays.

The only drawback for us was that 5pm is a testing time with a 3 year old- so there was a lot of “I’m hungry”, “my legs are tired”, “carry me” etc etc, so bear that in mind if you have younger kids who are cranky at that time of day. We both kept saying how lovely it would have been to walk around just the two of us, but despite the toddler moaning, we thoroughly enjoyed it. At every turn, was a beautiful display and seeing the garden from different angles as we walked round, gave even more spectacular views.

The majority of the garden is accessible for wheelchairs and prams, and where it isn’t there, is an alternative route.

There were staff throughout the garden to answer any questions or offer assistance too.

The Shuttleworth Trust is a charity, so events like these really do help to keep the magic of aviation, automotive and agricultural history and education alive year on year.

Once we’d taken our time to meander through the garden, we headed to The Runway Café for hot chocolate and a mulled wine (the 3 year old drove me to it!), and the boys enjoyed doing some colouring on the table that was set up. There is plenty of space and lots of options for food and drink.

The final part of the illuminated trail - The Collection - takes you through the 100+ years of aviation and automotive history packed into their six hangars. From the WW1 aircraft that soared above no-man's land to those that have starred in Hollywood blockbusters, steam engines, buses, motorbike and carriages and so much more - there's something for everyone!  

We weren’t able to visit the hangars as the kids were getting too tired, but having been many times before as we’re members, I’m sure it would have been breath-taking…maybe we will enlist Grandma for babysitting and go back just the two of us!

You can also find a Reel from our trip on my Instagram page, which really brings to life how beautiful it was.

Early slots are selling fast if you do have little ones, so if you’d like to go along and support a very worthy local gem, then book your tickets soon!

The Shuttleworth in Lights events are running Friday-Sunday until December 17th. Find out more information or purchase your tickets here.

Our tickets were kindly gifted by Shuttleworth for us to review this attraction.

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Don't forget to check out all my other Tried and Tested reviews here.

You'll also find Reels from our various days out on my Instagram page here.