With last year being as rubbish as it was when it came to festive celebrations and general joy, we were super excited to visit the entirely Covid Safe experience offered by Silverstone and the amazing Lap of Lights. It surpassed all expectations and we had the best time. This year with everything looking a bit cheerier and restrictions not being as harsh we were delighted to go back and see what was on offer for 2021.
The biggest change for 2021 at Silverstone is the addition of the The Lodge and Ice Trak. Initially L was sad that we weren’t staying to watch a film, last year you had the option of going to a drive in cinema to watch The Snowman but as soon as we headed over the bridge and walked past the Ice Trak to head into The Lodge all thoughts of the cinema disappeared.
We were booked onto a 6.30pm slot for the Lap of Lights and we headed to The Lodge at about 4pm. I was worried we would have a bit too much time on our hands but I couldn’t have been more wrong, so wrong in fact we ran out of time to go Ice Skating!!
The Lodge is set up for Apres Ski style fun, now it’s been many a year since I popped ski’s on but I was loving the vibe. There is a great selection of gifts to be purchased, it took all my power to not buy the race helmet wearing reindeer mug. There are plenty of light up options too, perfect for enjoy the lap with. The sweet bar looked amazing and there was live music.
We started off by settling down for some food. The choice was brilliant and not too expensive at all, the festive hot dog sounded great but the loaded pulled pork chips won for the husband and it was cheesy chips for the boy, with me opting for churros because I can never resist them. I only wish I had been hungrier because the salmon sounded amazing and the ice cream sundae was calling as well.
Next stop was curling, at £5 per person it was a real laugh and we had a great time. You’re not on real ice so there’s no worry of slipping and hurting yourself, it keeps it really family friendly. The axe throwing was great fun as well, that is £8 per person and a lot harder than it looks but there’s plenty of help on hand. There were racing simulators as well but we didn’t go on those.
We loved the cosy cinema area for the kids and stopped to watch a bit of The Polar Express and write a letter to Santa, handily there is a postbox with direct access to the big man, so Christmas wishes have been sent.
Whilst it was busy in The Lodge we barely had to queue for anything, it was very well organised and with so much to do we really could have done with another hour. Definitely something to bear in mind.
The Ice Trak looked amazing and I wish we had planned our time better to have fitted that in, definitely get yourself booked in for a skating slot so you’re not disappointed. You actually get to skate through the pit lane and a little birdy told me there are a few cars to spot as you go round. I’m so sad we ran out of time, I may be rubbish at ice skating but what an unique experience to have.
It was soon time to pop back in the car and head to the start of the Lap of Lights, it’s not far and you can easily go to The Lodge before or after your Lap. Or both if you fancy it. We were tempted to stop again afterwards, we had enjoyed it so much, but as we live a good 2 hours away we had to be sensible.
The Lap this year not only takes you around the iconic Silverstone track but it also takes you around the world until you get to see Santa in house and give him a big wave. It’s an amazing experience to be driving on such an iconic track, even if you are going slowly. The lap takes about 30 minutes and you are guided through it by a pace car. Again it is fabulously well organised.
The lights and lasers are amazing and whilst some of the features we had loved so much last year hadn’t come back it was still incredibly impressive. It’s a really immersive experience and starting at £30 for a car, with free entry to The Lodge it is amazing value for money.
L loved the United States and seeing the big trucks on display. I was rather taken by the Pyramids and of course the excitement of being on the Start/Finish straight on the actual Silverstone track. The same track Valentino Rossi has raced. Amazing! It was great seeing the winners podium as well.
The most exciting visit was of course the Arctic, polar bears on a race track is one thing but waving to Santa, well that’s as magical as it gets really.
Grab you tickets from www.silverstone.co.uk
Disclosure – we were gifted our tickets to the Lap of Lights at Silverstone and had free access to the curling, axe throwing and ice skating.