There’s one event I look forward to in Stoke On Trent every festive season and once again it didn’t disappoint! Here’s our Winter Wonderland Stoke 2021 review.
Winter Wonderland Stoke has been a yearly tradition for us. Heading down to Hanley as we experience festive fun with a whole array of rides, a Bavarian bar and some Xmas treats along the way.
This year saw a chopped and changed line-up of funfair rides with the giant 60m Sky Swing and AirMaxx returning for this years event. Not to mention a Christmas motion simulator and a fun house which were both new attractions for the 2021 event.
What I instantly noticed upon walking onto those fabled wooden decked floors is that the iconic Crazy Mouse rollercoaster wasn’t there.
The ride had been replaced by a Christmas coaster which consists of riding a sleigh staring at two Reindeer bumcheeks going around a Caterpillar coaster layout.
If that doesn’t encapsulate the Christmas spirit, I don’t know what does!
I believe it’s the first Winter Wonderland event without the Crazy Mouse coaster and it was certainly missed.
Thankfully the Sky Swing and AirMaxx entered the line-up (they were missing last year) and more than made up for it.
Such classics as the SuperBowl and No Limit returned along with the waltzers, a sizzler and the mini-kids rides.
The wave swinger from last year was also nowhere to be seen so whilst the line-up was somewhat chopped and changed there was still a nice selection.
Three thrill-seeker rides (two if you don’t count the terrifying (for me) Sky Swing) for the adults, a nice choice of kids rides and the beautiful Bavarian bar back again to sit in the warmth with a nice pint and watch the world go by.
I love the Bavarian bar, it’s such a nice touch and this year saw the addition of little outdoor huts to sit in.
The bar gets very popular, very quickly so it’s always best to grab an early seat before the crowds roll.
Winter Wonderland Stoke is free to enter and walk around and you can choose to pay per ride with tokens or buy an unlimited wristband.
The ultimate wristband cost £15.99 and allowed unlimited rides for a four hour period which is great value.
After we had been spun to death by all the rides and after getting stuck inside the fun house slide (NOT for adults by the way) I was all rode out for one day and I still felt we got our moneys worth.
Atmosphere was quieter on the evening that we went but after a storm a few nights prior not to mention snow still on the ground the temperatures weren’t exactly ideal for walking around a funfair all night.
Not an issue for us as we ascended to the top of the 60m Sky Swing and froze to death whilst taking in the sights or lack thereof.
Hanley City Centre have done absolutely nothing for Christmas this year. There’s very little festive atmosphere and there’s just a giant Christmas tree with no lights on it.
There’s a glowing Reindeer up by Cineworld Cinemas Stoke that’s been bolted to the floor but that’s about it.
Winter Wonderland Stoke is the ONLY place in Hanley were that much craved festive atmosphere is.
What I noticed this year was the friendliness of the ride staff. They were all really bubbly and happy to be there.
The same couldn’t be said about Mr.Friendly at the ticket kiosk who looked as though he was one smile away from his face cracking like porcelain.
There was also young lady on the virtual simulator who was a little bit short with me when I asked if this ride was included in the wristband. It wasn’t. But after being a little rude in her answer we decided to not go on.
I’m sure she won’t miss our £6 but that’s £6 lost because she had zero manners.
Everyone else we met at the event was lovely and friendly and it had a real nice warmth to it than previous years.
Quite a lot of the time the public let down Winter Wonderland Stoke as you get little groups of chavs wandering around like the next big Hip Hop band but this year there was definitely a different target audience around.
The area consisted of more families with their younger children. Granted we came down in a weekday and the weekend will naturally be a busier but it was just nice and relaxing we didn’t have to wait for any rides and the ride offering was great!
A few years ago I remember writing a review where a member of staff didn’t check our harnesses on the Sky Swing and it’s made me wary of the ride ever since.
Thankfully all members of staff checked our harnesses more than once on every ride except SuperBowl where we put our harnesses down ourselves after he skipped us out of his harness check for some reason.
Maybe the computer inside the ride booth said we were all good to go, who knows.
I always like that reassurance of a staff member checking my harness though and the ride op on AirMaxx certainly did that and I’m ever so glad he did, it’s the most terrifying ride there.
The fastest, highest and most intense ride at Winter Wonderland Stoke. An absolutely behemoth above the Hanley skyline and one of the most insanely terrifying and incredible experiences I’ve had on a funfair ride.
Winter Wonderland Stoke has it all this year, the magic is back!
Grab your tickets today at https://www.winterwonderlandstoke.com
Check out our VLOG from the event below but be warned. There is occasional nervous swearing on some of the thrill rides.
I did warn you…
