It has been a few years since we made the trip out to see the magical lights at Lake Lanier, but it felt like home the moment we drove onto Lanier Islands Parkway and crossed the bridge. The light display is beautiful, with whimsical adaptations of many of your favorite stories, some seemingly put to motion. You travel through about half of the 7-mile display on your way over to Winter Adventure, a fun-for-the-whole-family village filled with lights, Santa, snow slides, carnival rides, food and so much more!
Our first stop, of course, was to see Santa. Sheltered in Santa's workshop, he takes his time with each child, hearing their lists, or even reading through them if they bring it like my youngest did. He asked for ways that they had been good this year, as well as encouraged them to share their Christmas spirit. It was the perfect moment, only made moreso when, upon asking if he should keep it, he gently folded up my son's letter and placed it in his pocket for safe keeping. There's nothing like seeing the magic of Christmas through a child's eyes, and that moment sealed it for me.
Next, we stopped at the bubble rink and exchanged the tennis shoes for ice skates. The surface of the rink is treated to make it feel like you are skating on ice. Though this is a much more stable surface for those who haven't yet mastered the art of ice skating, my boys loved moving around on it, and reaching for bubbles that floated by. What fun!
We then headed to Polar Plummet where we each grabbed a tube and made our way up the ramps to slide down the huge slides. "Plummet" is a good name for this as you really do have a quick drop right at first before you speed down the rest of the path. You're actually sliding on a very soft carpet, so don't worry about getting wet while on this activity, but do hold on as you do pick up some high speeds. And let me warn you, the bigger you are, the faster and further you'll go!
It was on to the carnival rides after that where we all had a blast in the race cars, bumper cars, fun house and swings. I think my boys could have jumped from one to the other the whole time! After a quick bite to eat and making s'mores at the large fire pit, we headed to the beach area where the boys enjoyed sliding down an icy slope in the kid's area and a little friendly (and funny) battle with the inflated Battle Balls!
Just beyond this were the Double-Down slides, but no one in my crew was brave enough to give it a try, though those that did seemed to love it!
Our evening ended with the drive through the rest of the lights, as well as a spin by the live nativity. What a wonderful night of memories and quality time with my family.
I encourage you to check it out and make this a holiday tradition for your family. You can just do the Magical Lights tour for $45 per car, with an advanced purchase price of $36 per car. Click here to purchase.
To take advantage of the Winter Adventure activities, you can purchase wristbands for full-day admission which includes unlimited rides, slides, snow play zones and bubble skating. Pricing is $29.99 per person over 36 inches tall. Click here to purchase. You may also buy individual tickets once you arrive.
For more information, visit the LanierWorld Winter Adventure website HERE.
Note: I was given free admission for myself and my family in exchange for this review. However, all thoughts and opinions above are my own.
