Anyone looking to get into the festive spirit, especially those with younger children, would be hard pressed to find a more enchanting experience than Wishmas: A Fantastical Christmas Adventure, which is now running at the Old Bauble Factory in London.
From the team behind Secret Cinema, this immersive event is a fun packed hour or so that will delight even the grinchiest of visitors.
We start in the sorting room, this is where all the wishes of the world come to be sorted. An elf called treacle introduces us to some of Robins who deliver the wishes to this magical land.
Then it’s aboard the sky tour, an underground train carriage that (with the help of digital screens) takes us high above London and into the clouds. But an unexpected glitch means the wishes escape, and to help out Fig, the second elf we’ve met, we all disembark and set off to different parts of the land to solve clues, collect Christmas items, and even restart time.
It culminates with a very special visitor in a familiar red suit, and a sing-along as a reward for all of our hard work. The adventure can end here, or you can book add-ons including a Christmas bauble making session which we did, and thoroughly enjoyed.
Wishmas is really well thought out, in that it caters to audiences of all ages, the youngest will be captivated by the bright colours and friendly elves, while their adults can revel in some time spent back in the innocence of childhood.
The various adventures are also ideal, nothing is too difficult so everyone can get involved, but neither are they too easy or boring.
The cast are fully committed to their roles, and are really wonderful when it comes to interacting with the children. It’s not easy to keep kids entertained for even a short period like an hour, but it was clear to see that Wishmas fully grabbed their attention.
There’s lots of effort put in to make sure this feels like a really special festive treat, and the add-on activities do give great value for money. Continuing the theme you exit through the Christmas market rather than the gift shop, where you’ll find a Wishmas branch of Fortnum & Mason and Pip Organic amongst others, there’s also a cafe serving the most delicious mince pies!
Wishmas feels like a real treat and the attention to detail on every part of the journey makes this a Christmas experience like no other.
