Aln Valley Railway Santa Specials Train Review

Today we have another guest post by Amy who took a trip on the Aln Valley Railway during their Santa Specials event. I've always wanted to visit this heritage train ride in Northumberland and after reading this review, think it sounds like fantastic value for money. I love that adults are only charged £3.50 too. Over to Amy: 

10 Reasons Why North Shields Christmas Market is the Best Christmas Market in North East England

The North Shields Christmas Market takes place during one weekend in December (usually around 7/8 December) in Northumberland Square. It's FREE to visit and is loosely Victorian-themed although I think as the years have gone on, the tradition of stallholders dressing up has declined a little. It's free to visit and I think it's the best Christmas Market in the North East. We've been visiting for over 15 years now and it's always one of the highlights of the festive calendar. Keep an eye on the Visit North Tyneside events page for details of upcoming events. We visited last weekend (apologies if you missed this years and now have to wait a whole year to visit) and thought it was better than ever. My top tip is to get there early and avoid the crowds for your shopping, pop your bags in your car then return and soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the entertainment/a bite to eat. Here are 10 reasons I love this market:

A Grown-Up Festive Weekend in Ouseburn

Ouseburn is one of my favourite areas of Newcastle. I would say it's where all the cool kids go but if I'm honest, I don't think that's true. I think it's better to describe this area of Newcastle as somewhere those in their 30s and 40s like to come to pretend they're cool. So in celebration on my 35th birthday, we decided to spend a child-free weekend here and pretend we were one of the cool kids.

Review & Top Tips | Northern Stage Newcastle Christmas Show 2018

Disclosure: We purchased our own tickets at a discounted press rate. Photo Credits : Pamela Raith 

Northern Stage Christmas Show | Overview & tickets

The Christmas Show at Northern Stage is always something I really look forward to. It's completely different to anything else in the North East and is a fantastic alternative for those who aren't too keen on a traditional panto. The production is always magical with incredible staging and live music. I wasn't too keen on last year's show but think this was a one-off as we still talk about previous shows (with Get Santa being a particular favourite) to this day.

Review & Top Tips | Theatre Royal Newcastle Panto 2018

Disclosure: We were kindly invited along to press night and provided with complimentary tickets in order to review the show. Photo Credit : Paul Coltas

Theatre Royal Newcastle Panto | Overview & tickets

Goldilocks and the Three Bears starts it's run at Newcastle Theatre Royal on 27 November and continues until 20 January 2019. Newcastle favourites Danny and Clive are always super popular with many people snapping up tickets as soon as they're released year after year. Tickets are available from £15 and it is one of the more expensive pantomimes in the North East which I think is reflected in the production quality.

You can find out more and book online here

Alnwick Garden Santa Review

Visiting Father Christmas at Alnwick Garden has always been something I've wanted to do. The photos always look fantastic so this year I decided to splash out and book tickets for Heidi, Jack and Evan to visit after school.

There are different ways to visit Father Christmas at Alnwick Garden. We decided to visit after school when the garden was closed. This was advertised as being in the Alnwick Garden Treehouse which is the largest treehouse in Europe and such a magical setting. I paid £16.99 per ticket for the kids and grown-ups were free (charges do apply if you visit through the day etc... My review is based on the after-school weekday experience only).

Review & Top Tips | Playhouse Whitley Bay Panto 2018

Disclosure : We were kindly invited along to press night and provided with complimentary tickets. 

Playhouse Whitley Bay Panto | Overview & tickets

This year's panto is Peter Pan. Brought to you by Blue Genie Entertainment and starring Antony Costa as Captain Hook and Whitley Bay favourite Steve Walls as Smee, this show runs from 1 December - 5 January. Tickets are available from £10.70.