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Georgie Crawshaw and her four year old son enjoy a Christmas countdown with an adventurous day out

Looking to add an extra sprinkling of sparkle to the Christmas countdown? Mendip Activity Centre have it covered – with (jingle) bells on!

Their award winning Twilight Tobogganing experience is back until the 5 January 2025, and the West Country elves have really outdone themselves this year.

Our festive treat starts with a safety briefing by the cosy Alpine chalets (complete with a backdrop of Santa’s helpers packing presents in his workshop). Once our North Pole Toboggan Licences are approved and issued, and the obligatory Santa hats distributed and donned, we’re let loose with our mini Zibob sleds.

The package includes exclusive use of half the slope, for up to eight people (and four spectators) for 30 minutes. With holiday music in the air, a dusting of snow on our cheeks, not to mention 10,000 magical fairy lights and lasers illuminating the early evening sky, Lapland suddenly doesn’t seem so far away.

Our group ranges from four-year-olds (minimum age for tobogganing) to forty-somethings and I have to say, the big kids seem to be enjoying it just as much (if not more) than the smalls. The air is filled with squeals of joy and shouts of laughter, as we zoom down the slope and race each other back to the top to do it all again!

Before we know it our tobogganing time is up – but the magic doesn’t end there. Hand in hand, the little people take the lead, guiding us on an enchanted woodland walk through a winter wonderland, following a trail of candlelit lanterns and illuminated reindeer to a secret clearing in the forest. Under trees draped with canopies, even more shimmering lights and a soundtrack of ‘oohs’ and aahs’, our very own campfire awaits.

There are further gasps of delight (predominantly mine) as someone discovers a s’mores making kit and the entire team settle on logs to toast our marshmallows, tuck into chocolate biscuits and catch our breath (all that tobogganing is surprisingly hard work). As we cosy up around the crackling fire, cups of steaming hot chocolate in our hands, my only complaint is that half an hour simply isn’t sufficient to soak up the fairytale feel (or eat enough s’mores!)

Before we head back home, there’s just enough time to light a sparkler each (also included in the pack). And if all that’s not enough ‘merry and bright’ for you, there’s even a licensed Alpine cafe-bar on site where you can escape reality a little longer with a mulled wine or a more substantial snack (their ski resort-themed pizzas look good).

By this point the kids are definitely running low on batteries (and dangerously high on sugar), so we decide to make a run for it. As the families part ways in the car park there’s a unanimous 10 out of 10 verdict for Twilight Tobogganing, from young and old alike – although I think the smiles on everyone’s faces, and the smears of chocolate around our mouths, say it all!

The Twilight Tobogganing experience lasts one hour. Tickets from £80 for a maximum of eight tobogganners and four spectators. Visit www.mendip.co.uk/twilight for more information and to book.