Paws for thought as new year begins

January 9, 2023

Paws for thought as new year begins

The start of a new year at Wicksteed Park has brought lots of excitement, as we get things ready to help fill 2023 with amazing memories.

We are encouraging everyone to keep their eyes and ears peeled for announcements in the coming weeks as we gear up to open our rides and attractions at Easter.

The first major event at the park this year is our Centenary Ball, which we postponed last year due to the death of the Queen, but will now be held in our Edwardian pavilion ballroom on Saturday February 11.

The celebration to mark 100 years since the park was opened by Charles Wicksteed in 1921 will include amazing food, drink and entertainment to celebrate the Roaring 20s and an era of glamour and decadence.

People attending the evening of celebration will be able to enjoy exquisite 1920s cocktails, followed by a delicious three-course 1920s-inspired meal created exclusively for the event by the park’s executive chef.

As well as looking forward, it’s nice to reflect on 2022 and take a moment to appreciate the great achievements that we enjoyed throughout the year. We had an incredible summer, celebrating 100 years of Wicksteed Park with our Centenary Regatta, enjoyed another amazing year of our Fireworks Display and had a wonderful Christmas full of festive events!

With all that in mind, we also wanted to take a moment to share a story that touched many of our hearts here at the park.

Towards the end of the year, we received a message explaining that Tilly, a 13 year old cat with Parkinson’s had gone missing on Wicksteed Park grounds. Our staff assured the owners that we’d keep an eye out for her – our team knew we had to do our best to try and find her.

Days went by and we’d still had no sign of Tilly until we spotted our new furry friend sneaking around the Thrill Zone and after being missing for 9 ½ days, we finally managed to reunite Tilly with her owners, who were thrilled to have her back.

It’s moments like these where we appreciate our staff’s dedication to going the extra mile.

With this in mind, we’re excited for 2023 and the fun that awaits us.

Wicksteed Charitable Trust

Wicksteed Park is cared for by the Wicksteed Charitable Trust which maintains the park as a truly unique, freely accessible public space. You can help to preserve the park for future generations by making donations. All money raised is used to help maintain the park and its grounds. Donations can be made by visiting our reception. Car parking charges made whilst visiting the site also supports Wicksteed Charitable Trust in maintaining and preserving Wicksteed Park.

Become A Trustee Donate Here

Other News

Wicksteed Park Volunteers are Bringing the Roses Back!

A recent project Wicksteed’s volunteers have taken on is the return of roses to our iconic rose garden which will see a new flower bed with roses and companion plants added to the already vibrant garden.

The Wicksteed Charitable Trust: Join Us in Securing Our Future

Wicksteed Park has been a cornerstone of family fun, community events, and natural beauty for over 100 years. As the birthplace of modern play equipment, it holds a unique place in history—and in the hearts of generations. However, the park's future as a free to access site is at risk. The Wicksteed Charitable Trust needs your help to keep the park open, free, and thriving.

Tenth annual world puddle jumping championships set to make a record-breaking splash

Our 10th annual World Puddle Jumping Championships are set to make a splash across the globe – with the number of entries expected to set a new record.

Customer Reviews

"It was absolutely amazing, my toddler loved seeing Santa and going to the elf workshop to pick a present! We saw reindeers, went on the train and a couple rides and went to the farm! A fantastic day out and a great experience for seeing Santa for the first time! Staff were great!"

Bethany

"Had not been to Wickstead park for years . Thought I would take my grandson and despite the weather and it being late in the season we had a lovely time. Great value for money and will return next year"

Perry

"We had a great fun day out. Old fashioned English Park. Good variety of rides. Clean loos. Friendly staff. We loved the train ride. Also the water rides were fantastic. Best to buy a wrist band that let's you have unlimited rides"

Rose

"We camped here this week, and all had a blast!!! It was so well-priced. We were one of the first in the park. The camping was quiet, and the kids absolutely loved all the places to walk!!! Thank you!"

Charlotte

"My parents took me to Wicksteed Park as a child over 50 years ago. Today I took my grandchildren and it was quite an experience. The train around the park is still there but now there are lots of much bigger rides for older kids and adults including a log flume. The old water chute I went on as a kid is still there and is loved by young and old. We found all the staff friendly and helpful at Wicksteed which is really important, as at other theme parks its what made for a poor experience. Maybe Wicksteed's British origins makes it a more relaxed experience than US style parks. You can almost imagine post Edwardian Britons in 1920's enjoying days out in this beautiful park with all its green spaces. My older grandkids enjoyed the rides and short queues whilst younger ones liked the soft play area. We are already planning our next visit to Wicksteed Park."

Del

"Great day out for extended family particularly good for 6 to 10 year olds and the older kids can take the little ones on the rides. The parks is really beautiful and there are hardly any queues. Lots of fun rides and wrist bands good value if you do lots of rides like my kids did. All 14 of us had a great day and we had a take out in the park before leaving on a beautiful evening. Fun times."

Julial

"We were lucky enough to go in a lovely sunny day. There were 11 of us, 5 adults and 6 children, 2 of whom have disabilities. The staff were so helpful in every way, sorting our wristbands out, giving advice, looking after us on rides, etc. Some of the rides I was used to were shut; the rocking tugboat, drop slide and mini landrovers, but a lovely surprise awaited in the form of new rides; the garden wheel and mechanical horses. We went boating on the lake, rode the water flume, went on loads of other rides for which there was barely a queue. The actual park itself is amazing, so much room to play for the children, we had a lovely picnic under the trees. Toilets were really clean, plenty of food outlets, although not as many as on previous visits. It baffles me that more people don't go there, as there really is something for everyone. Even if you didn't want to pay for the rides, there is still a excellent playing park. Take my advice and just head out there for the day..."

Janice

"Kids loved it, even through it was busy the queues weren’t too bad and as there is so much green space we easily found a spot in the shade for our picnic. Lovely parkland and they even dragged me on to the Dinosaur Valley ride! The band/ ticket options are great for a mixed group who might not all want to go on every ride."

Amy

"We camped at Wickstead park this weekend for our annual camping trip with friends and kids (age range 15 - 13). Booking was very easy and great communication with reception. The site is very clean, as are the facilities and there is lots for the kids to do. Its a very safe site and I would highly recommend it. We will definitely be back!"

Jackie

"Having one of our sons, and his nine year old to stay gave us a reason to visit Wicksteed Park yesterday. The rides were great fun and suitable for a range of ages; they all seemed well cared for and the operators paid attention to safety. We bought a wristband for our grandson, and individual tickets for the rest of us so that we could mix and match who went on with him. The weather was rather dull, which may have contributed to the generally short waits to get on the rides. The playgrounds are excellent and there is lots of room for running around. We took a picnic and easily found somewhere to sit and eat. Car parking was easy, and given there is no entrance charge, I thought it reasonable. I use a mobility scooter and had no problems getting around. We used to take our sons when they were small and we had little money: by just going in the playgrounds (no charge); playing ball games on the grass and taking a picnic, it was a cheap day out. Enjoy."