Dorman Museum

It will be a December to remember at the Dorman Museum this year as families can buckle up and get ready to enjoy a whole month of festive fun.

Featuring a virtual reality sleigh simulator ride and a Christmas Extravaganza weekend, there is also a brand new exhibition that is a sensory, colourful delight, ideal for pre-school children and fans of Wow Said the Owl book.

In an exciting first for the museum and available throughout December, visitors can explore Santa’s secret headquarters on a virtual reality Sleigh Simulator ride.

Once aboard, the high definition, virtual reality headsets will transport sleigh riders straight into a fully immersive Christmas experience. Featuring 4D moving images and sound, the range of motions will simulate the sleigh soaring through the sky.

A Christmas Extravaganza on the weekend of December 11 and 12 offers a bumper weekend of seasonal fun including an interactive elf town, a brand new exhibition, an indoor festive market and even more family-friendly activities. An indoor market featuring small, independent businesses from across Teesside will be available throughout the Christmas Extravaganza.

It’s an ideal opportunity to pick up an early Christmas gift, and visitors can enjoy a selection of handmade decorations, present ideas and tasty treats.

The museum street will also be transformed into an Elf Town with interactive performers. The festive fun town also includes a toy shop, a fun-filled festive skills test at elf school and games in the elf club.

A crafty elf challenge and a trail around the museum completes the seasonal offer.

The family craft workshop invites visitors to make decorations and gifts to take home, and the Christmas-themed trail will take explorers on a journey of discovery to track down treasure and interesting objects from the museum collection.

A new exhibition will also be open based on the much-loved children’s book, Wow Said the Owl by Tim Hopgood.

A sensory delight, the exhibition will be bright and colourful with lots to see and do for young families. It also features an animatronic owl who will be telling stories to little ones.

Children can also celebrate the festive season with a Christmasthemed Yoga Explorers.

The session with Yoga Mike will explore how animals from different countries around the world celebrate the season. There will also be stories, songs, games and the opportunity to get up close with interesting objects from the museum collection.

Yoga Explorers is on Sunday December 19. There are two sessions to choose from running at 10am to 12.30pm and 1pm to 3.30pm and the activity is suitable for children aged five to 11.

Admission to the museum is free. The Virtual Reality Sleigh Simulator ride is available throughout December. Tickets are £4 per person or £14 for a family of four and can be booked via www. ticketsource.co.uk/museum or by calling 01642 813781.

The Christmas Trail is £1 per person and can be collected from the museum reception desk.

The Crafty Elf workshop is £2 per person and places can be booked at the museum reception desk upon arrival.

Wow Said the Owl exhibition is open throughout December (Tuesday to Sunday) from 10am to 4pm and is included in the free admission to the Dorman Museum.

Yoga Explorers is £10 per child and can be booked online via Eventbrite.

Discover more festive events and family-friendly activities via We are Middlesbrough www. wearemiddlesbrough.com