A Truly
Remarkable Feat
CHRISTMAS LIGHTS SPECTACULAR AT HUNTER VALLEY GARDENS
WORDS LIANE MORRIS If you live in the Hunter Valley, you probably already know about the yearly tradition that is the Christmas Lights Spectacular at Hunter Valley Gardens (HVG). This incredible light display is the largest in the Southern Hemisphere and, this year has even more to offer regulars and new visitors alike. A favourite of families, lovers and everyone keen to get into the Christmas spirit, this mesmerising display encompasses 5 hectares of the 14-hectare gardens and utilises over 3 million lights. It opened to the public on Friday, 5 November and will run through until Australia Day 26 January 2022, every evening from 5.30pm until 10.30pm. Amanda Andrews, Event Manager of Hunter Valley Gardens, says, "After another difficult year for many Australians, we are thrilled to invite people back to the Christmas Lights Spectacular. It is truly the perfect escape for families and their loved ones to relax and enjoy our rides, attractions and lights as we embrace the Christmas season." Staff at HVG work on the display year-round – planning, sourcing and installing, but with covid restrictions taking up such a significant portion of the year, this year was more challenging than most. What would
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typically take a team of 12 three months to install was done in just four weeks this year. It is a truly remarkable feat. Visitors will be thrilled to see lots of old favourites such as the Lovers Tunnel, where it's pretty popular (and somewhat successful!) to pop the question and is the perfect opportunity to indulge in a romantic festive getaway. Kids will be excited to see 'Hunter', the giant illuminated teddy bear again, as well as the Giant Castle. For those that have been missing travel, the Around the World display enables you to visit famous landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower, Edinburgh Castle, London's Big Ben, the Statue of Liberty, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Colosseum and the Taj Mahal as well as our own Sydney Opera House. The team are excited by this year's new additions. One such addition is the new waterfall display that took one team member a whole week to fix 32,500 lights by hand to the framework. There are new Mega Trees along the edge of the lake with a light sequence set to music. Look out for the dancing Santa and reindeer in the trees, and don't miss the giant Bauble Tree. This year Santa has his very own purpose-built Santa's Cave, where he and his elves will be available for Santa photos every night until 24 December.
