A colourful Christmas wonderland designed to get locals into the festive spirit will come to life next month.

Lake Hāwea residents Barbara Mackenzie and Elizabeth Horrell are making magic at the Lake Hāwea Community Centre bringing the interactive ‘Hāwea Christmas Wonderland’ experience to life.

While it is open to visitors for just over a week - this year it is running from Saturday December 3 to Sunday December 11 - the Hāwea Christmas Wonderland takes many months and hundreds of volunteer hours to bring to life. 

“We have an idea and then in about February we will get together and start to thrash out the idea,” Elizabeth said. 

The annual Christmas extravaganza (2021 display pictured) is fun for the whole family. PHOTO: Chris Champion

“It’s really a 12-month process, figuring out how it will work, what we’ve already got, and what we need.” 

Every year the wonderland grows even bigger and better and the 2022 theme, ‘Notes of Christmas’, has inspired a display which will bring classic Christmas carols to life with a display featuring hundreds of handmade music notes, reindeers, elves, rabbits, a range of Christmas trees and all sorts of other festive and seasonal delights. 

Last year’s wonderland, with a North Pole theme, featured over 2,000 baubles, 300 metres of lights, 200m of frost cloth, 100m of greenery, and - after Elizabeth and Barbara’s efforts creating the vision and finding or making what they needed - took another 224 hours for volunteers to put together over a five-day period.

Elizabeth said the Christmas displays had come around as a result of the pair’s love of Christmas decorating.

“Barb had a flash of inspiration one day and came to me and said ‘let’s do this’,” Elizabeth told the Wānaka App. “Her house was full and there was no more room.”

Marvel at the craftsmanship and enjoy the sights, smells and sounds of Christmas at the 2022 Hāwea Christmas Wonderland, open from Saturday December 3 to Sunday December 11 with weekend days from 10am-4pm and weekdays from 2-5pm.

On the weekends there will be special visits from Father Christmas between 10.30am and midday, and again between 1.30pm and 3.30pm.Tickets are $5 for adults, $2 for children or $10 for a family (up to five people), plus there will be cash tickets for a Christmas raffle available.

Group visits are also available on request outside of the usual opening hours by special arrangement. 

Elizabeth said the group visits are ideal for school groups, kindergartens and daycares, or any group  wanting a festive start to their Christmas work function. 

To arrange a group visit, contact Barbara on [email protected] or call Elizabeth on 0276687555.