Lightopia 2022 gallery | Festive light show returns to Crystal Palace Park

Festive light installation have become pretty popular in recent years, with London attractions such at the London Wetland Centre and Eltham Palace hosting the seasonal extravaganzas. However, the size and the formats of the events can be quite different. A few weeks ago, I checked out Lightopia at Crystal Palace Park. The award-winning show returned to the south London park for a second year, as well as running in Manchester and Alton Towers.

Having grown up locally, I’ve been going to Crystal Palace Park for decades and know it very well. So visiting after dark and seeing the park transformed by a series of light installations and lanterns was pretty special. Entering from top of the park near the famous Victorian terraces leftover from the actual Crystal Palace, Lightopia begins with a series of routes, taking in a large section of the park, going all the way to the southern fringes near Penge and Anerley. The light show wasn’t just lanterns and lights, but there were also moving sculptures. One of the most spectacular pieces was the sound and light show projected on the boating lake, with figures such as a dancing Santa, angels, birds of prey and nutcracker soldiers hovering magically above the water. Overall, it was a great event for a festive night out. As well as the trails and installations, there were vendors selling hot food and drink to keep you warm.

Here’s a gallery of just some of the installations at Lightopia 2022:

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

• Lightopia London 2022 was on from 17 November 2022 – 2 January 2023. At Crystal Palace Park, Thicket Road, Crystal Palace, SE19 2GA. Nearest stations: Crystal Palace or Penge West. For more information, visit the Lightopia website.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin