Happy New Year!
The family and I wanted to start this new decade off right – together, travelling, learning, having fun and setting the tone for the year ahead. In my opinion, experience is the best gift and nothing excites the kids more than a quick trip to Ottawa, and I have been wanting to go check out one of these beautiful light festivals – so what better way to spend New Years day than at Glow Ottawa.

Glow Gardens is a beautiful, family-friendly indoor winter light festival with illuminated structures, interactive light gardens and tons of entertainment.
We started off with a tour around the world, visiting 6 different countries and their most famous historical landmarks. The kids each had a passport and I used to Christmas Glow app to collect stamps at the hidden stamp stations throughout the exhibition.

We strolled through the beautiful gardens of China.


We marveled at the beauty and grandeur of the Taj Mahal illuminated in lights in India.

We admired the serene landscapes of The Netherlands at the tulip gardens and windmills of Holland.


We visited the majestic tropical birds of Mexico.

We imagined what a stroll through the city of love and lights would really feel like in Paris, France.



And a landmark my daughter seems to never forget – The Big Ben in London, England.

The kids also loved a walk through the interactive hanging lights. If you love a good photo-op this place has tons!!


We even met a Glow Princess!

After we filled up our passports, we collected our candy cane surprise and headed into Christmas town, where we found Santa’s sleigh, Glen the Glow-comotive holiday train and many other traditional holiday light displays.



We look a little break in the LED swings before we capped off the tour with some play time in the Magic Castle playground perfect for the big kids, while the little enjoyed time in the bouncy farms.
While Canada was not an official country in the Glow Around Tour, what would a festival in the country’s capital be without a little ode to our Canadian roots with this awesome Moose bouncy farm and light display.

Glow Ottawa also includes, daily live entertainment, food and drink and a local vendor market all under the twinkle of a million lights. It was definitely worth the trip and highly recommend you visit if you get the chance. This year’s festival ends Jan 4th (last day), so if you cannot make it this time around, definitely add it to your 2020 bucket list for the next edition. Check out Glow Gardens website for details (and to find an event in a city near you).
Check out my Instagram story highlights for more fun from Glow Ottawa.
xox,
Joanna
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