Winter Wonderland offers festive joy – but not at a cheap price.

As I walked past Santa’s Grotto, I spotted a queue of children lining up, filled with excitement – I just help but think how much their parents paid.

For a ticket into the site, which used to be free, it starts at around £5 for an adult or a child ticket.

At peak times, you’re looking at £7.50 – and this is just to get in and walk around.

Once you’re in there, there’s no other way to say it but it’s an endless money pit.

If you just want to look around and soak up the atmosphere, then great. If you want a drink or some food or to take part in any of the activities, then you’ll be needing a decent amount of cash.

With £20, there’s not much you can get. For a bratwurst sausage, which is an essential at a Christmas market for many, I paid £8. 

With £12 left, I headed to the bar and got a half pint of cider which set me back a further £3.60.

With £8.40 left, I wanted to get some churros, again a Christmas market must.

You can buy some churros for £8 which would have been in budget, however to add Nutella you’ll pay £2 more (which I did).

If you’re not looking to spend too long there, £21.60 on food and drink and for the experience of visiting the market isn’t awful. It is London afterall.

If you’re planning on drinking more alcohol while you’re there, you’re sure to spend a lot more money.

But, in Winter Wonderland’s defence, you’d pay quite a bit on a night out drinking in London anyway and prices don’t differ too much from what you might pay in a central London pub. 

If you’re wondering how much the attractions cost, there’s a few different packages available if you’re interested to book onto more than one.

To visit Zippos Christmas Circus, you’ll pay £17 and for the ice rink, you’ll be set back by £17.50.

If you’re visiting and you want to have a couple of drinks, food, and complete one activity, you’ll probably need to be prepared to spend closer to £50.