The Red Dragon Centre spreads Christmas cheer with free festive events

THE Red Dragon Centre, Cardiff Bay’s leading entertainment venue, is giving back this festive season with its ‘Season of Joy’ campaign.

Launching on 13 November to celebrate National Kindness Day, The Red Dragon Centre will be hosting a season of festive events to spread Christmas cheer to visitors, as well as hosting a festive jolly giant Santa as its Christmas centrepiece, ready to pose for photos.

Kicking off the festivities is the opening of the ‘Jolly Book Bank’. Open from 18 November 2024 – 5 January 2025, the Centre will be encouraging visitors to give joy and get joy by donating children’s books in good condition, and welcoming children and families to take a book home to continue the magical escapism.

The Jolly Book Bank is in support of the Centre’s charity partner, Make a Smile, a charity that spreads joy and magic to children who may otherwise miss out. The charity visits children in hospitals, community groups or virtually as their favourite characters to bring their dreams to life with interactive events. Since its founding in 2016, the charity has visited over 3000 children across the UK.

Any remaining books after 5 January will be redistributed by the charity to its partnered hospitals and community groups.

In collaboration with Make a Smile, The Red Dragon Centre will be hosting a ‘Princesses and Heroes Day’ on 30 November to celebrate the release of Moana 2. Children and families can come along and meet their favourite characters and listen to story book readings at the book bank, led by Make a Smile volunteers.

Adding to the festivities will be the Cardiff Bay Reindeer Trail, organised by the Cardiff Bay Waterfront Partners. Open to the public from Saturday 30 November 2024 to Sunday 5 January 2025, the trail will comprise of nine reindeer scattered across the Bay’s most iconic landmarks, with a top prize for those who solve the mystery riddle.

On the same launch weekend, the Centre will be visited by a young baby Dasher in a unique puppet event to immerse visitors in the Christmas magic.

Emma Constantinou, marketing manager at The Red Dragon Centre, said: “The Christmas season is such a magical time and we want to spread that magic and escapism with our festive events, to compliment our already great attractions to form the perfect Christmas day out. We pride ourselves on our accessibility and, with the Book Bank being free of charge, we welcome anyone and everyone to give, take or donate to join in the Season of Joy.

“The team at Make a Smile have been wonderful in taking on our ideas, and incorporating their own skills and talents, we can’t wait to see their hard-working volunteers at our Princesses and Heroes Day.”

Michael Cogbill, President at Make a Smile Cardiff, said: “The driving belief of Make a Smile is that all children deserve a childhood, and especially deserve to enjoy the magic of Christmas. The festive season can be particularly difficult for disadvantaged families, and we endeavour to ensure that as many children as possible can receive some Christmas cheer. We are incredibly grateful to The Red Dragon Centre for giving us a platform to spread that magic and joy. Being a small charity, this is a tremendous opportunity for us to raise awareness for the groups we work with, show how impactful our work can be and even potentially gain the interest of volunteers wanting to give back this Christmas season.

“We can’t wait to welcome visitors to the Centre on and spread the joy  of Christmas to as many families as possible.”

The Red Dragon Centre is home to a multitude of interactive, lifestyle and food and drink venues including Odeon Cinema, the home of Wales’ only IMAX screen, and the Hollywood Bowl which have been key Centre attractions since the beginning.

The Centre hosts a range of additional brands that make up an intrinsic part of the entertainment and dining experience, including Grosvenor Casino, Five Guys, Spice Route, Volcano, EasyThali, EveryTime, and Zaika.

The Centre is also the site of the Capital FM South Wales studio, which was formerly Red Dragon FM, as well as Heart FM. Today, you’ll find the likes of Josh and Kally broadcasting their Capital Drive Show live from there every weekday.