With World Book Day taking pace later this month, Blenheim Palace is preparing to celebrate the 20th anniversary of a popular children's book series.

The Woodstock palace will host a 'How to Train Your Dragon' trail in its Adventure Play, set to open for Easter holidays between Friday, March 29 and Sunday, April 14.

The event celebrates the anniversary of Cressida Cowell's book series, with the trail inviting children to explore a series of interconnected zones filled with secret chambers, nets, tunnels, slides, and rope bridges.

Their task is to find the 10 dragons hidden within, including characters like Toothless, Daydream, and Skullion.

Children will be given activity sheets containing clues that will reveal letters hidden along the trail.

These letters will form a word when rearranged, and upon completing the challenge, the children will earn a dragon badge in celebration of their successful adventure.

In addition to the interactive trail, a creative competition will be hosted by Blenheim Palace from March 1 to March 11.

Children are encouraged to design their own dragon, with the winning entry set to feature on the Easter trail in Adventure Play.

The winning design will be personally selected by author and illustrator, Cressida Cowell.

Ms Cowell said: "I’m delighted to be partnering with Blenheim Place on their How to Train Your Dragon trail and competition.

"Encouraging children to read and create for pleasure has been my guiding principle ever since I became a children’s author, and projects like this are a fun and exciting way of getting the whole family involved and bringing the stories to life."

The winner will get six tickets for their family to visit Adventure Play, an afternoon tea for six at The Orangery restaurant, a goodie bag filled with dragon-themed souvenirs, and a short break for up to six people at Blenheim Palace Lodge Retreat.

Four runners-up will receive tickets for a visit to Blenheim Palace Adventure Play for their immediate family.

Heather Morgan​​​, head of marketing at Blenheim Palace, said: "We’re so excited to work with Cressida and her team for our upcoming Easter holiday activities.

"To have How to Train Your Dragon brought to life at Adventure Play will be iconic for our visitors.

"Adventure Play encourages children to be creative and let their imaginations run wild which is why we’ve incorporated a design challenge giving young people the chance to bring to life their very own dragon for our trail.

"We can’t wait for families to come along and see what we have planned."

Adventure Play, which is larger than a standard football pitch, is designed to be suitable for children of all abilities aged between two and 12.