All aboard Santa’s Sleigh Ride! We were invited to check out Piglets Adventure Farm’s Christmas experience at the start of York’s festive season and had the most joyful couple of hours with our two girls. Despite a nail-biting drive across York – the traffic is likely to be bad from now until Christmas, so allow loads of time – we arrived with ten minutes to spare before our check-in time. After picking up our boarding passes and passports from a friendly elf, we went to see the animals (because nobody can be cross about the traffic if they’re looking at an alpaca). Guinea pigs petted, piglets cooed over, we made our way to check-in at the twinkling home of Elf Airlines.
We made it through the Naughty/Nice scanner and found ourselves in the warm and cosy departure lounge. There’s an impressive array of food and drink on offer, from sourdough pizzas to bubble waffles and lots of sweet festive treats, so allow enough time if you’d like to eat before your flight. A box of curly fries went down a treat, as did the festive gingerbread, and it’s a thumbs-up for the York Emporium coffee too.
We visited the Polar Post Office to write a note to Santa and stamp the girls’ passports before being called to the gate to board the sleigh (after watching an ‘elf and safety film, of course). After a short but festive ‘flight’ through the woodland, we arrived at Santa’s village just as the sun was going down. A cheery elf greeted our group and took us to the little wooden house where Santa was snoozing. We soon woke him up though, and were greeted with a jolly welcome. He took the time to ask each child what they would like for Christmas before posing for photos with everyone who would like one. Our children have always found meeting Father Christmas intimidating, so we liked the group format rather than individual visits.
Before bidding us farewell, Santa gave every child a key that they used to open the door to the toy shop along the path. Again, we preferred being able to choose a gift than being given one that might not have been suitable (although be warned that it might take a loooong time for them to choose!). There were gifts for all ages and interests, so there should be something for everyone.
Toys chosen, we followed the scent of mulled wine to Santa’s village where the lights were sparkling and the fire was lit. We visited Mrs Claus’s sweet shop where we stocked up on delicious traditional (and surprisingly reasonably priced) treats, watched the Elf show, tucked into our free mince pie and mulled wine (adults only, sorry!) and visited the guinea pig nativity scene.
We boarded the sleigh back to reality feeling festive and having had a wonderful time. For a fun Christmas experience to remember, Santa’s Sleigh Ride is just the ticket. It’s a festive 10/10 from us.
Good to know
– Santa’s Sleigh Ride runs until 24th December 2023
– Pre-booking is required, and many peak slots have sold out
– Outdoor shoes are a good idea
– Get there 30 minutes before your time slot to do the departure activities
Thank you to Piglets Adventure Farm for inviting us along. As always, we will only write about something, and recommend it, if we have genuinely enjoyed it.
