Is the New Santa's Village Worth the Money?

We were just there Sunday and had a great day. My 2 girls, age 8, loved it. But I would say, they are near the top end of the age range for most of the parks rides. They also spent alot of time at the petting area and the pony ride. There father and I just took alot of pictures and watched them have fun.We got the Groupon special too for the family of 4, so it definitely was worth it. I don't know if I would have gone at full price. Also even though the food prices were very reasonable, everything was cash, so be prepared.

I just got a deal for $8 admission on FamilyFinds -- if you wanted to go earlier in the season at least you wouldn't be paying full price - especially if they are still working on it.

http://www.familyfinds.com/r/deal:717/track:deal=717/trac...

Enjoy!

We are going Wednesday so I'll have to remember to give you an update. I read the poor review but the woman went on opening day so I can kinda see that happening. I would think by now that they are in to the groove of things a little more. Good to know it's cash only :)

I am not sure, but wanted to thank you for posting this because I thought Santa's Village had closed down for good. My girls loved Kiddieland and now that's gone, so we will probably visit Santa's Village. I just looked at their website and it is a mix between a petting zoo and an amusement park. They even have a few of Kiddieland's old rides there now. I don't think $16.50 is that bad compared to other places. I wonder if they'll run any coupons or promotions for their reopening?

I visited the park last season with my 6 year old daughter and 10 year old grand daughter. We all had a BLAST! I was pleasantly surprised by the wonderful landscaping complete with beds of beautiful flowers. Don't expect it to be like the original Santa's Village, because it is not. This is a new park in the old location that is incorporating bits of the former Santa's Village and even Kiddieland with new things, too.
Santa's Village's original very tall metal slide is still there. The cute buildings and mushrooms throughout the grounds have been spruced up nicely with fresh and colorful paint, the Truck Convoy ride is the same one Santa's Village had. There is also another SV ride, that featured painted rockets, one NASA, Grateful Dead, can't remember the rest.
You'll also find 2 vintage Kiddieland rides, The Midge O Racers and The Roto Whip. CLASSIC!
The petting zoo is quite nice for the kids too. We also really enjoyed the bird aviary.
I found the food service area to be reasonably priced and very good.
Check it out. I'll be going back this season since we had such a good time last year.

The only Santas Village I knew of growing up was out in Cali.... you posting this just brought back tons of memories. Hehe.. thanks!

I haven't been there yet, but here's a link to their listing on www.kidwinks.com, where 2 people have given their reviews. http://www.kidwinks.com/FamilyFun/4/AZoosmentParkatSantas...

Kidwinks is an excellent FREE source when you're looking for things to do with your kids. There's an Events Calendar, lots of online guides to find birthday party places, indoor play areas, summer fun and more, a Kids Eat Free Calendar (click on a day to learn where kids eat free or cheaply), and you can click through the Ongoing Activities Section to find parks, museums, nature centers, pools, spray parks, etc. Sign up for free membership, and you can then sort any search results to find what's closest to your house. If you sign up for their email list, you'll get an email each Monday morning with hand-picked events for the upcoming week, including free museum days and free events.

Hope this helps.

J.

Santa's Village was a very memorable part of my childhood - my mom's company had their annual company picnic there so we went at least once a year. Also, one of my best friends' (in junior high) dad managed the Polar Dome so we spent a lot of time ice skating and flirting with the boys at Racing Rapids.

My whole family just went to Santa's Village this past weekend and had a really, really great time. It brought back lots of memories for us and it was such a joy to share it with my kids (who are 2 & 5). The rides are perfect for their age. They did a great job restoring it - lots of pretty landscaping and everything has been freshly painted - it looks really good.

I would have paid the full price admission to go, but we were able to get the Groupon for 1/2 price for a family of 4, so that helped. I would say it's worth it to go once a year, at full price, and you are probably making the smart decision to wait until the end of the season to get the most for your money. Hopefully, they will be doing more with the food options, so to save some money and have a better snack or lunch, you can pack your own and bring it with you - the picnic grounds are free to use.

There are a lot of animals, and they do interactive shows with the kids to let them experience the animals, and the handlers walk around the park with the animals too. Even Santa was there the day we went and he was so charming. Lots of fun for sure.