Santa’s Village A Great Place for family Fun!

We had the wonderful opportunity to visit Santa’s Village on Saturday while we were staying in the Muskoka River area. It’s a rare opportunity for us to enjoy something like this! We were all really excited to check it out!

Shortly after we came home on Sunday, I saw a fabulous Facebook post in one of the groups I’m apart of. Since my daughter Jillian has cerebral palsy, I belong to a number of groups that allow me to talk with other parents who are going through similar things. These groups have been a great form of information and empathy. I was so glad to hear that someone else had as great as an experience as I did.

And to be absolutely honest, I was a little worried there wouldn’t be anything for Jillian to do. Thankfully I was proven so wrong.

We started our Saturday, bright and early arriving at the park shortly after it opened. The girls were excited to get going and see everything there was to see. In my children’s typical fashion, they couldn’t decide what they wanted to do first. It was a tough decision and I suggested we walk around the park and stop and do whatever they wanted to.

From Santa’s Village-

This unique 60-acre attraction nestles in a bend of the Muskoka River. Visitors may tour the village by miniature train or cruise the Muskoka River on Santa’s Summer Sleigh Jet Boat. Santa’s Village is like Christmas in the summer! Features include Santa Claus and his elves at work, Santa’s Roller Coaster Sleigh ride, Santa’s deer, the Red Baron biplane ride, Ferris wheel, swan paddle boats, Jumpin’ Star mini-dropper, ATV peddle bikes, Elves Island Play Village, live amphitheatre shows with clowns, magicians and roving entertainers, games of skill, gifts and great food.

While we were debating, a roller coaster went by above our heads. Lauren kept changing her mind on whether she wanted to do it or not. In the end she opted for not (not surprising, she’s afraid of heights), I really should have done it on my own, I’ve never been on any rides, and yes, I realize this sounds like I lead a sheltered childhood!

(Explanation: Me, on a bench- Every bench had a larger post with elf ears and a hat on. So fun! Middle pictures are the splash pad, train and bouncy house.)

We decided not to hit many of the rides since I can never be sure if they’re ok for Jillian. Too bad I didn’t see that Facebook post before those decisions! We still had fun even if we didn’t go on the rides. The girls favourite part was probably the bouncy house. After they came out of it the first time, Lauren announced Jillian needed one of those for her birthday, pretty sure that gift would be for her too. Second runner up would have been the splash pad. Such a great and cute place. And lucky for us it was super hot when we visited so we had a blast in there. The girls also had so much fun on the train. I asked them what their favourite part of the whole park was and they couldn’t choose just one.

This was completely tempting, especially nearing the end of our time on Sunday. Jillian thought it would be fun to be an elf.

We were also given tickets to try out Sportsland which is on the same premises as Santa’s Village, it gives a couple extra things for the older “kids” in your family. (Totally quotes needed here since I can place my husband in that “kids” category sometimes!) Not sure where my head was, but I forgot to take pictures while we were there.

From Sportsland:

For the older kids and kids-at-heart, Santa’s Village has more attractions in its Sportsland area… including gokarts, mini-golf, batting cages, laser tag, and an arcade!

FREE Admission to Sportsland Just Pay-as-you-Play

We didn’t have the opportunity to try much (mostly the girls were tired and Jillian wouldn’t be able to do some of the things) but the girls had a blast riding in a 2 seater go-kart. Jillian and I took the “Sunday Drive” route and took our time around the track. She had so much fun and so did Lauren, they’re still talking about it!

Early afternoon on Sunday, we had successfully worn out the girls and headed home. We had a great time and it was great to spend some time with my little family- just the 4 of us.

 

Cheryl is a stay at home mom to 2 girls, Lauren who is 6.5 and Jillian will be 5 in September. After the girls went to school you would think she’d be able to keep a cleaner house, instead she can be found guzzling coffee and chatting with people online. Cheryl also blogs at http://beautifulsideofhectic.com where she talks about daily life with 2 children. One who happens to have Cerebral Palsy and all the joys that go with it.