A magical and festive family day out at LaplandUK
When we first arrived at LaplandUK yesterday a little girl exclaimed her favourite Christmas memory from last year was visiting LaplandUK, and by the time we were walking through the forest in search for Father Christmas’s house, a girl behind us said it was the best day of her life. I’m not surprised LaplandUK is extremely popular with children, and taking little ones to this festive family attraction means letting them believe in the magic of Christmas.
We had been invited to visit, and I wasn’t sure what to expect when driving out to Ascot yesterday. After spending longer than planned on getting from the car to the check-in, we ended up being a few minutes late for our tour and were ushered straight into a room where an elf was addressing our group. During the elf introduction, which lasted close to half an hour, I felt like a child who couldn’t wait for the next door to be opened and for us to get out in the enchanted forest and wintery landscape.
The next stop was the toy factory, where three-year-old Big Girl and the other children in the large group we were in helped elves make reindeer soft toys and wooden horses, handing baskets with finished toys back to the elves.
We then moved on to Mother Christmas’s kitchen, where the children decorated a house-shaped gingerbread cookie, which they could take home with them. There was also storytelling, and elves serving gingerbread cookies for the grown-ups.
Each of the three stops lasts around half an hour, and the tour then ends in charming Elf Village, where visitors have one and a half hour to go ice skating, write letters to Father Christmas in the post office, enjoy a meal in the cozy restaurant, have a hot chocolate and cinnamon bun in the cafe, and shop in the sweet shop and Elf Emporium, where the reindeer soft toys, wooden horses and other toys and Christmas decorations are for sale.
In Elf Village, visitors can also meet Father Christmas’s husky dog, a large furry husky character, and a large furry reindeer character, who Big Girl hugged and wanted to have her photo taken with.
The final stop was still the highlight of the day. We got to walk through the forest again–practically a tree maze–where we saw little elf houses, Father Christmas’s reindeer, his sleigh and then his house. When visiting he could show Big Girl her name on the Good List, which she was super excited to see, and her face also lit up when he pulled out a large husky soft toy for her and an elf soft toy for Baby Boy from his gift sack.
On the way out we could buy photos from our meeting with Father Christmas, as well as clothes for the new husky. The husky clothes seemed pretty clever, and we couldn’t help thinking this was just one of the many things that made it seem like every little detail had been given due consideration by the organisers of LaplandUK.
For our family, it was a truly memorable Christmassy day out, and it’s an attraction Big Girl is already talking about visiting next year too–if we remain on the Good List of course.
To hear more about our experience at LaplandUK, watch my short video clip HERE
Tickets to LaplandUK, a theatrical experience, start from £45 per person plus booking fees. Babies under 12 months can go free on an observer status
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