For children, Christmas is probably the most magical time of the year…this also goes for a huge amount of us as adults and I am definitely in that percentage……..I love Christmas!!! – Shelly Dolman (event organiser)
Its so festive and exciting…buying presents, the Christmas songs on the radio, meeting Santa, decorating the tree, the food, the parties and most of all watching my children’s faces as they walk down the stairs on Christmas Morning.
In December 2018, I came up with the idea to organise and run LLeisure’s first ever Santa’s Grotto at Chilwell Olympia Sports Centre, after gaining approval from management I enlisted my chosen Santa Claus and together we set about trying to run a successful magical event.
We knew it wasn’t going to be easy, as the competition was fierce given we had chosen the busiest weekend of the festive period, but we rounded up a group of enthusiastic christmas fanatics and were up for the challenge.
We wanted to offer something different to other venues, we wanted more than just a generic grotto with a rushed meeting with their idol, a present thrust into there hands and shoed out the door…anyone with children knows that standing around in long queues with the children getting bored is NEVER a fun experience so we decided to add to the fun by organising bouncy castles, softplay equipment, a colouring in station and a stall offering a range of yummy cakes along with hot and cold drinks.
Our aim was to provide entertainment while Santa’s little visitors waited for their Father Christmas experience. The grotto was hidden in a separate room adding to the suspense and each child and parent were called in by our elves to meet the snowy bearded legend during their 2hr time slot. This allowed them the chance to continue the fun after meeting the man of the moment.
Each child was given a gift, medal from Santa for being so good all year, an ‘I met Santa’ sticker and homemade reindeer food along with a free photo opportunity for parents.
After the success of 2018, LLeisure are hoping to make this year’s Santa Claus experience even bigger and better. We have a few ideas up our fur cuffed sleeves and can’t wait for the big event which will be taking place on Saturday 21st December 2019.
Come along for some festive family fun!!
See our holiday activities page on the LLeisure website for more information…
