Step into a sparkling world of festive wonder as you enter Mother Shipton’s award-winning Christmas Experience, voted Best Christmas Experience in Yorkshire.
Mother Shipton’s has been named as one of the ‘Best Christmas Grottos to Meet Santa’ by the Telegraph, and voted ‘Best Christmas Experience in Yorkshire’ in the Yorkshire Tots to Teens Awards.
Follow the glow of the woodland lights as Santa prepares for his journey through the starry skies to meet you. From the moment you arrive, Santa’s elves will welcome you into their enchanted Christmas Village, where every child with a Santa Experience Ticket receives a festive activity pack to unlock the magic of your visit.
As you enter the heart of the Christmas Village, Chief Elf Chestnut will be there to begin building excitement ahead of your special visit with Santa himself.
The main attraction is your personal family meeting with Santa in his beautiful, authentic and cosy Christmas grotto, where each child will receive a special soft toy gift to take home and treasure.
As you continue through the woodland, meet Holly Berry, our enchanting storyteller, who shares festive tales from within a beautifully lit tipi. Along the way, children can also fill their own bag of reindeer food to take home and sprinkle on Christmas Eve, helping guide Santa safely to their door. In the Snowy Owl Sorting Office, families can also send their Christmas wishes directly to Santa by owl mail, adding a touch of magic to every message. Be sure to pause for magical photo opportunities throughout the woodland, capturing memories along the way.
You’ll also discover the Christmas wishing trees, glowing with handwritten hopes and dreams, before exploring the natural wonders of the Cave, Petrifying Well and Wishing Well (subject to weather conditions).
Throughout your visit, the Christmas Village offers a place to pause and enjoy seasonal treats including hot chocolate, toasted marshmallows, winter drinks, mince pies and warm, cosy seating inside a heated tipi and rustic log gazebos.
Let your spirits soar as you embark on a Christmas experience that will leave you spellbound and brimming with holiday cheer.
What can you expect…?
- Enjoy a personal family visit with Santa in his cosy Christmas grotto and receive a special soft toy gift from Santa.
- Pose for a photo inside Santa’s magic sleigh, before he journeys through snow-covered lands and starlit skies on Christmas Eve night.
- Gather around Holly Berry, the enchanting storyteller, as she weaves tales of wonder and merriment. Settle upon the reindeer chairs nestled within her charming tipi, adorned with lights that shimmer like angel wings.
- Collect your very own bag of reindeer food, a magical blend that you’ll sprinkle outside on Christmas Eve to guide Santa’s reindeer to your home.
- Find the Snowy Owl Sorting Office and send your heartfelt wishes to Santa himself. Stamp, seal, and imagine your letter soaring through the night sky.
- Hang your handwritten wish upon the Christmas wishing trees, with branches carrying the hopes and dreams of all who visit.
- Venture into the depths of the woodland and discover the cave, the legendary Petrifying Well, and the Wishing Well (subject to weather conditions)
Optional Purchases
- Warm up with a deluxe hot chocolate and refreshments as you snuggle in cosy log gazebos, surrounded by the soft glow of fairy lights.
- Toast festive marshmallows by the crackling Christmas fire (subject to weather conditions)
- Let the magic of the Christmas Shop enchant you, a treasure trove of wonder where you can find the perfect gift for yourself or a loved one.
View this post on Instagram
Curious to see what people think of our Christmas event? Check out this review from Yorkshire Tots to Teens (2025 Review)
Prices
Magical Christmas Family Ticket CAR ADMISSION (for up to 5 people) – £44-£46*
Magical Christmas Family Ticket PEDESTRIAN ADMISSION (for up to 5 people) – £44-£46*
Santa Experience Ticket (for children aged 0-12) – £18-£19* (in addition to family ticket above)
Peak Dates: 28th & 29th November, 18th December
Super Peak Dates: 5th, 6th, 12th, 13th, 19th-24th December.
Seeing Santa is at the start of your booked time slot. To ensure that you make it to our enchanted Christmas Village in time for your visit with Santa, please arrive promptly 15 minutes before the START of your booked time slot. We also ask that you leave by the end of your timed session. Parking within the attraction for the session time is included with Car Admission tickets. Parking is for visiting Mother Shipton’s only, you cannot walk out of the attraction and leave your car parked.
Daytime slots cannot arrive any earlier than 15 minutes before their booked start time due to our limited car park and controlling visitor flow through the site, however, for visitors with later session start times (detailed below), which have shorter session durations as they are closer to our closing time, we can allow you to arrive slightly earlier to make the most of your visit before the site closes. Your Santa slot will remain at the scheduled start time printed on your ticket, and early arrival will not allow you to see Santa any sooner – in these instances of early arrival for the later evening sessions, you will do the other activities first before seeing Santa at your booked start time.
- For bookings on 28th or 29th of November at 3:50 PM or 4:00 PM: You are welcome to arrive anytime from 3:30 PM. The site closes at 5:30 PM on these dates.
- For bookings after 6:50 PM on December dates (excluding 24th December): You are welcome to arrive anytime from 6:30 PM. The site closes at 8:30 PM on these dates.
- For bookings on 24th December at 1:50 PM or 2:00 PM: You are welcome to arrive anytime from 1:30 PM. The site closes at 3:30 PM on this date.
To visit for our Magical Christmas Experience you MUST have purchased TWO separate types of ticket – A Christmas Group Admission ticket (car or pedestrian) – which grants you entry into the park – and a Santa Experience ticket (which allows children aged 0-12 to partake in the Christmas activities and visit Santa).
Children with Santa Experience tickets will be given wristbands which entitle them to a festive activity pack, an exclusive family visit with Santa and a special Santa gift.
All children aged 0-12 who wish to visit Santa, receive a gift and take part in the festive activities MUST have a Santa Experience ticket. The Santa Experience tickets cannot be purchased in isolation.
All visitors (including children and babes in arms), MUST be accounted for in the 5 person headcount of the Christmas Group Admission ticket (car or pedestrian).
If there are more than 5 people in your party, you will need to purchase additional group member tickets. If the additional person(s) in your party is a child, you will need to pay for both the Additional Group Member admission ticket and the Santa Experience ticket to ensure they have both entry into the park and a ticket to see Santa.
Babes in arms (under 6 months) do not require a Santa Experience ticket if they are accompanying another paying child, unless you would like them to have a full Santa experience with a gift.
Older siblings (aged 13 and older) are welcome to accompany children/younger siblings to visit Santa but will not receive a gift or festive activity pack, if an older child would like a gift and full experience with Santa, please purchase a Santa experience ticket for them.
Due to the unique set up of our Christmas event we are unable to accommodate dogs within the park during the Christmas event, with the exception of Guide/Assistance dogs.
No cash is accepted within the attraction, we can only accept card transactions.
Please also be aware that although it is possible to reach the middle of the attraction (where the Christmas village and catering areas are located) via pushchair or wheelchair, the grotto and Christmas activity huts may not be suitable for all wheelchairs or pushchairs, due to narrow walkways and uneven surfaces. Where possible, the elves recommend parking pushchairs/wheelchairs in the shelters provided before entering the grotto area.
The Cave and Well are unfortunately not suitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs due to three flights of steps. There are shelters within the Christmas area, and just before the steps to the Cave and Well. Please contact the team via email if you have any questions regarding accessibility at Christmas info@mothershipton.co.uk
The elves suggest wearing sturdy footwear and waterproofs.
There is no access to the adventure playground during the Christmas event.
Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable under any circumstances, except in the instance of full event closure by Mother Shipton’s.
The only entrance and exit is on High Bridge. Please note that pedestrian visitors must walk back to the main entrance where they entered to leave.
Booking is subject to an additional £1.50 booking fee per order.
Important Information: Weather, Access & Cancellations
Core Experience:
The Christmas Experience is centred around meeting Santa. If this core part of the event is able to go ahead, the event is considered to be proceeding as planned, even if some weather-dependent areas (e.g. the Cave, Petrifying Well, Gift Shop, Beech Avenue, or marshmallow toasting) are closed.Weather-Dependent Areas:
Due to the natural woodland setting, certain areas may become inaccessible during poor weather or ground conditions. These closures are for your safety.
No refunds or compensation will be provided if weather-dependent areas are closed, provided the main Christmas event (meeting Santa) still takes place.Event Cancellation:
In the event that we must cancel the Christmas Experience in full (including meeting Santa), a full refund will be issued to all ticket holders affected.We will notify you as early as possible via email, phone call, voicemail, or text. We will also post an update on our social media pages.
- Please note, due to the unpredictability of the weather, cancellations may occur up to and including the date of your visit.
We are unable to reschedule bookings due to limited capacity.
Last-Minute Weather Changes:
Weather can change suddenly, and access to certain areas may be withdrawn at short notice. By booking, you accept this possibility and agree to follow staff instructions on the day for your safety.
We appreciate your understanding and look forward to welcoming you to a magical Christmas experience!
Award-Winning and Supported by
