FAQ

Our Santa Experience is a tractor trailer ride into our woodland to find Santa in his cabin. Once inside with Santa children will be given a wrapped gift and be able to choose an unwrapped toy as well as tell Santa what they would like for Christmas. There may be singing and stories and a little Santa magic before heading back to our farm shed.

Our experience is a group experience. You will be with other families also going to see Santa but he will speak to each ticketed child. Should you wish a more private experience you can book a full trailer slot (see below).

We ask that everyone arrives 20 minutes in advance to allow for check in and to keep the experience running on time. Please allow plenty of time for travel to us. We understand that things happen and you may get stuck in traffic so we have the following rules – we will always try our hardest to get you on your booked trailer. Should you arrive with less than 10 minutes to your booked slot we reserve the right to move your booking to a later slot in order to avoid anyone missing out. Should you arrive after your booked time we will do everything we can to get you on another trailer but as we are often fully booked this may not be possible.

Should you be en route to us and have worries about being late, letting us know could make a difference – our phone is on whenever we are open and the number is 01360 752 052 – we may be able to move bookings around in order to save you missing out.

We have a locations page that can be found here. Our address is:

Woodland Experiences Ltd

North Ballochruin Farm

Ballochruin Road

Balfron Station

Glasgow

G63 0LE

**For Sat Nav please note that it is a zero in our postcode not an O**

From leaving our shed to arriving back it will be 30 minutes however we ask that you arrive a minimum of 20 minutes in advance to allow for check in. We have marshmallow toasting, a shop, food and face painting in our shed so would recommend allowing at least an hour and a half for your visit (although you are welcome to spend as long as you like!).

In our shed we have:

a small shop

a bouncy tractor – 1 token (£1.50 for 5 mins)

face painting

marshmallow toasting payable by token – 1 token (£1.50) for 3 marshmallows on a stick

Light up novelty shop outside – card or tokens

indoor and outdoor seating

hot food and drink providers – Skinner of Kippen and Loop&Scoop

toilets

baby change facilities (in our ladies and disabled toilets)

Yes we accept card and cash payments on site.

We have 3 tickets for children:

A child ticket is for a child aged over 18 months. This ticket comes with a wrapped gift and a choice of toy from Santa’s cabin.

An infant with gift is for a child aged between 0-18 months – this ticket comes with a wrapped gift and a choice of toy from Santa’s cabin.

An infant/baby no gift is for a baby aged between 0-12 months – this ticket is designed for families with older children interacting with Santa Claus who have a baby in the party under the age of one.

For up to 20 people with a maximum of 10 children our full trailer booking is a fantastic way for families or groups of friends to see Santa. A great day out and also a way to stay within your bubble (sorry for the covid language) we’d highly recommend a full trailer booking – it also saves up to £45 compared to buying tickets individually.

We have free car parking on site.

Our tickets are non-refundable. If someone is unwell please let us know as soon as you can and we will do our best to transfer you to an alternative date. If you do not contact us until after your booked slot your booking will be closed and unable to be transferred. Any issues please contact us at info@woodlandexperiences.co.uk

To avoid disappointment and upset children, please be aware that Santa’s Woodland experience is a unique and personalised experience.

Buying tickets from sources other than Bookings – Woodland Experiences means that your little ones will not have their name on a personalised gift.

Please also note that we can only make changes on bookings when they come from the original ticket holder.

Should you need to change the children’s names or ages on your booking, for example to bring a different child in the event of an unexpected illness, we will do our best to accommodate your request however there will be a £5 admin fee if done 48 hours or more before the visit or £10 if within 48 hours of the booking (please note the fee to change over 5 names on a full trailer booking will be £10/£20 depending on the timeframe) .  The fee is to ensure that a personalised gift is available at the time of the visit. This can be arranged by emailing info@woodlandexperiences.co.uk

Should you need to move your booking to a different timeslot this year there will be a £10 admin fee to move your booked slot. This can be arranged by emailing info@woodlandexperiences.co.uk. Please note this must be done within 24 hours of your original booked slot.

Unfortunately dogs are not allowed on site (not including guide dogs).

We have an accessible trailer but need to know in advance should you require it – once you have booked your experience please email info@woodlandexperiences.co.uk and we will make a note on your booking to be sure that you are placed on the right trailer.

Please be aware you will be outside for short amounts of time on this experience. We have been opening in December since 2014 and have not closed due to weather in that time. Please be prepared for the Scottish winter and leave plenty of time to travel to us and also dress for the weather. In the unlikely event that we have to close due to the weather we would update our website and Facebook pages first before contacting individual bookings – should you have any concerns please check our website or Facebook page in advance of your booking.

Our autism friendly evening is a calmer evening with a smaller amount of people per trailer and in our shed. We have a maximum of 5 children for each slot allowing Santa more time with the children. We will be in touch with you in advance to find out more about your child(ren) and how we can make the experience magical. We have a photo storybook to email you in advance so you can show your child(ren) where they are visiting and what will happen on their visit.

Before leaving on the tractor everyone is offered a chocolate from Santa. In our sweetie basket (in a separate bag) will be a free from alternative. This year we have chocolate from a company called Play in Choc (website can be found here) who make dairy, nut and gluten free chocolate – it’s delicious!

While we have space in our shed for prams unfortunately we do not have space to accommodate them on our tractor or in Santa’s house. We would ask if you could carry children or use a carrier. If you have any issues please email info@woodlandexperiences.co.uk

Please note that due to child protection reasons it is our policy not to allow bookings containing only adults unless they are attending with another booking (including children). Should you book for adults only we will be in contact with you to clarify the party you are joining. If we do not receive a response within 7 days (from 24th Nov a 24hr notice period will apply) this may lead to us cancelling your booking.