Today I’m sharing my honest review of the SEN Santa’s Grotto at The Trafford Centre. If you read my blog regularly, you’ll know my son, Sam is classically autistic, non verbal and has learning disabilities. This means that although he’s 12 and a half, he’s still very much a believer! He absolutely loves Father Christmas, so I’m always keen to take him to meet the big guy.
When I heard The Trafford Centre were holding dedicated SEN Santa’s Grotto sessions, I had to book it! This is definitely not a cheap Santa’s Grotto, but you definitely get what you pay for in this instance. Tickets are £27.50 per child and £8.50 per grown-up, including booking fees, and 1 carer goes free for disabled children. I booked our slot back in October, and sadly this was the last SEN – specific session currently planned for 2023.
Where is the SEN Santa’s Grotto in The Trafford Centre?
The Grotto is actually in a shop unit on the ground floor, near John Lewis and the Dolphin fountain. (You know – the one that fires water into the air). There’s a few festive huts outside, giving off Christmas Market vibes. This Video from the Grotto’s Insta account shows you what to expect…
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One offers face painting for £6 per person, the next sells drinks (including alcohol), the third was selling brownies, and the 4th – less-festive-looking vendor was selling ice cream and hot chocolate. I paid £4.95 for a basic hot chocolate, so I could sit down and wait for our slot, while Sam watched the fountain. (This hot chocolate was amazing though – I will definitely be back for another, soon)!
Our slot was 7pm, and posts I’d read online said to be there 15 minutes before this time. The ticket itself didn’t say this, though. Parking at the Trafford Centre is hit and miss – especially when you need a disabled bay, so we set off super early. Typically, we got parked up right near the door on the John Lewis car park – as close as possible from the venue, without needing to use lifts.
Checking In to Visit Santa
There’s a booking desk next to the grotto, along with a roped-off queue. I went up to the desk and asked one of “Santa’s helpers” if we needed to queue for the SEN Santa’s Grotto and was advised to come back at 6.50pm to check in, and then queue. Thankfully, Sam was happy to sit and watch the fountain for the 30 minutes we had to wait.
At 6.50pm, we went to check in. Sam was given a special letter to write for Father Christmas once inside, and we were then asked to join the queue. The queue took around 20 minutes, but there were 2 elves walking around, keeping the kids entertained. It was at this point I realised we had on too many layers. The Trafford Centre was like an oven, and our thick winter layers were definitely overkill.
There aren’t any lockers or bag stores available, so definitely bear this in mind when looking at the SEN Santa’s Grotto at The Trafford Centre. There’s also no secure wheelchair or pushchair store, and there’s not really enough room to navigate one safely inside. (More about that towards the end of this review).
What’s Inside the Winter Wonderland?
When we got to the front of the queue, a lovely Elf said hello to Sam, gave him a high 5 and indulged him when he tried to hug her. She gave him a big hug, and then the Elf lead us inside and introduced us to a different elf. We were lead into a snowy room, called Candy Cane Land. This area was packed with huge candy canes, mini tables and chairs. The floor was covered in “magic snow”, which doesn’t melt!
Our Elf lead us to a table and explained it was time for Sam to write his letter to Santa. I explained Sam’s non verbal, and can’t write, so I did it for him. While I did this, Sam was happily playing with the magic snow. Our Elf realised Sam loved the snow, so he proceeded to sprinkle it onto him, much to Sam’s delight!
There wasn’t much space between the tables, and definitely not space to make snow angels if you were over 3.5 feet tall. (Imagine the above photo, but add 3x Elves, 6-7 Children and 10+ parents). We still really enjoyed this area though. Sam’s 12, but wears age 15-16 clothes, so he’s not small by any means. He rocked with excitement on one of the small, plastic chairs, and the backrest came off. An Elf quickly fixed it, but I’d definitely avoid sitting on them if you’re over 10 years old!
The Enchanted Forest
Once Sam’s letter was written, we were moved over to the next area, the enchanted forest. This was a small pathway, lined with around 10-15 artificial Christmas trees, all looking very snowy. The floor was blanketed with more magic snow, much to Sam’s delight…
It’s no secret I’m a big kid, and I really wanted to be fully present as Sam experienced the rest of the SEN Santa’s Grotto, so I put my phone away at this point, hence the lack of photos of Sam! (Huge thanks to The Grotto for letting me screen grab some shots from their Insta Reels).
We were held at the entrance to the Enchanted Forest for a few minutes, but once it became clear Sam was losing patience, our Elf lead us part-way along the tree-lined path. Once we were here, we could hear the noise from the next area, which I suspect was why they held us back. Sam didn’t notice though, and he was happier once he could touch the trees.
The elf in this area was lovely, but she didn’t manage to get Sam to engage like the others had. (This isn’t a negative reflection on her – Sam’s quite black and white with whether or not people earn his smiles and engagement). After a couple of minutes, we were lead to a door, and another Elf lead us into the Sorting Room.
The Merry Mail Room
This room is kitted out like a magic sorting office, complete with letters floating overhead, thanks to a clumsy Elf and some wayward magic. The Elf in here asked Sam to help her fix things. She got us both doing things like waving our arms, touching our noses and knocking on Santa’s door. Sam absolutely loved this part. He was grinning like mad the entire time.
My phone stayed in my pocket, so I don’t have photos, but you’ll have to take my word for it that this part was brilliant. Once the Magic was charged up, she asked Sam to stamp his letter to Santa. Sam dipped it in the ink, and slammed it down with enough force to shatter glass – he was so happy to see the gold mark when he lifted up the stamper!
Once Sam posted his letter through a special post box, he had to knock on the door. This part was meant to involve shouting, but the Elf said we could knock extra hard instead. (Sam’s non verbal, remember). The door to Father Christmas’ cosy cabin was then opened by another Elf, who guided Sam and I inside the SEN Santa’s grotto…
Inside Father Christmas’ Cosy Cabin
When we stepped into the Cabin, Sam’s eyes lit up! The smile lit up the entire room, and Sam ran straight over to hug the big man, himself! After a quick hug, Santa guided Sam to sit next to him. Father Christmas asked for Sam’s name, and when I told him and explained Sam’s non verbal, he smiled and turned to him.
Santa held both of his hands, and told Sam he’d been looking forward to seeing him. He asked if he’d been good, and when I said yes, Father Christmas said he was relieved to hear it! The Elf then read out Sam’s list, and Santa said he’d do his best to bring snow, but couldn’t promise. (Sam’s list had on it a new tablet, a toy car and snow)!
The Elf then asked if we wanted a photo, and I said yes. He said I was welcome to take my own, but he wasn’t allowed to use my phone. He took a few photos for the souvenir stand too. This Reel shows the photos I did manage to take during our time in the SEN Santa’s Grotto…
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What was the Present Like?
The Elf then handed Sam a gift and Sam signed, “Thank you”. Father Christmas immediately smiled, and turned to Sam, before signing “Merry Christmas” to Sam, which Sam signed back. It was at this point my eyes started leaking! Once I’d said 500 thank you’s and Sam had waved goodbye, we were lead to the exit.
Once we left, Sam opened his gift. He received a great quality metal yo-yo, with a 9+ sticker on the wrapping paper. This is a lovely gift for a child with the cognitive age of 9, but Sam’s developmentally delayed, so in hindsight, I wish I’d asked for an age 3+ gift. (The yo-yo was confiscated within 10 minutes of getting home as Sam was helicoptering it over his head, dangerously close to breakables).
I bought the professional photo for £10, but honestly, the quality isn’t great. It’s very dark. It’s your only option if you want a full family photo though, as the Elf can’t use your phone. (I’m guessing Santa’s insurance doesn’t cover accidental damage). Size-wise, the photo print is 7×5, and the card it’s presented in is A5.
My Overall Thoughts on The SEN Santa’s Grotto at The Trafford Centre
All things considered, I absolutely loved this SEN Santa’s Grotto experience. We’ve done a few of these sessions over the years, and the quality this year is back to that of 10 years ago. The quality dipped for a while when the Trafford Centre was part of Intu, but now it’s back under Peel control, the Grotto experience has improved massively in my opinion.
That said, to make this a truly perfect SEN Santa’s Grotto, a few important changes would include:
- Make the layout fully accessible. Sam doesn’t need his wheelchair 90% of the time, but one family had to carry their child so they could fold up his wheelchair to get past the packed-in tables in Candy Cane Land. The snow on the floor looked wonderful, but it’s not great for wheelchairs or pushchairs – the snow was being “ploughed” by the wheels, rather than rolled over.
- Shorter waiting times. We were asked to check in 10 minutes before our slot, but didn’t actually enter the grotto until 7.10pm. 20 minutes of queueing would have lead to a huge meltdown when Sam was younger.
- A larger table and chairs for older guests. As I mentioned, Sam broke one of the mini chairs. Maybe removing 2 of the small table set-ups and adding 1 bigger table and chairs would have solved this issue and the accessibility issue mentioned above.
- Ask SEN parents what age toy they’d prefer, so kids don’t get toys that are too advanced for their developmental age.
Value for Money
Including the photo souvenir and ticket price, I spent £37.50 on this half hour experience for Sam and I. It’s definitely not the cheapest grotto out there, but for me, it was worth it! Father Christmas looked 100% real. His beard was real, and he seemed to genuinely care about the kids. I also absolutely loved that even though I told him Sam was non verbal, he still spoke to Sam, rather than bypassing him and asking me. 10/10 for this SEN Santa’s Grotto experience, based on that alone!
Sadly, there are no more SEN Santa’s Grotto sessions planned at The Trafford Centre this year, but you can always contact them to ask which general slots are the quietest.
Finally, if you’re looking for a SEN Santa’s Grotto in Manchester, Colette at Going on an Adventure has curated a brilliant list! Check out this post for some Autism Friendly Christmas Day Hacks.
This is not an ad – I paid for our visit, but wanted to share our experience. Hopefully it will help other local parents looking for a SEN Santa’s grotto.
