ok - now been there, done it -
i was expecting a load of overpriced crap BUT...
overall, it made for a surprisingly a good day out - we even managed to forget about the heavy rain pattering on the yurt at the start of our visit.
SPOILER ALERT !!!!
there were two kinds of elves: proper elves (bit-part actors in character) who were pleasant enough & dressed rather splendidly & 'led' the production so to speak. there was also the teenage dirtbag NVQ Performing Arts variety who only got red T shirts (ha, ha) , never really did much other than mope around avoiding eye-contact with the public for fear of actually being asked any questions - i found this out when i asked one the time (imagine a 5ft, black-haired version of Suri Cruise with a broad London accent) - 'I have no idea' she said waltzing past without so much as making eye-contact or smiling.
the first two sessions - sticking a mane (and a few other bits) on a rocking horse head at the toy Factory and decorating gingerbread men with smarties (additives galore!) were very structured indeed - more so than was necessary really. parents had to sit on benches quite far away away from all the children - given that it is touted as a family day out, i would have much preferred to allow ds to choose where he sat himself; they were really insisting on these divides during activities - it was a bit like moving from nursery into year 1 during that time and given the duration of the experience felt a bit pointless and more artificial than the seaweed snow. a shy child who is far away from home among a bunch of strangers would obviously be less comfortable with this set-up than a more mature, sociable one (??) A couple of children broke away from the group and they stuck out like a sore thumb which was unfair on them as they were younger and it allowed the smug types to feel proud of their little angels to the extent that i was worried that the pride might literally burst out of the grandma seated beside us (yes, i heard real tutting noises coming from that direction).
the actual activities themselves were simple and took all of five minutes in each case - however, the sessions were heavily padded out by a load of mind-numbingly boring elf banter (i'm not big on inexpertly delivered dramatics especially when they drag on and on... and on) and there were only a couple of children really engaging with them. ds was kinda bored with it too and i felt like the mummy of the disinterested kid at tumbletots all over again!) but ds nevertheless completed the required tasks to gain those 'special stamps' in his 'passport'.
then on to lunch ... it was good - a bit like those Witshire Farm 'meals-on-wheels' with not a chip in sight - each person ate a pie (meat, fish or veggie & heavily potato-topped carbs galore ), a tiny pot of veg (2 tbsp at the most) and a desert (GU sized). we had to purchase drinks separately (£1.50 for a cup of tea). 'lunch time' was scheduled to last an hour (very school-ey) so we wandered around and found a few miserable-looking reindeers in a cage. dh wanted to try out the ice-rink (relatively empty at the stage) but they said that we had to wait for our 'slot'.
after lunch, we got to meet father christmas - we waited for around 10 mins - then we were led through the fake snow along a very winding path. the experience was somewhat marred by the natural screening on either side of the path being straight out of the B&Q catalogue (we have it in our garden as well!). it was not covered in snow at all so was gleaming at us in all it's brand-new shiny brown glory. father christmas was in a (B&Q?) log cabin - he was great, ds loved him, he wasn't so great with dealing with the names and few bits of info provided about ds, but it was fine once he had muddled his way through that part. presents were not wrapped (eco-friendly but to see them all stashed behind santa's couch ...) and the same toy for every child - a huskie - apparently worth £20 (i'd say a tenner at a push though). we were also given a book about christmas (you would never have guessed!) and a bottle of ginger wine (rather nice it was too!). btw we never did find any real huskies despite asking around loads
that was really the end of it - no post-office experience was scheduled despite what it says on the website (another unsolved mystery along with the lochness huskies). the ice-skating was probably the best bit as you just get on with it with minimal elf- interference (although the skates were uncomfortable) and there was a distinct shortage of penguins (used to prop up younger children) which meant lots of waiting around and stressed-out parents. by this stage, the ice-rink was packed with loads of people whose experience had finished a long time ago though did not want to go home at 2pm
it was not shockingly bad value for money if you price it component-by-component, it was certainly a unique experience and worth doing with a child between 2 and 6 (though only once rather than every year). ds was chanting 'there's no place like home' and 'i want to go home' rather than 'i want to go back' in the car on the way home - pretty much what we were feeling too
they have printed a slogan on their bags to the effect of 'because christmas need not cost the earth' to reinforce their eco-credentials. the book that came inside it was 'printed in china'. 'nuff said...