There comes a time, in every little kid's life, when they start to wonder how Santa can possibly be appearing at the mall, and school concerts, and Disney World, all at the same time.
Fortunately, it's possible to allay these doubts, at least for a while, by a trip to a place actually called the North Pole.
North Pole NY: Santa's Workshop
Twelve miles from Lake Placid in the Adirondacks is North Pole, NY, where year-round Santa fun gets serious at Christmas Preview time.
On weekends from mid-November to mid-December, family packages are offered with lodging, dinners and breakfasts, admission to Santa's Workshop and evenings of entertainment.
Santa's village has shops, farm animals, candymakers, glassblowers, musical reviews, puppet shows, Nativity pageant, talking Christmas tree...
Rides include Santa's Sleigh Coaster and Reindeer Carousel. Many of these activities can be found year-round but of course the pace picks up in November-December. Santa's Workshop is best for younger kids and the Ferris Whseel and other rides have height restrictions.
Sample activities over the weekend include: Trim the Tree Party; 'Twas the Night Before Christmas - carolling, storytelling, magic shows; surprise visit from Santa.
Find out more at the
North Pole NY: Santa's Workshop site. Also, be sure to read recent visitor comments at a site like TripAdvisor.
And while we're on the subject of Mr. Claus...
Here's a way to really crank up the magic, right from your own home: be sure to visit the NORAD (the North American Aerospace Defense Command) website on Christmas eve. Every year, this federal agency gets more and more sophisticated at tracking Santa's progress around the world.
In fact, long before Christmas you can start checking this site for official-looking updates about Santa's preparations for the big night.
