I've been before and honestly it wasn't that insane. However I didn't go last year, and anytime I drove by it, seems like the line of cars was ridiculous.

Anyone have any recommendations on when to go and "how" to do Santa's Wonderland? we bought the fast pass before for the hay ride which will do again, but what else is needed for a good experience?

TIA

(if helpful this is for taking a 4 year old)

As previously mentioned, go during the week, try and arrive closer to 5-5:30 and get in line for entrance at 6PM. We go straight to the hayride as it's already dark by 6PM when they open. After that, fill in the blank with whatever you want. You don't need a fastpass for the early hayride.

If you're trying to get a photo with Santa as well you may choose to make that your priority at entry and then hustle over to the hayride. Santa's line gets pretty heavy on it's own. Have fun!

And just FYI, there's no shuttle from the mall parking lot this year.

MJ20/20 said:

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Most importantly bring money. They had a forklift last year to help.

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Bingo. They also have a short term lender on site. And don't forget to bundle up and sit next to the fire to get some relief from these north pole temps we've been having.

I'm curious to see how they'll use the old jockey lot. They've been working non stop on it and it looks great. This week, they have been making driveways. I'm thinking parking and shuttling over. We'll see.

BRING BACK THE JOCKY LOT!!!

AgTrip said:

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I'm curious to see how they'll use the old jockey lot. They've been working non stop on it and it looks great. This week, they have been making driveways. I'm thinking parking and shuttling over. We'll see.

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According to a Rusty post on FB, there will be no more free shuttles from the mall but you can park at the Jocky Lot and pay to take a shuttle across the street.

Tailgate88 said:

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AgTrip said:

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I'm curious to see how they'll use the old jockey lot. They've been working non stop on it and it looks great. This week, they have been making driveways. I'm thinking parking and shuttling over. We'll see.

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According to a Rusty post on FB, there will be no more free shuttles from the mall but you can park at the Jocky Lot and pay to take a shuttle across the street.

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I think they are hurting financially. They used to do the one-day "Christmas in July" sale with half-off tickets. That sale lasted almost 2 months this year. We bought our tickets in July during the original sale, then I got an email that it had been extended for a couple of days, then another couple of days, then a week, then another week. Next thing you know, it's September.

Probably a combination of everything at Santa's Wonderland being overpriced and people feeling the squeeze right now in this economy.

The sale also provides cash flow during the slow time of year.