Find out which garden centres will put you and your children in the festive spirit, with opportunities to meet Santa or sip mulled wine.
Just like the flowers they sell, garden centres change with the seasons. Of course, plants and gardening equipment are available all year round, but the shelves dedicated to gifts, foods and miscellaneous household items are given a festive makeover during the winter months.
Not only do garden centres tend to sell a wide range of seasonal items, from baubles to boxes of chocolates and from real trees to twinkling fairy lights, but many also provide inspiration by decorating their own aisles. A few take festivities one step further, inviting children to meet Santa himself or hosting a Christmas market.
If you are planning a garden centre visit in Cambridgeshire this December, look no further. Below, we have compiled a round-up of four of the Cambridgeshire garden centres that are taking Christmas seriously this year.
Meet Santa at Scotsdales in Horningsea
Christmas lights, trees and decorations are available from Scotsdales garden centres across Cambridgeshire. However, at the site on High Street, Horningsea, there’s something particularly exciting for children.
Inside a magical grotto, they will find Santa, joined by Mother Christmas and a jolly crew of Elves. There is also an opportunity for children to pick up a special gift to tide them over until the big day.
Tickets for this experience start at £10, and can be booked on the Scotsdales website. It is advisable to book early, as there is typically a high demand.
Enjoy a Christmas afternoon tea at Coton Orchard Garden Centre
Children can also meet Santa in his grotto at this garden centre on Cambridge Road, Coton. It isn’t only children who are treated, however.
Four-legged friends are also invited to get into the Christmas spirit, with an opportunity for dogs to enjoy treats at the reindeer stables, before meeting and getting a gift from Santa. The experiences start at £16.99 for children and £13.99 for dogs.
Once again, customers should book on the garden centre’s website. For those looking to turn their homes into a grotto, Coton Orchard Garden Centre offers enchanting animated decorations like battery-powered snow globes, with glitter-filled water that swirls by itself when switched on.
Head to a Christmas market at Skylark Garden Centre in Wimblington
Santa’s Grotto can also be found at this garden centre on Manea Road, Wimblington. Here, the experience, which starts at £26 and must be booked on the garden centre’s website, can include reindeer food making and gingerbread decorating.
Like Coton Orchard, there’s also an opportunity for your dog to meet Santa, at a cost of £12. One of the features that sets Skylark apart, however, is its Christmas market.
This free market and craft fair has run every year since 2018. This year, shoppers can wander around the stalls between 10am and 4pm on Saturday, November 29, and Saturday, December 6.
Sip mulled wine at Twenty Pence Garden Centre, Wilburton
Children won’t miss out at this garden centre on Twenty Pence Road, Wilburton. Here, they can tuck into an afternoon tea with Santa starting at £13. Once again, details can be found and bookings can be made on the centre’s website.
However, this spot is also fantastic for those looking for more grown-up ways to celebrate. Its Wurst & Bier Haus offers traditional German beer, steaming mulled wine, bratwurst-style hot dogs and sweet Belgian waffles.
This is open from 11.30am to 7pm on Fridays, and from 11.30am to 4pm on Saturdays and Sundays. It will also be open from 11.30am until 4pm on December 22 and December 23.
A 40-stall Christmas market is also a major attraction here, with plenty of stocking-filler gifts available to shoppers. This is open from 9am until 5.30pm, Monday to Saturday, and from 10.30am to 4.30pm on Sundays.
On Fridays between November 14 and December 19, the market will be open for late-night shoppers until 7.30pm.
