Even Santa’s costs are rising...

THE prices of Santa’s Toy Mine Experience and Boxing Day and New Year’s Day swims are going up this year in Rhondda Cynon Taf.

The Santa’s Toy Mine Experience at A Welsh Coal Mining Experience in Rhondda Heritage Park and the seasonal Boxing Day and New Year’s Day swims at Pontypridd’s Lido are set to go up due to increased costs and so the same level of service can be provided, the council said.

The charges for Santa’s Toy Mine Experience will go up from £10 to £11 for children and adults, from £8 to £8.50 for a school visit, from £4 to £4.50 for a teacher on a school visit and from nothing to £3 for those under 18 months.

It has around 15,000 visitors a year with the income contributing to the cost of putting it on and maintenance of the other attractions at A Welsh Coal Mining Experience.

A delegated decision report from council officers said that due to the pandemic, the event has operated at reduced capacity for the past two years but this year the council intends to start the process of gradually increasing capacity and the content of the event towards pre-pandemic levels with 25 people per tour this year as opposed to 20 last year.

Prices for the Santa’s Toy Mine Experience were kept at the same level between 2019 and 2021 and were frozen for 2022 as part of the 2022/23 budget.

But the report said that since then there have been significant increases in supplier costs, in particular the costs associated with purchasing gifts and the specialist staffing agencies that supply the Santa Claus.

The prices of the Boxing Day and New Year’s Day swims will stay free of charge for under fives but will go up from £5 to £6 for everyone else.