The spirit of Christmas goes wild – at Fota
A winter wonderland of elves, trees and festive lights
FOR almost three hours, the three little ones in the back seat have been asking where we’re going. They know we’re off to see Santa: they just don’t know where. Then suddenly one of them sees a familiar sign at a familiar roundabout.
‘Fota Island,’ he screams. ‘Fota Island! We’re going to Fota Island!’
From which you can deduce two things. Firstly, they’ve been here before; and, secondly, they absolutely love it.
In fact, this is our fourth visit to the place the kids tend to call the Camera Hotel (fota-photo-camera-geddit?); in recent years we’ve had two separate weeklong summer holidays in the lodges. And we have watched with delight as the resort evolved from a luxury getaway golf hotel into a truly family-centred resort. (‘There were never this many babies in the restaurant when we were here first!’ notes my wife.)
The indoor playroom has expanded; we’re much more aware of the kids’ clubs (our older two started going this summer); and, in general, the welcome afforded to families with children in the restaurants and bars is superb.
And now they’re doing Santa: so where else were we going to go? We’ve visited a good few Father Christmases in previous years, and it’s not always that easy to pull off well: but Fota’s Santa experience – they call it ‘Seek!’ – does it with aplomb.
AND, as is so often the way when children are concerned, it’s the little things that make all the difference.
First up, at the registration area there’s a little Christmas market with a smattering of food and sweet stalls, plus a couple of rides while they wait. Don’t underestimate the importance of those! Hanging around to register for your Santa visit with a gaggle of overexcited children is always excruciating, so having some entertainment on hand is actually a massive bonus.
Thereafter, it’s pure Christmas delight – you’re whisked through to a winter wonderland of snowy trees, elves and twinkling lights.
There’s a very clever wheeze to give the children a little observa- tional quiz to do so that they have to keep their eyes open all the way round. At the end of the experience – which I won’t give away completely – you get through to the joyful world of Christmastown, an indoor village full of treats, entertainment and festive activities.
My little ones got to do a Christmas weather report, drive a pretend sleigh, dress up as elves (or anything else) and plant Christmas trees (sort of!). And they had to be physically dragged away from the workshop where they got to colour their own paper decorations for the tree at home.
At the heart of it all, though, is the man himself – and he did not disappoint. Santa was resplendent in fact; supremely jolly and fun (even if the littlest one was too terrified to approach him – as were her brother and sister in previous years!). Of particular note for parents was that the gifts were a cut above – my children are all still playing with theirs a week later.
But what was most impressive was Santa’s level of detail. He knew that Matthew had been commended for his animal project at school; he knew that Katie loved tap-dancing and ballet; and he was astonishingly precise with Grace about the progress of her potty training. (Reasonable, if you must know).
To this day my kids are amazed (and helpfully terrified) at how close an eye Santa’s robin is keeping on them.
There are other lovely touches, such as being handed your family Santa photo in a frame, ready to go. And, overall, there was no sense of rushing or being on the clock – as there sometimes is with Santas elsewhere.
On top of that, of course, there’s everything else for which Fota is renowned : the pool, the grounds, and, in particular, the lodges, which are so ideal for families.
Having breakfast for lodge occupants in the golf club actually worked out superbly, and was utterly delicious – it’s amazing how many good hotels do a full Irish badly, but mine was mouthwatering. And while the absence of pancakes from the breakfast menu was met with pouting from the kids, it was more than balanced out by the combination of waffles and limitless Coco Pops.
WE also ate twice in the Amber Lounge, where the food and service were absolutely superb – the semicircular booths were brilliant for herding hungry, overexcited little ones until their fish and chips arrived.
All in all, as Santa veterans we couldn’t recommend this experience highly enough. It’s actually hard to believe that we only stayed one night: we got home to Dublin feeling like we’d had a magical mini-holiday. Now we just have to make sure Santa delivers again on December 25!
Seek at Fota Island Resort runs until December 23, with individual ticket prices costing from €10.50 per adult and from €15.50 per child, depending on dates and times, with children under one going free. Tickets are now available on fotaseek.ie. Add an overnight stay at the resort’s luxurious hotel or self-catering lodges from €195 per room per night, see fotaisland.ie