Santa runs one last check before the cave opens at Te Manawa on November 13. Photo / Te Manawa
Santa runs one last check before the cave opens at Te Manawa on November 13. Photo / Te Manawa
The festive season is on the horizon and thoughts across our region will be turning to how the Christmas tree will be decorated this year.
At Te Manawa, our tinsel has already been strung and the fairy lights have been switched on: It's time once again for the historic Santa'sCave exhibition to open, with Santa himself in attendance.
The threat of Covid-19 has meant some other areas of the museum have had to close, but we know it wouldn't be a Palmy Christmas without Santa's Cave! We just have to do things a little differently in 2021, to make things as easy as possible for both visitors and staff while still observing Covid safety procedures.
When Santa's Cave opens this Saturday the experience will this year have a bit more structure to it. To visit the cave, you'll need to make a booking. Each booking is for a 20-minute session and has a maximum of 40 people. Visit temanawa.co.nz and click through to our Santa's Cave page to access the booking tool. You can choose from sessions where Santa is or is not in residence. Entry is still by donation, simply pay at the door when you arrive.
We've had to make one or two innovations to the route your journey through the Cave will take, to make it easier to maintain physical distancing. This unfortunately means we are unable to have the carousel operating this year.
But some things will stay the same. The Christmas Shop was a huge hit last year and will return. The displays look even better with their upgraded lighting.
