Avoncroft Museum's Santa visits run 5, 6, 12 and 13 December at £18 a child, booking open now. Bromsgrove Garden Centre does Breakfast with Santa 19 to 24 Dec.
Bookings are already open for Santa at Avoncroft Museum, the district’s biggest grotto, on Saturday 5, Sunday 6, Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 December 2026. Visits are timed, ten minutes apart, and the museum expects them to sell out early.
The quick answer
- Avoncroft Museum, Stoke Heath: 5, 6, 12 and 13 December, 10am to 3pm. A child ticket with a Santa visit and a gift is £18 (ages 2 to 12); adults £15. Book now.
- Bromsgrove Garden Centre, Lickey End: Breakfast with Santa, listed for 19 to 24 December, booked online only.
- No refunds at Avoncroft on any session, so pick your date carefully.
Avoncroft Museum: Christmas Through Time, with Santa
Avoncroft’s Christmas event puts Santa at the end of a trail through its rescued historic houses, each decorated for Christmas in its own period. The museum’s booking page says a Santa ticket includes:
- a handmade stocking to fill on the Christmas Through Time trail round the houses, and an elf spotter trail;
- writing and decorating a letter to Santa, then a timed visit to hand it over, with a photo opportunity;
- a gift for each child aged 2 to 12, and Christmas crafts in the grotto;
- Santa’s vintage Morris Minor GPO van, a Christmas selfie area and rides on the miniature railway (£1 a ride).
| Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
| Child 2 to 12, with Santa visit | £18 (members £12) |
| Adult, on a Santa booking | £15 (members free) |
| Child 2 to 16, trail and stocking, no Santa | £13 |
| Child 2 to 16, no stocking, no Santa | £7 |
| Adult, no Santa | £15 |
| Student | £12 |
| Essential carer | Free, with proof |
How the booking works. Child tickets are booked first, on a calendar that shows only the Santa slots still free; one slot covers up to two children and the rest of the family, and a third child needs a second slot. Adult tickets are bought on a separate page. The day ticket runs 10am to 3pm around your slot. Adults must come with children, children must come with an adult, and no refunds are issued. The museum suggests warm clothing.
On the first weekend a re-enactment group sets up a medieval Christmas in the Town House. The museum’s pages give that as 5 and 6 December in one place and 6 and 7 December in another; 7 December is a Monday, when the event does not run, so 5 and 6 looks right.
Its opening-times page also lists “Christmas through time” on 19 and 20 December, which none of the booking pages mention. Treat those two dates as unconfirmed until tickets appear.
Sources: Avoncroft Museum, Christmas Through Time with a timed visit to Santa (child tickets), adult tickets, tickets without a Santa visit and opening times.
More on the museum’s winter opening is on our Avoncroft Museum at Christmas page.
Bromsgrove Garden Centre: Breakfast with Santa
British Garden Centres’ Bromsgrove Garden Centre, on Littleheath Lane, Lickey End, B60 1HY, does not advertise a walk-through grotto. Instead it runs three breakfast events, each listed for 19 to 24 December:
- Breakfast with Santa: a cooked breakfast, meeting Santa, a personal gift and photos, which parents take themselves. The centre calls it “a charming alternative to a Santa’s Grotto”.
- Baby and Toddler Breakfast with Santa, for children up to two: a cooked breakfast for the adult, a breakfast pouch or kids’ breakfast for the child, stories, a gift and a photo opportunity.
- Paws and Claus, for dog owners: breakfast for you, a goody bag and a Santa hat for the dog, and an individual meeting with Father Christmas.
All sessions have limited numbers and must be booked online. Prices and session times appear in the booking system, not on the event pages.
Sources: British Garden Centres, Breakfast with Santa at Bromsgrove Garden Centre, Baby and Toddler Breakfast with Santa, Paws and Claus and the centre page.
The rest of Christmas in Bromsgrove
Santa is only one part of the season here. The High Street Christmas lights switch-on, the Christmas market and the Artrix pantomime each have their own page. Driving in? Check parking in Bromsgrove first.
Still to be confirmed
- Whether Avoncroft adds Santa dates on 19 and 20 December.
- Garden centre prices and session times, which appear only once you start a booking.
We will check both again in early November.
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