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 It was the early 1950s, and businesspeople in the town of Bracebridge, Ontario, Canada, were worried. For decades Toronto-based vacationers had driven down Bracebridge’s main street to the region’s summer cottages. But this was about to change: The new Highway 11 was going to bypass Bracebridge, to end weekend traffic congestion.
Something had to be done to bring those cottagers into town, but what? Brainstorming among themselves, Bracebridge’s local businesspeople realized their town was located at the 45th parallel—exactly halfway between the North Pole and the equator. Surely this was a logical place for Santa Claus to spend his summer vacation, along with Mrs. Claus, the elves, and the reindeer (actually local deer in their own petting area).
Seizing this premise, Bracebridge businesses pooled their money and opened Santa’s Village in 1955. At the time, it was a simple rural location with Santa’s cabin, a few rides, and some concessions, in a region where amusement parks were few and far between. That dynamic certainly changed over the past half century, as Torontonians now have easy access to Canada’s Wonderland, African Lion Safari, Marineland, and Wild Water Kingdom. Yet despite this competition, Santa’s Village is still in business, averaging 100,000 visitors annually during its 10-week season. The target market is children 2-9, plus their parents and grandparents.
“We have made some additions over the years, but we’re still an old-fashioned theme park with a low-key, folksy atmosphere,” says Santa’s Village general manager Jamie Hopkins, who has been with the park for 14 years. “We’re now serving the same personal Santa experience to the children and grandchildren of people who came to Santa’s Village in the 1950s and 1960s.”
A Simple Start
Santa’s Village is located at the mouth of the Muskoka River on Lake Muskoka, just south of Bracebridge. This location puts the park close to the freeway and Bracebridge, which is ideal for attracting motorists and getting them into town.
In its early days, Santa’s Village was “pretty rustic, with lots of wild trees,” Hopkins tells FUNWORLD. “To create the park, the townspeople had to clear some of the land, push a road into the area, and add gravel walkways and build cottages to house Santa and the concessions.” Some basic rides like a carousel, and a kiddie roller coaster were installed, plus a petting zoo, playgrounds, Santa’s Farm, and basic amenities. The stars of the show were undoubtedly Santa and Mrs. Claus, who greeted children at the Clauses’ own “summer cottage.”
Evolution and Expansion
Santa’s Village stayed essentially the same until the 1980s. Faced with competition from the newly opened Canada’s Wonderland, town officials brought in a professional designer to update the concept. Since that time, Santa’s Village has seen many additions; including a live performance stage for children’s entertainers, day camps for kids 5-10, and the Sportsland Park located next door.
 Sportsland is designed for children who are too old to believe in Santa but are still at the park with their families. To keep them entertained, Sportsland contains a Grand Prix go-kart track, Rudolf’s Birdies and Bogies Mini-Golf course, batting cages, and an Activity Centre with laser tag and video games.
“We just opened a treetop climbing area next to Sportsland called Eaglecrest Adventure Park,” Hopkins says. “It lets people climb through the trees at 10 to 50 feet off the ground, trying their skills on zip lines, wobbly bridges, monkey lines, flippy bridges, balance beams, Tarzan ropes, and more.” Mindful of its core audience, Santa’s Village offers three difficulty levels of tree climbing trails.
Santa’s Village is also building business by offering overnight camping cabins and “yurts” (wooden framed tents with doors and high ceilings). “We also support traditional tent and trailer camping and, frankly, can’t keep up with the demand for space,” he notes. “Looking ahead, we want to try treetop camping, to tie into Eaglecrest and offer our customers something new.”
The Importance of Being Santa
 Even with these changes, Santa’s Village is careful to stay true to its theme. The reason families come here is for their young children to meet Santa in person; everything else is secondary. The icon’s rustic cottage contains a workshop with some animatronics, plus the all-important sitting area where Santa and Mrs. Claus greet visitors.
The banter is what one would expect between Santa and children: “Have you been a good boy/girl?” “What would you like for Christmas?” and so forth. To make the experience more compelling, Santa’s Village encourages parents to give Santa some personal information beforehand— i.e., who the child’s best friend is and what they like to do together—so his comments can relate directly to their children’s daily lives.
In such a Santa-centric setting, false beards just won’t sell: All of the people who play Santa here (one per shift) have to sport a real set of white whiskers. And that’s just the beginning; this Santa has to have the full St. Nick package, including a jolly personality and the ability to connect with children at the youngest of ages. “It can be pretty intimidating for a small child to meet Santa, what with his beard, deep voice, and large size,” says Hopkins. “Our Santa is especially careful to make himself as friendly and non-intimidating as possible.”
Fortunately for Santa’s Village, there seems to be a never-ending supply of performers who want to fill Santa’s boots. “We have some really committed Santas who work for us,” he notes. “They are so into the role, that many are recognized in town as being Santa and respond in kind when greeted.”
55 Years and Going Strong
Exceeding a half century is no small feat for any amusement park, but especially one whose core market has changed so much over the years. When Santa’s Village opened, Toronto was a small city with few amusement options. Today, the greater Toronto area has 5.5 million residents and lots of entertainment options.
Jamie Hopkins’ Santa’s Village remains viable by sticking to its core brand: “We know that we are never going to compete with a Canada’s Wonderland, which has far more space to work with and cutting-edge attractions to offer,” he says. “But we have something that they don’t, which is Santa and Mrs. Claus at their established summer home. This, combined with the long history of Santa’s Village in Bracebridge, gives us a heritage that newcomers cannot compete with.”
Nevertheless, Santa’s Village intends to keep adding new attractions and devise new marketing ideas. For instance, “We are really promoting the notion of grandparents coming here with their grandchildren,” says Hopkins. “This gives them a unique destination that they can come to, and a shared experience that both generations will enjoy and cherish.”
One thing appears certain: As long as there’s a Santa Claus, he will need a place to unwind during the summer months that is warm yet not too hot for his reindeer. At 45 degrees latitude, Santa’s Village remains an ideal location for the jolly old elf’s R&R—and a solid reason for passing drivers on Highway 11 to visit this attraction.
James Careless is a freelance writer who has spent a lot of ‘business time’ at Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, and Canada’s Wonderland.
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