Two businessman hope to create a virtual Lapland in the heart of Kildare this Christmas. In a vast marquee in Goffs there will be real snow and reindeer, Santa's village with the great man's workshop and helpers, 60 actors in Alpine outfits and a flight simulator to give the whole experience an authentic "trip to Lapland" feel. The hardwall marquee is the same one that is used for the Rose of Tralee and is two-thirds the size of Dublin's Point Theatre.
"We looked at what's on offer for kids at Christmas and the choice seemed to be between a shed with a bit of cotton wool stuck on top or a £450 (€571) trip to Lapland," says Gerry Bolger, who with his partner Padraig O'Hara has been working on the Santa's Kingdom project for the past five years.
"What we are trying to do is recreate the experience of going to Lapland." Visitors whose pre-booked tickets will specify a time will be greeted by a flight attendant who will guide them into the flight simulator. From there it's into Santa's Kingdom with real snow created using a technique developed in Australia.
Children will visit Santa, see reindeer, hear carol singing and go on a "magic ice ride". There will be food concessions and down one of the "streets", a toy shop. In all, Santa's Kingdom will take up 55,000 sq ft of the Kildare venue that is better known for its horse auctions than kiddie attractions. Mr Bolger estimates that visitors will spend approximately two and half-hours in his Christmas theme park.
If it works, it's going to be extraordinary. Bolger's background is in marketing and O'Hara has been involved in event management and the two have brought several sponsors on board including Coca Cola and Masterfoods. They have also lined up a group of private investors to back the project.
The pair chose the location because of its infrastructure including its car-park facilities and its distance from Dublin.
"You can't hear traffic there and people have to travel to it and that adds to the magic," says Mr Bolger. "We also had to get a greenfield site because it's going to take four weeks to build the set."
Bolger expects to attract around eight thousand people per day to Santa's kingdom and at any one time there will 100 staff on the premises. While a visit to the virtual Lapland in Kildare won't be as expensive as a trip to the real thing, it is not exactly cheap. Prices are more in line with concert tickets than the traditional visit to Santa.
At the weekends, tickets will cost £22.50 for both adults and children; prices dip to £12.75 for midweek entry before 4 p.m. There will also be group deals.
All have to be booked through Ticketmaster and if the event isn't booked out before it begins, there will be a Ticketmaster counter on site. Santa's Kingdom opens on November 30th and runs until December 23rd.
