Christmas Grotto dilemma!

marywooyeah

Hi guys need some opinions! Me and hubby were taking our 3 year old down to London tommorow for the selfridges grotto, but hubby has had to cancel his leave due to a heavy workload. We didnt book hotels or travel as we were waiting to find out whether he would be allowed the time off or not but now we know for certain I've checked and its £25 each way on the coach for me and my son and cheapest hotel is around £60. It seemed like a good idea when we booked it but now it just seems really expensive and I don't know whether to go ahead and take him down on my own or just write off the cost of the tickets, but then he won't get to go to the grotto! I've booked 2 days off for this too and cancelled his days at nursery so it seems a shame to waste the days off.

So I'm in a bit of a pickle and need some objective opinions!

jamespir

have you tried the mega bus

Person_one

Are there no grottoes nearer? At 3 he won't appreciate that the Selfridges one is 'nicer'.

balletshoes

marywooyeah wrote: »

Hi guys need some opinions! Me and hubby were taking our 3 year old down to London tommorow for the selfridges grotto, but hubby has had to cancel his leave due to a heavy workload. We didnt book hotels or travel as we were waiting to find out whether he would be allowed the time off or not but now we know for certain I've checked and its £25 each way on the coach for me and my son and cheapest hotel is around £60. It seemed like a good idea when we booked it but now it just seems really expensive and I don't know whether to go ahead and take him down on my own or just write off the cost of the tickets, but then he won't get to go to the grotto! I've booked 2 days off for this too and cancelled his days at nursery so it seems a shame to waste the days off.

So I'm in a bit of a pickle and need some objective opinions!

take him to see Santa locally in the shopping centres - whichever one he sees, whether its in London and costs you over £100, or its in Nottingham or Derby and costs you a fiver, will be Santa for him .

loracan1

Seriously, like above, he's not going to know any different! (that's if he's not too scared to go inside anyway, neither of mine ever wanted to go in those things)

meritaten

did you 'promise' him a trip to see santa? if not keep quiet and do something else with his two days off!
If you did 'promise' him - then take him to the nearest place with a santa grotto, he wont realise its not Selfridges unless he can read already!

btw - it doesnt have to be a department store - my local garden centre do a lovely Santas grotto, it isnt cheap, but the kids get a lovely (garden related) gift. saying that - compared to the travel and hotel costs - it would be a bargain!

rachbc

I'm fairly certain that any 3 yo would rather spend time doing anything than sit on a coach for 2 hours to stand in a queue for another hour to see the big guy in the red suit the could have seen at the local shopping centre. What is 'special' to an small child is probably very different to what is special for an adult. Save the money, stress and time of going to London and spend yuor 2 days off having a blast near home with him

marywooyeah

thank you for the replies - I didnt book selfridges because I'm a snob or anything lol just because I heard it was really really good and I thought if we booked a couple of days off and took a family trip it could be part of that and we could do other things in london too, his grandad lives there too for example. he likes travelling and likes the coach, or "big bus" as he calls it.

I think its cos hubby isnt coming now that I'm second guessing it, and when I booked it I had just started my new job and thought we'd be quite good for money but now I'm finding I work all day every day but have no money! oh the irony! I think i will just write off the ticket cost and take him out around notts instead. thankyou again everyone x

Money_maker

It's a case of whatever feels best for you.

We're doing the Selfridges one this weekend, just me and DD (3) are seeing the big man but my two teenage DS's are going and DH (if he's feeling better!). Want to check out the lights http://www.westlondoncollege.com/student_life/london_webcam.php and go to the big Hyde Park Winter Wonderland. Never taken the boys to London for Christmas (always fancied Lapland but funds would never stretch) so hoping we have a great family time. TBH, the trip to see FC could be more for my benefit than DD...

If you decide not to go, there's always next Christmas.

suki1964

I remember taking my GS to see Santa at that age. just the local shopping centre one as we were there.

He queued very happily taking in all the wee animated animals and things

Got to the top of the queue - saw santa and screamed the place down and refused point blank to go in

He didnt want to even queue last year aged 4

Seriously aged 3 hes too young to know what santa is all about and tbh there's a good chance he will be terrified as so many children are of dress up ( clowns etc) at that age. Take him to the local santa, he wont know the difference and save hard for the time when you know he really is ready for the " big experience" that you know you so want him to enjoy

sashadesade

I think you've made the right choice. To him, Santa is Santa whether he's the Selfridges one or the one at the local shopping centre with a dodgy beard! My mum loves to remind me of how I yelled 'SANTA!' and ran to hug him when I was a little kid at a christmas party. He wasn't the most convincing in retrospect, but generally small kids won't notice these things!