Doting parents have bought 160,000 tickets for Santa's Kingdom - a fantasy world inside an "ice mountain" at Goff's, Co Kildare, that has elves, deer and 250 tons of cryogenically-made real snow.
Until now, parents who wanted to give their children a Christmas fantasy experience had one option: fly them to Lapland at a cost of about £500 per person, an unaffordable extravagance for most. Gerry Bolger, who has one daughter, aged 3, and four godchildren, visited Lapland and realised that he could bring the experience to Irish children at an affordable price (£12.75 to £22.50 depending on time and day of visit). With his business partner, Padraig O'Hara (also a father), he invested £2 million in the project.
They are adamant that there will be no queueing. Families will arrive at Goff's, park their cars, and go to the entrance to the North Pole Shuttle. There they'll enter a departure lounge and present their pre-booked flight tickets.
The shuttle trip to Santa's magical land will take two minutes and feel like the real thing - thanks to simulated flight monitor and commentary from the flight staff. Children will arrive inside a mountain cave, then emerge to a streetscape peopled by elves. On it they'll find Santa's house, and the telescope through which he watches good and bad children.
The climax will be a 60-foot snow slide (adults allowed), and, for the toddlers, a snow pit filled with non-toxic (and therefore edible) snow.
The success of the venture, before it has even opened, proves that there's an enormous need for activities that parents and children can enjoy together - and not just at Christmas time. Why should we have to get on planes to visit the top aquariums and dinosaur exhibits?
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