Kielder Winter Wonderland runs on 11 days from 28 November to 23 December. Tickets from £44.50 each for ages 2 and up, plus a £6 booking fee; no door sales.

Kielder Winter Wonderland is on in 2026. It runs on eleven days between Saturday 28 November and Wednesday 23 December at Kielder Waterside, and every ticket has to be booked online in advance: there are no sales on the gate.

The quick answer

  • Dates: 28 and 29 November; 5, 6, 12 and 13 December; then every day from 19 to 23 December.
  • Price: from £44.50 per person for everyone aged two and over, adults included; £10 for a child under two; plus a £6 booking fee per booking. No family tickets.
  • Relaxed day: Saturday 28 November, only for families living with additional needs.
  • Hours: site open 9.30am to 6.30pm; the rides start at 10am. Your timetable is set by the Father Christmas slot you book.
  • Where: Kielder Waterside, Kielder, NE48 1BT, 46 miles from Newcastle.

All of this is from the organiser’s own dates and prices page and FAQs, read on 16 October 2026.

Every 2026 date

Month Dates Notes
November Sat 28 Relaxed day, additional needs families only
November Sun 29
December Sat 5, Sun 6
December Sat 12, Sun 13
December Sat 19 to Wed 23 Five days in a row

The event is not on weekdays before 21 December.

How much are tickets?

The organiser lists three prices:

  • Under 2: £10 per ticket.
  • Ages 2 to 14 (child ticket): from £44.50.
  • Ages 15 and over (adult ticket): from £44.50.

Adults pay the same as children, and every booking carries a £6 booking fee. Its FAQs say plainly that “a family ticket isn’t available”. A family of two adults and two children therefore starts at £178 before the booking fee. Changing a booking costs £7, and you pay in full when you book.

The prices are “from” prices. The organiser does not publish which dates cost more.

You cannot go without a child. The FAQs say the day “wouldn’t be suitable for adults only” and that you will need to be attending with a child.

What happens on the day

It is a full-day, timetabled event. When you book you choose a time to see Father Christmas, on either the “Reindeer” or the “Snowman” route (the same experience, named to split the groups; the Snowman route is the step-free one), and the rest of your day is fitted round that slot. The exact timings come in your confirmation email.

What the day includes, according to the organiser:

  • Mrs Christmas, who needs help getting ready for the season.
  • The Elves’ Workshop, where children make a wooden keepsake.
  • A walk through the forest to Father Christmas’s cabin. The visit is in a group with other children, and Father Christmas reads out each child’s name and the secret you gave when booking. Each child gets a gift.
  • A Christmas theatre show in an outdoor marquee, with the audience on straw bales.
  • Real reindeer, which can be hand-fed; the feed costs extra and takes £1 coins.
  • Mr and Mrs Beaver, who tell the Christmas story.
  • Snowy Owl and Friends at Kielder Water’s Birds of Prey Centre.

It is aimed at children aged three to ten. Younger children can join everything, though the organiser says they will need help on the festive rides and in the workshop.

What you need before you book

The booking form asks for each child’s name, the age they will be on the day, and a secret for Father Christmas of no more than 15 words. The organiser suggests a fact rather than a present that might change, such as a new pet or learning to swim.

Booking is through the organiser’s Bookwhen page, with the relaxed day on a separate page. When we checked on 16 October, the earliest Father Christmas slot still offered for Sunday 29 November was 12.20pm.

The relaxed day: Saturday 28 November

This date is exclusively for families living with additional needs. Every session runs at 50% capacity, with reduced noise, raised lighting and staff trained in autism awareness, and a social story is available to download before you go.

Getting there and parking

Kielder Waterside is at the far end of a long rural drive: the organiser puts it 44 miles from Carlisle, 46 from Newcastle and 60 from Durham. From Newcastle or Carlisle, take the A69 to Hexham, the B6320 to Bellingham and then the C200 to Kielder Water and Forest Park, following the brown signs. Plan to arrive at least 30 minutes before your first activity.

The organiser does not publish parking charges for the event. Phone signal is weak in the forest, but there is site Wi-Fi.

Check our roadworks and travel page before setting off, and the Northumberland parking page if you are stopping in Hexham on the way.

Practical points

  • Clothes: it is outdoors in a forest in December. The organiser advises warm, waterproof clothing, hats, gloves and winter footwear, plus spare clothes for children.
  • Pushchairs: fine; the site is “mostly flat” and has pram parks.
  • Wheelchairs: choose the Snowman route.
  • Dogs: assistance dogs only.
  • Cash: there is no cash machine. The shop and the Forest Bar and Kitchen take cards, but some food vendors may not, so bring some cash.

Other Santa visits in Northumberland

Kielder is the county’s most expensive option. Bamburgh Castle’s grotto, Lilidorei at The Alnwick Garden and the Aln Valley Railway’s Santa trains are compared on our Santa grottos and Santa trains page, and the castle’s festive installation is on our Christmas at Bamburgh Castle page.

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