Santa HQ!

My kid had a blast visiting Santa and I have Santa HQ to thank for this amazing experience. This is so NOT your ordinary “mall santa” visit. This is mall santa meets bells, whistles, games, videos and more! Queens Center in Elmhurst NY was the host for HGTV and we were thrilled to be invited!
The minute you walk into the exhibit you can feel the holiday spirit; the girls were so excited!

Next up of course, is the Naughty or Nice meter….and yes folks the girls were sweating. (as they should be LOL) They stood up next to this amazingly colored meter that blinked and floated Christmas colors up and down. It was like spinning the wheel on The Price Is Right. It fluctuated between naughty and nice and then suddenly the verdict appeared and their names went up on the board accordingly. Thankfully, both were deemed “nice” (I demand a recount) and we were on our way.

They have adorable photo props like snowflakes and great backdrops of a beautiful winter wonderland that you may take family pics with (think holiday card done) and all the while they scan the barcode on your photo envelope so everything is there for you at the end.

Next up was entering the actual “head quarters” where the ladies made their very own “Elfie” video using the interactive screens in front of them. It was so super cute and they laughed during the entire thing. You can enter your email address at the end so your personalized video is sent right to you. They loved it.

You would think that was all….but we still had more to see and of course Santa too! From here the girls checked out the North Pole’s control center complete with on screen telescope, sleigh action and more! They were handed a tablet that they held up to various “portal/pictures” on the walls to see gifts hidden behind them! They were so excited and jumping up and down and for a minute they felt like they were a part of the “pack the sleigh” business.

Finally we walked through the final archway and there he was. Santa; Mr. Claus and they were just thrilled. He spent time with them each and even gave them an activity book to take home and enjoy! We quickly had our package printed and we were finished with our Santa HQ experience. I have to tell you; this was just an awesome morning and we truly enjoyed it. The staff (in particular Destiny) was fantastic and really gave the girls time and space to enjoy the itinerary without feeling rushed.