Dear Mummy, sleigh bells ring are you listening? It may only be November but I’m already dreaming of Christmas! It seems everyone is in need of some festive cheer at the moment.
It’s around this time that I sit down and write my Christmas wish list to Father Christmas. High up on my agenda this year was seeing him again at LaplandUK, but unfortunately due to limited big folk jingles and my invite getting lost in the North Pole we aren’t visiting the elf village sadly. However, all was not lost as we caught wind that LaplandUK was opening a Wishing Store pop-up shop in Bracknell at The Lexicon Shopping Centre. I couldn’t wait to see some of my favourite elves and the wonderful Wishing Tree Store in all it’s glory.
The new shop is brilliant and it transported me briefly to the doors of LaplandUK by giving me a glimpse of what the full experience is like. Inside it has market carts selling Christmas decorations and LaplandUK merchandise. At the back of the store the immersive experience takes place. There were elf characters milling around in their wonderful elven clothes. Even Santa needs an income these days and £5 a ticket seemed reasonable for a wonderful magical storytelling and memory-making experience. I was greeted by Wish, the beautiful Christmas elf responsible for looking after our wishes, and she guided us into an open space with little tree stumps under the canopy of a large wishing tree. I loved the twinkly jam-jar lights hanging from its branches.
Elf Wish read us a story about another elf called Conker, who I’ve met before on my visit to LaplandUK back in 2018. However other members of the public can watch and hear what is going on and there’s nothing stopping them from ducking under the roped off area. It was a tad busy and it might have been nice to see an elf organising us so the big folk didn’t block the view and those with tickets got to fully enjoy the moment. We were engrossed for a good 10 minutes listening to a stories. Each child was given a goody bag, which included an activity book, pencil and LaplandUK character sticker sheet afterwards.
We also had the opportunity to write a letter to Father Christmas. I sat at one of the old-fashioned writing desks, tongue out in concentration, to complete the task with a little help from Scribble another friendly elf. LaplandUK themed paper and pencils were provided and the elves chatted away to us. I then sealed the envelope down with a magic stamp and posted it in the wishing post box with a kiss. Writing a letter to Father Christmas helps keeps the magic alive.
We could have wandered around in the store for ages, browsing at all the wonderful LaplandUK gifts (some of the characters might be lost on people that haven’t visited LaplandUK before though). We’ve been fortunate to visit LaplandUK for the past few years and the magic always brings excitement and reflection. Have I been good enough?! During this store experience you don’t get to meet the Big Man himself (he’s far too busy in November) but it leaves it open to seeing him at LaplandUK or indeed anywhere he chooses to visit.
The Wishing Store experience is £5 per child and accompanying adults are free, it’s definitely great value for money and a great way to kick off the festive season. Visiting the shop is free and the experience lasts for around 30 minutes.
Love Bella x
Disclosure: We paid for our experience to The LaplandUK Wishing Store and wanted to share this cool christmas activity with you. Fancy seeing more? Then click on our previous Lapland UK posts.
dearmummyblog.com 
How amazing! How did i not know that lapland uk existed! Beats the cold and travel any day and looks loads of fun. Prices seem reasonable too
That is so great! I am dreaming to visit Lapland one day but the one is UK is also really cool! I bet its so much fun for kids!
An experience that if I were a child I would not doubt to do, I want to do it even if I am an adult! hihihi
Oh wow! I would love to go there, with or without the rest of the family. LOL. I’m a HUGE Christmas lover. That’s the kind of place I could get lost in.
We love Christmas too! This place is pretty magical x
I agree £5 is very reasonable for such a lovely long-lasting memory. I think it’s important to do as many things as you can whilst children are still young. Bet Bella had an amazing day.
Hey Melanie! She had a fab couple of hours and has been talking non-stop about it! – Dawn x
Oh wow what a magical thing to be able to do! I love that they have done something like this for kids, an amazing experience to be able to go to.
It’s a great shop and a good taster for the full LaplandUK experience!
I don’t remember seeing The LaplandUK Wishing Store, might have to take the kids back to find it. We loved LaplandUK
It’s new this year! We saw it advertised at the Lexicon shopping centre and couldn’t wait to visit as we’re nearby x you’d love it x
This looks like such a fun experience. Of course, it’s even more magical for kids to send a letter to Santa. I’m glad you could do this.
That sounds amazing and definitely a wonderful and magical experience for her. She looks so adorable in all those photos.
I really love the idea that you can actually post the letter to Santa, that is so cool, love it. And the place is gorgeous.
Looks like so much fun and a wonderful experience for the family this holiday season!
Visiting that place is really an amazing and fun experience for the whole family most especially to the kids. I wish to visit this place someday!
This looks amazing for getting some Christmas magic! And such a reasonable price too.
C x
This is such a nice experience and it’s great that it’s not too expensive as this time of the year can be pricey x
Oh how exciting! This sounds like such an amazing experience. Hope Santa brings you everything you want x
What a magical place – and so affordable too! Perfect for children – I wonder if we have something near me!
What a wonderful Christmas experience, I think that every child should have a change to go there before the holidays. The friendly elves look so adorable and how cute that they helped you write a letter to Santa. 🙂
This seems like it is really special for kids. I also love that you call is Father Christmas!
This is such a cute idea, and she looks so adorable. The way they have it set up is so magical I would love to be a kid myself and right to Father Christmas. Love the video feature with the content as well.
What a fabulous store this is, and so festive too! I feel like heading there myself. Going to plan a trip for my kids now to post their letter to Santa as we still have not done that.
How awesome would this have been for the boys! They used to love writing letters to Santa when they were younger.
Christmas is my favorite time of the year. I would love to do this with my little one.
Awww she looks so adorable. I find this idea genius. A really special moment for kids. I also love that you call is Father Christmas!
This is pretty awesome. I wish we had one in my country.
This sounds like such a lovely experience and definitely a more affordable way to still get some of the LaplandUK magic for a fraction of the price. My two still love writing their letters to santa and would love to visit here, I really wish we had one closer to us here in Bristol!
She is so cute! This sounds like an awesome experience!
Aww it sounds amazing and great value at just £5. Something a little different and more magical to do in the run up to Christmas
Definitely, the kids will enjoy their time here. I wish we can visit the place.