Meet Father Christmas at West Stow on 5 and 6 December for £12 a child, or at Dobbies on Rougham Road from £15. Both are booking now, and slots are going.

Two places near Bury St Edmunds are already taking bookings to meet Father Christmas in 2026: West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December, at £12 a child, and Dobbies on Rougham Road, from £15 a ticket. One West Stow slot has already sold out.

The quick answer

  • West Stow: Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December, 10am to 3.45pm, £12 a child. Two adults go in free with each child, and the ticket includes a craft workshop, a gift and entry to the village.
  • Dobbies Bury St Edmunds: grotto season 22 November to 24 December, tickets £15 to £17. The Bury store’s calendar shows December sessions so far.
  • Book both in advance. Neither takes walk-ups.

Father Christmas at West Stow

West Suffolk Council’s heritage team runs this at the Anglo-Saxon Village, Icklingham Road, IP28 6HG. From the West Stow listing:

  • Dates: Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December 2026
  • Slots: 10am, 10.30am, 11am, 11.30am, 12 noon, 12.30pm, 1pm, 1.30pm, 2.15pm, 2.45pm, 3.15pm and 3.45pm. Your visit happens within the half hour you book.
  • Price: £12 a child, which includes a Christmas gift to take away, a festive craft workshop and free entry to the Anglo-Saxon village and museum
  • Adults: up to two over-16s free with each paying child; extra adults pay standard admission
  • Parking: £3 for the day
  • Dogs: assistance dogs only in the Saxon village
  • Booking: essential, online or on 01284 758000

When we checked on 25 September, the 11am slot on Saturday 5 December was already sold out.

Santa’s Grotto at Dobbies, Rougham Road

The garden centre at Rougham Road, IP33 2RN, runs its North Pole village grotto. From the Dobbies booking page:

  • Season: 22 November to 24 December across Dobbies stores. The Bury store’s calendar currently shows sessions on 5, 6, 12, 13, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23 and 24 December, every ten minutes from 10am.
  • Price: from £15 to £17 a ticket
  • What happens: a wishing well, activities in the grotto “shops”, a Penguin Post Office, then time with Santa. Every child with a ticket gets the same gift, a collectable penguin soft toy.
  • Adults: a maximum of two with each child, because of space
  • Timing: your booked time is when to arrive at the grotto, and you cannot go in early
  • Photos: printed photo packages cost 20 per cent less if you book them with the ticket

Dobbies warns that the grotto may be outside, so dress for it.

Other Christmas days out

  • Bury’s Christmas lights event, Thursday 19 November, 3pm to 8pm, free: our switch-on page.
  • The Christmas markets, including the cathedral’s from 26 to 28 November: our markets page.
  • The Theatre Royal pantomime, Dick Whittington, from 20 November: our panto page.

Still to be confirmed

  • Other grottos and Santa visits in the district, which usually publish in October and November. We will add them as organisers announce them.
  • Whether the Dobbies Bury store adds November dates.

Parking in town over Christmas: our parking page.