Free Santa visit on East Street on 10 December, 4pm to 7pm, registration essential. Northlands Farm from 29 November; CFT grotto 4 to 23 Dec, price still to come.
The first Father Christmas visits on sale near Chichester are at Northlands Farm, from Sunday 29 November, and the Weald and Downland Living Museum, which has breakfasts from 5 to 11 December and a “Green Father Christmas” on 12 and 13 December. Chichester Festival Theatre’s grotto page lists 4 to 23 December but still has no price.
The quick answer
- Free, East Street: Father Christmas at Cathedral Wealth Management, 59 East Street, Thursday 10 December, 4pm to 7pm, for families with children under 12; free, registration essential.
- Northlands Farm, PO19 3PY: ten dates from Sunday 29 November to Wednesday 23 December, Gold child ticket from £19 plus VAT, rising through December.
- Chichester Festival Theatre grotto: page reads 4 to 23 December; last year tickets were from £14 per child, adults free.
- Breakfast with Father Christmas, Weald and Downland: Saturday 5 to Friday 11 December, 9am to 10am, £12.50 a child, £10 an adult.
- Meet Green Father Christmas, Weald and Downland: Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 December, 10am to 1pm, £15 for a child with one adult.
- Priory Park panto with Santa, The Guildhall: 12 to 22 December, £11 an adult, £8 a child, meet and greet after every show.
Last checked 31 October 2026, against each organiser’s own booking page.
Updated 3 October: Chichester District Council’s Priory Park panto, with Santa in the cast and a meet and greet after each show, is on sale for 12 to 22 December. CFT’s grotto still shows no 2026 price.
Updated 31 October: a free Santa visit in the city centre, at 59 East Street on 10 December, has been listed by Chichester BID. Northlands Farm still has all ten dates on sale; CFT’s grotto page still shows no 2026 price.
Updated 17 October: Northlands Farm’s Meet Santa is on sale for ten dates from 29 November, with prices below. CFT’s grotto page still shows no 2026 price.
Santa’s Grotto at Chichester Festival Theatre
The theatre’s Santa’s Grotto page currently reads 4 to 23 December. It does not print a year, but last year’s grotto opened on 6 December 2025, according to the Chichester BID listing, so we read these as the 2026 dates. No 2026 price is shown yet. Last year tickets were from £14 per child.
What the theatre says about a visit:
- The CFT elves meet you, you walk through the grotto, and each child gets five minutes with Father Christmas and a present.
- The whole visit takes 15 to 20 minutes; slots are every five minutes.
- Adults do not need a ticket and go in free with their children, but the theatre asks you to keep adults to a minimum.
- You can book up to four children per slot, but only two online. For three or four, call the box office on 01243 781312.
- Babies under 12 months go free with a booked sibling but get no present; a baby on their own needs a ticket.
- Arrive five minutes early. Late arrivals are not refunded or guaranteed entry, and the car park gets busy when shows are on.
The theatre’s Christmas shows run alongside it, including Hey! Christmas Tree for ages 3 to 7 in the Minerva: see our Christmas shows and pantomime page.
Meet Santa at Northlands Farm
Northlands Farm, on the northern edge of the city (PO19 3PY), sells a private family visit with Santa on Sunday 29 November; Saturday 5, Sunday 6, Saturday 12, Sunday 13, Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 December; and Monday 21, Tuesday 22 and Wednesday 23 December. Slots start from 9.30am, five minutes apart, and the farm says to allow up to two hours for the whole visit.
Each child gets an age-appropriate present from Santa. Every ticket includes the Elves’ art workshop, making reindeer food and the North Pole Post Office; Gold tickets add a giant marshmallow to toast, and daytime tickets include the Christmas Elf Trail (with a candy cane prize), the farm animals, pedal tractors and the 50 metre zipline.
Prices rise as Christmas gets closer. The farm prints them excluding VAT, so expect to pay more at checkout:
| Ticket (plus VAT) | November | Early December | Mid December | Late December |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold child | £19 | £21 | £23 | £26 |
| Gold adult | £14 | £16 | £18 | £21 |
| Adult general admission | £11 | £13 | £15 | £18 |
| Gold carer | £11 | £13 | £15 | £18 |
| Under 1 with a gift | £8 | £8 | £8 | £8 |
An under-one without a gift who comes with siblings is free. The farm does not say which December dates fall in which price band; the booking page shows the price for each date.
Breakfast with Father Christmas, Weald and Downland Living Museum
Saturday 5 to Friday 11 December, 9am to 10am, pre-booked online only. From the museum’s event page:
| Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
| Child | £12.50 |
| Adult | £10 |
| Under 2 (with breakfast and a gift) | £10 |
| Under 2 not needing breakfast or a gift | Free |
At least one adult must stay with children throughout. The museum cannot provide a high chair for a child who is not booked on.
Free Santa visit on East Street, 10 December
The one free city centre visit listed so far is at Cathedral Wealth Management, 59 East Street, PO19 1HL, on Thursday 10 December from 4pm to 7pm. The firm’s registration page says it is open to families with children under 12, with festive refreshments, children’s activities, a lucky dip and a raffle in aid of My Charity UH Sussex, the hospital charity. It is free, but registration is essential. Chichester BID includes it in its Christmas family list.
Meet Green Father Christmas, Weald and Downland
Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 December, 10am to 1pm. A child ticket including one adult is £15, and each extra adult is £5, from the event page.
The council: Santa in the panto, grotto not announced
Chichester District Council has put Father Christmas into its city centre programme before. In 2024 its market release pointed families to a Father Christmas grotto in East Street on 14 and 15 December, and in 2025 its Priory Park panto starred Santa, Mrs Santa and Norman the Elf at The Guildhall.
For 2026 the panto is back and on sale. The council’s announcement of 30 September puts The Priory Park Pantomime Experience at The Guildhall on six dates from Saturday 12 to Tuesday 22 December, £11 an adult and £8 a child. Santa is in the cast, every show ends with a short meet and greet and photos, and children can post their letters in Santa’s mailbox. Show times are on our Christmas shows page. The rest of the Priory Park programme is now on sale through The Novium’s shop: storytelling for under-fives, an adult silent disco and a free music trail. No council grotto is among them.
Still to be confirmed
- Chichester Festival Theatre’s 2026 grotto prices and when booking opens.
- Any council grotto in the city centre (none in the Priory Park programme so far).
- Santa visits at the district’s garden centres and in Selsey, Midhurst and Petworth.
For the markets that run alongside, see our Christmas markets page.
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