Enchant San Jose — Attraction in San Jose

Came here on christmas day...

PROS+

~Lots and LOTS of festive lights and decorations

~Great staff - everyone had a very friendly and welcoming attitude that made my party feel as if it were on par with disneyland. There was a person enthusiastically greeting you upon entry and multiple performers: one group singing christmas songs near the entrance as well as a DJ near the food court. I even witnessed a bilingual staff member go out of their way to help a family find out how to gain entry into the ice skating rink.

~Tasty food and drinks - stadium hot dog was above average in my opinion and they offered a spiked hot chocolate which was also nice. (only downside was that their $20 cocktail in the take-home light bulb shaped vessel was not extraordinary and way too sweet in my opinion)

~Variety of good vendors

~Multiple pretty photo opportunities

~Ice skating rink had rails on both sides as opposed to 1 which cleared up a lot of the traffic that other standard rinks experience.

CONS-

~Poor organization - long lines with no clear signage as to what each line was for. We waited in line for parking just to find out the parking spot we paid for was on a different street and we would have to wait in another line. Other cars in front of us came to the same realization as they were turned around by the person managing the lot. Entry to the ice skating rink would have been smoother but the ticket/waiver process was explained only after waiting to get to the front of the line, causing many people to go back and forth between lines. This caused confusion and longer wait times for entry to the rink. People that did not complete the process online ahead of time were at a significant disadvantage.

~Ice skating - everyone in my party including me complained about foot pain from the poor quality ice skates. One of my party members was not able to get their preferred hockey skates due to an employee saying there were none, even though I was able to get some shortly after them. The ice and skates were poorly maintained; the ice was rough and bumpy even right after being zamboni-ed, even having multiple small hills of ice in random spots. The skates were also not sharp at all, with the worst traction or grip of any ice skate rentals i've ever tried.

Overall I was able to overlook the negative experiences with the lines and the ice skating rink to enjoy the rest of what Enchant had to offer. The sheer amount of lights and decorations alone made my experience feel very...

I went to this event on a Friday night after 7pm, overall it was a little underwhelming and crowded, not sure what I expected, probably from reading such great reviews from other locations. Overall you'll spend less than 1 hour 30minutes here, unless you do ice skating or spend time to sit down and eat for a while.

Light maze: Too crowded for photo ops in the main areas, you'll wait in line to get photos in front of bigger structures or waiting for children to not be on the structures, which for the most part is just white / soft white / yellow colored lights entirely throughout the maze even on the trees throughout the event.

Ice skating: Floor was in pretty rough shape, puddles of water everywhere especially on the edges or inner areas. If you fell, you're going to be soaked with water. I did not want to attempt even going in there seeing many people had soaked pants.

Market: Majority of the market was just hot chocolate or the same food vendors in rest of the park. You would think they would utilize the area for selling more decorative item vendors for the season instead of generic beanies, and 2 jewelry vendors. Also a beef jerky vendor selling 20$ bags with about 3 small strips of jerky. The decor inside the market was mainly soft white lit up small christmas trees, but also had a children story telling area.

Parking: No signage where to park for the event, nobody giving direction where to go. Cars ahead of me were just as confused and had to stop and ask a worker where to park, where another worker used their phone to scan your tickets or had you pay for parking.

There is no need for the premier pass or express pass, there was no line for entry at my time of visit at all, no real special events for such either except a small area for people to sit seperate from others. The cocktail special beverage you get with the premier pass costs 23$ if you did not purchase the special ticket pass, which is just a light up glass bottle.

Luckily I bought my tickets very early in advance and had a big discount instead of paying for regular pricing. It's an event to see at least 1 time I guess. Was not worth the drive for me...

I recently visited Enchant at the Earthquakes Stadium in San Jose, and while the experience had its highlights, there were also some significant drawbacks.

First, the venue itself was beautifully decorated with twinkling Christmas lights and enchanting holiday decor that truly captured the magic of the season. Walking through the displays was a wonderful experience, and it definitely set the festive mood. The atmosphere was filled with joy and wonder, making it a great place to soak in the holiday spirit.

However, my excitement was dampened by the logistics of the visit. The parking situation was less than ideal. We paid $35 for parking, only to find that it was quite a distance from the stadium. For the price, I expected something much closer that would allow for a more convenient experience.

Inside the venue, I encountered another disappointment. While outside food and drinks are not permitted, the food options available were overpriced and not particularly good. It felt frustrating to pay a premium for subpar offerings, especially when we couldn't bring our own snacks or drinks.

Overall, while I appreciated the beautiful decorations and the holiday atmosphere that Enchant provides, the high cost of parking, lack of quality food options, and the inability to bring in outside refreshments left me feeling underwhelmed. Would I return? Probably not. It's a one-and-done experience for me, and I wouldn't recommend it unless you're specifically looking to enjoy the Christmas decor. If you're after a magical holiday experience, there are likely better options out there that won't come with the...