Santa's Land Fun Park & Zoo — Attraction in Wolftown Community

By topic: Parking: Plenty of parking and they carried the Christmas theme into the parking lot by making the parking spots with candy cane style paint. Spots are larger than standard --super helpful for unloading kids, strollers, etc., plus I didn't worry about a child whacking my car with their door.

Entry: They had a photo spot set up right before you entered. One review accurately noted that they do charge a 3 year old the same as an adult --I wish the park would revisit this --but entry was roughly $26 per person. I thought the price was fair considering they have to care for animals, maintain the park, pay employees, etc. Also, they offer a military discount, senior discount, etc. The lady at the entry booth was super friendly and super efficient.

Park Overall: well maintained, pretty trees, and a creek that runs through the entire park. There is also a train that runs a loop of the entire park and comes and goes every few minutes. Children and adults can ride the train to move from the entry to the amusements/rides.

Non-Ride Entertainment: Santa's Land has a LOT of non-ride entertainment for kids. They have several playground areas. At the entry, there is a merry-go-round, a slide, several springy rides for small kids, statues for the kids to take pictures with, an igloo (that my daughter loved), among others. There was another playground in the zoo area that was themed like mountain-climbing with a slide that my daughter really loved. There were also several animated displays. They also had a building where kids could take a photo with Santa. They also had a magic show, a blacksmith demonstration, among others. I really appreciate the non-ride entertainment because it really spreads out the visitors, kept lines for the rides short, and gave me a break from repeatedly going on rides with my daughter.

Amusements/Rides: The rides were a little older --but they were really cool and seemed to be well-maintained. The carousel had metal mechanics, however, the frame overall was made of wood --I thought this was really neat. They had a little helicopter ride (goes in circles and the rider controls elevation by a bar) which had rotors that actually turned while the ride was in motion. They had a reindeer roller coaster, which they are somewhat famous for, that let kids ride roller coasters, where they might be otherwise precluded due to age/height, without being too scary/intense. At the height of the Ferris Wheel there was a great view of the Great Smoky Mountains. There was also a small boat ride (similar to a carousel). Every single employee was SUPER friendly, super kind, and took safety seriously. The rides are most appropriate for children --if you have thrill-seeking teenagers they may be less amused by the rides.

Zoo: They had a lot of cool animals, kangaroos, a camel, black bears, goats, reindeer, emu, alpacas, chickens, ducks, among others. The animal habitats all seemed to be clean, the animal caretakers seemed to be really good with the animals, and my daughter loved looking at and feeding them. They had a fish exhibit that had the largest rainbow trout I've ever seen and a fish food dispenser (required a quarter (and they provided change for dollar bills)). The black bears were super playful and you could feed them too by sending the food down a tube. You could also feed the goats, reindeer, alpaca, and others.

Food: There was pizza near the entrance and a grill at the train stop near the rides. We ate at the grill near the rides. The employees working in the grill were super friendly and working super hard. They offered cheeseburgers, hot dogs, corndogs, chicken sandwich, nachos, soda, hot chocolate, etc. The food was priced SUPER reasonable: I had a double cheeseburger, fries, and a soda and it was $8.25. They also had a stand in the train station with funnel cakes, etc. I appreciated not being price-gouged for park food!

We had a great visit --and will definitely be back when we're in the area again. The park should consider children pricing and renovating...

We were there on Friday August 6th, it was Me, My Mom, My Fiancé and My Daughter. It cost 92 something to get in, We may have stayed about an hour. We were So Disappointed with the whole facility, The Only thing we did Enjoy was Santa. He was Amazing, Definitely a Jolly Ole Soul. He was so fun and delightful, we all got Our pictures taken with him. The Young Lady that was helping him was Wonderful also. They were the highlight of Our Visit... The other highlight of Our visit was before we went into the actual park. We were in the little shop where they sell fudge and there was a Young Lady in there with her Service dog which just so happen to be a Beautiful Pitbull. We so enjoyed seeing it and getting some Pitbull Love, as we have 2 Precious Pitbulls whom we had to kennel to go on Vacation. Our main reason for visiting your facility was my Mom. She wanted to visit as she was there back in 1970 or so and wanted to revisit to see if it had changed. She was very disappointed with your facility. The upkeep was a little undesirable to say the least, things could use some paint and cleaning. One of our other Major concerns were the animals and their care. The Sweet little Black Bears acted like they were starving, they had Very little water and nothing resembling their natural habitat. The one Sweet little cub kept sticking his paw through the fence trying to get to the weeds. IT WAS HEATRTBREAKING, TO SAY THE LEAST...... They should have complete access to Water and some berries/weeds. We were So Excited that we were going to get to see the Bear Cubs! But after seeing them, We were Devastated. I told my Mom I felt like making a phone call to report what we witnessed, I was so upset. But honestly I don't know who to contact or I would have. My Mom noticed other animals in the same conditions, she mentioned the Deer and their upkeep. I just couldn't believe the way things were run down and the paint was chipped everywhere. I would not recommend this place to Anyone especially an animal Lover. With the Prices you charge for entrance and anything in your facility you would think it would be in tip top shape and the Animals would be properly cared for. I wouldn't give your facility anymore than 2 stars,,, You need to do some Reevaluating of...

This is a roadside zoo. My heart broke as soon as we walked in.

My parents wanted to take my 2 year old daughter here while we are visiting them from Washington state. Apparently they brought me here as a toddler 30 years ago and thought it would be fun to recreate the memory. I had no idea what it was or I would have never agreed to come here.

The animals are kept in small, dirty cages of packed dirt and gravel. No attempt made to recreate their natural habitat or provide any enrichment whatsoever. The two baby bear cubs were the most tragic, following tourists as they walked around their very small circular enclosure, begging for food (that can be purchase from a gum-ball machine and inserted into a chute that goes into the cage.) I asked an employee where the cubs come from. “A man in Missouri leases them to us.” I then asked what happens to them when they aren’t babies anymore and he takes them back. The employee didn’t know. Then I said, “so this guy in Missouri is just breeding bears and then shipping the babies across the country to be rented to places like this?” And she said, verbatim, “yeah, I try not to think about that part.”

I am glad my two year old will have no memory of this place. If she was older we would be having a long, somber conversation about animal abuse and exploitation for profit. And how any zoo with captive animals should be committed to research, conservation, and betterment of the species.

It is crazy to think that in 2023, places like this still exist. Even after multiple citations from the USDA for violations of the Animal Welfare Act. We know better now. We have to do better. To alleviate some of my guilt for unknowingly supporting an establishment like this, I will be making a donation to the Western North Carolina Nature Center. Please take your kids there, not here.

inhumane animal conditions aside, the park is old and rundown. My daughter did enjoy the train ride and some of the old fair-style mechanical rides (carousel, circular cars and boats) and most of the staff...