Nearly four centuries of quiet magic
Among the grand oaks sits a cottage Santa has returned to for longer than anyone can quite remember.
He's Waiting Inside
A cottage among the oaks
For nearly four centuries, Santa has returned to a quiet little cottage nestled beneath the grand oaks.
Some believe it was once his childhood home. Others simply know it as Santa's Enchanted Workshop, where he returns early each season.
Whether that is true, only Santa knows.
What is certain is that this place matters deeply to him.
Something more personal
Santa's Enchanted Workshop is not his main North Pole workshop where toys are crafted and preparations for Christmas Eve keep the season buzzing with activity. It is something much more personal — a quiet, peaceful place, home to some of his most beloved treasures.
Away from the bustle of the North Pole, it gives Santa time to think, create, and enjoy the traditions he holds dear. Filled with treasures and memories gathered over time, this little cottage has become part of Santa's own history. Here, stories are shared, traditions are passed along, and time together is enjoyed gently and without hurry.
What Santa treasures most about this little cottage is the time he shares with the children and families he welcomes there.
Beneath the garland archway
Just outside stands a towering ice pole dusted with North Pole crystals. Beneath the archway, a small elf door reminds visitors that some helpers prefer quieter entrances.
Inside, trains travel overhead, colored lights glow warmly, and Christmas seems to settle softly into the corners of the room.
Most people imagine Santa's Enchanted Workshop as a place where families come to spend time in Santa's presence. And of course, they do.
But perhaps something equally true is shared here as well. This little cottage gives Santa the opportunity to spend time in their presence too.
Not in passing.
Not through hurried encounters.
But through stories, laughter, and meaningful time together.
Perhaps that is why Santa continues returning here, year after year. Not only because the cottage is dear to him — but because of what is shared here.
Each season, Santa opens the doors of his workshop to a small number of families. For every family he welcomes, the story begins long before they ever arrive.
As your visit draws near, a special invitation finds its way to your home — a personal letter from Santa himself.
See how a visit unfoldsIn her own words
The Heart Behind This Place
When I think about Christmas when I was a kid, the memories seem a little faded. Not because I'm old… but because of those little Kodak prints tucked into magnetic family albums that somehow preserved the memory while quietly stealing all the color from the picture. Bright reds rusted. Whites turned cream.
And yet… each page still brings back my childhood Christmases. And I wouldn't change a thing.
Hung across the mantel
The towering artificial tree that challenged my dad's patience every December, its white flocking growing just a little thinner with each passing year. And next to the family tree… the cardboard chimney. Straight from Woolworths and solving what felt like a very serious childhood concern: how exactly was Santa supposed to get inside our house?
That little invention was not decoration. It was strategy.
And hanging across the mantel were six glitter-covered stockings, each written in my mother's handwriting. One for my mom. One for my dad. And one for Vickie, Jimmy, Sharon, and Susan. They may not have looked extraordinary to anyone else, but to me they were beautiful.
Because there, hanging together… was my family.
There are two very important books at Christmas. The Bible… and the Sears Christmas Wish Book. The Bible told us why Christmas mattered. But the Sears Christmas Wish Book? That was the very foundation of Christmas itself.
My little sister Susan and I would grab colored pens and begin circling our treasures with complete confidence and very little concern for practical realities. Truthfully, we understood not every circled wish would appear Christmas morning. That hardly mattered. The joy was in the dreaming. Wishing and imagining didn't cost anything. And turning those pages together, dreaming out loud about what Christmas might hold, was the very essence of Christmas.
And then there was Christmas Eve. In our house, the tradition was for all four of us children to sleep together in one bedroom. At the time, I thought this arrangement existed because my parents were wonderfully festive. Looking back… I suspect it may also have been brilliant parental strategy.
I can remember heading to bed early, convinced that somehow sleeping sooner would encourage Christmas morning to arrive faster… only to spend hours unsuccessfully trying to fall asleep. And there we were. Vickie, Jimmy, Sharon, and Susan. Waiting… for the faintest hint of morning light.
One of my very favorite places in the world has always been Disneyland. I remember very distinctly when I was five years old. We had just arrived, walking down Main Street holding my dad's hand toward the castle. I could smell the familiar scents and had already spotted Mickey and Minnie welcoming us near the front gate… I was so happy to be there.
And then I looked up at my dad and he was smiling. And for a moment, I knew we were sharing the same feelings at the same time. He was happy too…
I think about that moment often now.
How beautiful it is to share the very same joy at the very same time.
Why we built this place
Years later, when Scott and I created Santa's Enchanted Workshop, I was no longer the little girl walking down Main Street. I was a mother. I was a grandmother. Old enough to understand how quickly childhood moves.
This is why Santa's Enchanted Workshop became so important to me. I wanted to create a place that would be as meaningful for parents as it was for children. Because childhood moves quickly. And some of the sweetest memories we carry are the ones we shared together.
Christmas has a remarkable way of bringing families back together again. Perhaps that is why certain memories never really leave us. It is two fifty-year-old sisters still remembering the Sears Christmas Wish Book and exactly how that felt.
That is why the artwork created at Santa's Enchanted Workshop becomes more beloved with each passing year. Not simply because of how it looks… but because of what it remembers.
My dad is no longer with us. Every now and then I catch myself wishing I could share just one hour with him inside Santa's Enchanted Workshop. I think he would have understood it immediately. After all…
I saw that smile once before.
— Sharon Benton
Why early is the magical time
The quieter weeks are Santa's unhurried season — and your artwork comes home in time to display, to send with your cards, and to give.