It’s the time of year and even though my son has hit his teens, we’ve kept up with our annual tradition of a visit with Santa. This isn’t as much as about letting Santa know what he wants for Christmas as the years when he believed are behind us but about tradition.
Photos with Santa, a Christmas Tradition
Last year was our first visit to HGTV’s Santa HQ at Chandler Fashion Center and it was such a perfect experience that we headed back again this year. The experience, the Santa, and the photos are all top notch. Photo quality is important – I’ve seen some really poor photos being shared on Facebook from other ‘mall Santas’. In the Phoenix area, is both at Chandler Fashion Center and Scottsdale Fashion Square.
Mom and son day date. We made a day of it first with lunch and then off to the mall for photos and a little shopping. This kid is growing and just outgrew all of his clothes and is now wearing men’s sizing. So some clothes shopping was needed and Chandler Fashion Square had what we needed.
The Santa HG experience is huge. We love all the integration of technology. First stop is to see if you’re on the Naugty or Nice list. Luckily, B ended up on the Nice list.
Next, you enter Elf Academy with the Control Center to view all that’s going on at Santa’s HQ at the North Pole. There’s also an app where you can Elf ID card and email it to save for later.
Last but not least, time to meet with Santa. Santa was cool and was open some fun poses with B.
We ordered the Standard Photo Package which included 1 5×7, 1 4×6, 4 wallets plus digital downloads for $39.99. There is also a premium package if you want more photos to share with family and friends.
Digital Santa Photos
Santa HG also gives you access to digital photos of all the photos taken during the visit. Including, Santa dabbing. You can easily download the photos to share on social media, email to friends and family or send to get printed. Because we’ve used Santa HG in the past for our Santa photos, our past year’s photos were also right there when we logged in.
Fun to see how much he has changed in just one year. Photo on left is 2018, right is this year.
Yes, he’s wearing shorts and a t-shirt. We still have some warmer days here in Arizona.
Avoid the lines, and reserve your Santa visit online
Don’t worry about the lines. Log on to the and reserve a time slot for your visit. How awesome is that? We’re all so busy this time of year so we love any way to save time.
Chandler Fashion Square
3111 W Chandler Blvd
Chandler, AZ 85226
disclosure: This is a sponsored post in collaboration with HGTV. All opinions are my own.