If your child dreams of visiting Santa’s workshop, you can now make their dream come true — North Fork style.
Beginning Saturday, Nov. 28, and continuing for the next three Saturdays through Christmas, Hilton Garden Inn Riverhead has joined forces with Spirits Promise Equine Rescue Program to create a holiday wonderland for families to visit.
“This all came about as a conversation about childhood and our own kids,” said Paul Jordan, director of sales for Hilton Garden Inn Riverhead. “We teamed up with Spirits Promise and took the best elements of them and us and packaged it for families to do something really different out here on Long Island.”
The weekend begins Saturday morning at 11 a.m. at Hilton Garden Inn, where families will be greeted by the hotel’s elves in one of the hotel banquet rooms. There, the children will participate in various arts and crafts activities, including baking and decorating cookies with one of the hotel chefs.
From there, families will be whisked off to Spirits Promise Horse Rescue Farm in Riverhead in holiday-decorated shuttle buses.
At the farm, they will be greeted by Mrs. Claus and more elves. The children will go on a tour of the farm to meet the horses, donkeys and even some reindeer. After feeding the animals, Mrs. Claus will read a holiday story and then Santa will make an appearance to pose for pictures and visit.
After meeting Santa, Mrs. Claus and the animals, the families will be bussed back to Hilton Garden Inn for a holiday group dinner in the banquet room.
Following dinner, children and parents can relax and enjoy the amenities at the hotel, which include a pool and indoor/outdoor hot tubs for adults. When families retire for the evening, there will be a gift waiting for every child in their hotel room.
The next morning, families will enjoy a full Sunday breakfast with the elves before checking out.
The “Spirit of the Holidays” package begins at $199 for one parent and child, plus tax and service charge.
A package for four people (two adults and two children) is approximately $279 before taxes.
“This is all new and the way we priced it is such a deal,” Jordan said. “It’s something I did with my daughter in upstate New York, but we don’t have it here on Long Island. We really hope that this will grow to be a new tradition for families to enjoy for years to come. We’re even going to work with Spirits Promise to try to do something for Easter as well.”
Hilton Garden Inn Riverhead is located at 2038 Old Country Road in Riverhead. For more information about the Spirits of the Holidays package or to make a reservation, call (631) 830-6170.
