Mizens Railway's Santa Specials run on 6, 13 and 20 December 2026, pre-booked only. Plus the Squire's Horsell and Victoria Place grottos, with past prices.

The one Santa visit in Woking already confirmed for 2026 is the Mizens Railway Santa Specials in Knaphill. They run on Sundays 6, 13 and 20 December, and tickets must be booked in advance (Mizens Railway calendar). The two big grottos in the borough, at Squire’s garden centre in Horsell and at Victoria Place in the town centre, have not announced their 2026 dates yet. Both opened in the second half of November last time they published dates.

The quick answer

  • Mizens Railway Santa Specials: Sundays 6, 13 and 20 December 2026, Barrs Lane, Knaphill. Pre-booking is essential; tickets went on sale on 1 September.
  • Squire’s Woking grotto (Horsell): in 2024 it opened on 23 November, cost £9 per child with the first two adults free, and ran until Christmas Eve.
  • Victoria Place grotto: free, booked online; in 2025 it ran on selected dates from 22 November to 23 December.

Mizens Railway Santa Specials, Knaphill

The volunteer-run miniature railway on Barrs Lane, Knaphill GU21 2JW, runs three Santa Special Sundays. According to its booking page, a ticket includes:

  • for children: one train ride, a present and a soft drink;
  • for adults: one ride and a mulled wine, tea or coffee with a mince pie.

Bookings are through the railway’s own ticket site, linked from its Santa Specials page. The railway says children under 12 months cannot ride the trains for insurance reasons, although they are welcome on site. The 2026 ticket price was not shown on the pages we could read; check it when you book.

Earlier in the season, the railway’s Winter Lights evenings run on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November, 5pm to 8pm. Tickets are £10 per person (£9.50 plus a 50p booking fee), sold in one-hour slots. Each ticket includes two train rides and a hot drink or mulled wine for adults, or a soft drink for children (Winter Lights).

Getting there: there are brown tourist signs at each end of Barrs Lane. Stagecoach buses 91, 34 and 35 serve Knaphill (find us).

Squire’s Garden Centre, Horsell

Squire’s Woking is on Littlewick Road, Horsell GU21 4XR (centre page). It ran a paid grotto in 2023 and 2024 and has not yet announced 2026 details. Here is what it charged before:

Year Opened Price Hours
2023 Saturday 25 November £8 per child Weekends from 25 November, plus weekdays 18 to 23 December
2024 Saturday 23 November £9 per child, first two adults free, £1 per extra adult Saturdays 9.30am to 4pm, Sundays 10.30am to 4pm, plus 20, 23 and 24 December; closed 12.30pm to 2pm

Sources: Squire’s announcements for 2023 and 2024. Each visit included a wrapped gift and an “I’ve Seen Santa” badge, and in 2024 £1 from every child ticket went to Woking & Sam Beare Hospice. In 2024 you paid on the day.

Victoria Place, Woking town centre

The shopping centre’s grotto in Central Square has been free, with sessions booked online through Victoria Place. In 2025 it ran on selected dates between 22 November and 23 December. The first sessions of each day were set aside as quieter sessions for children with special educational needs. Last year’s booking page has been taken down, and no 2026 dates have been published.

Still to be confirmed

  • Squire’s and Victoria Place dates and prices for 2026: both opened in the second half of November last time, so details should appear in late October or early November.
  • Mizens Santa Special ticket price and time slots: on the booking site now.

More for December: the Christmas lights switch-on, the pantomime and RHS Wisley Glow. Heading into town on a Saturday? See parking in Woking and the roadworks page.