NORTH POLE — In our exclusive series Adventures with Alan, we'll travel across Southern Colorado week-by-week to show you thrills and chills, hidden gems and well-known spots.
With Thanksgiving and Hanukkah later this week, and Christmas just 32 days away, our adventure this week takes us to Southern Colorado's very own North Pole amusement park.
It's located just outside of Colorado Springs at the entrance to Pikes Peak.
Santa Clause can be found here, and this year, he has a very important message to share with all of the good little boys and girls.
"Giving is much better than receiving. Give the love to your families this year and make it very special," said Santa Clause.
From Santa's village...we take a ride on Santa's sleigh, one of 28 attractions at the park.
The family owned and operated business is now in its 65th year.
"When the park opened, it was just the village and Santa Clause. There were no rides. We started adding rides about 1958," said Tom Haggard.
Owner Tom Haggard and his staff take us around the scenic mountain park to share its history and show us some of the rides.
At 7,500 feet above sea level, one of the most popular rides is the ferris wheel, the highest of its kind in the world.
But there's one last attraction that we're told to check off of our list, and it's called the Dive Bomber.
It lifts riders into the sky before sending them round and around.
For a family ride, it's pretty thrilling.
At 27 acres, the park offers more than just great rides and jolly old Saint Nick.
There's restaurants here, sweet treats and plenty of places to do your holiday shopping.
"Being a Christmas Park, we have a lot of unique Christmas items and so people are enjoying that," said Haggard.”
Santa and his elves will be here through December 24th helping to spread Christmas joy right here in Southern Colorado.
"It's a full day, you know four or five hours for most folks when they have the little ones here, so it's a day full of fun," said Haggard.
The park is busy gearing up for their season and they're open most days through Christmas Eve.
Online reservations are required and tickets can be purchased on their website - Northpolecolorado.com.
__
KOAA News5 on your time, streaming on your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and AndroidTV.
