Remember waking up on a crisp Miami morning when you were younger, the smell of brewing coffee emanating throughout the house, salsa or bachata playing in the background as your mom’s getting ready to clean? You turn on the TV with your huevitos revueltos and cafecito in hand to the jingle, “Santa's Enchanted Forest at Tropical Park off Palmetto and Bird Road. One ticket, all rides free!”
Four decades of tropical Christmas wonderland are coming to a close for this South Florida tradition. The theme park just announced Tuesday morning on Instagram that they will not be returning this 2024 holiday season.
“Santa's Enchanted Forest will be closed for the 2024 season as we reflect on four magical decades of cherished memories and plans for the future,” The post reads. “While we won't be welcoming visitors this year, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to you for being an integral part of our journey. Your support has been the true magic behind our story.”
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The post doesn’t elaborate on a reason for the end of a beloved South Florida tradition. Santa’s Enchanted Forest is practically embedded in Miami Dade’s DNA, an event many families and friends look forward to every Christmas season. Having been around 40 years, it's hard to not think of the two as synonymous. I mean, are you even from Miami if you haven’t been to Santa’s?
Like most Miamians, I’ll be sad to see it go—almost like seeing an old friend move away or witnessing a decades-old institution turn into a relic of the past. My mom and I were just talking about taking my nieces to Santa’s before they dropped the news. The thought of a theme park embedded in the lives of multiple living generations set in.
I remember thinking to myself that if I didn’t make it to the annual Youth Fair, I could at least make it up at Santa’s. I would ride Crazy Mouse with my siblings, and hit my face in their house of mirrors, hit up King Swing and scream my head off while holding my sister’s hand on Rockstar. Finally, because these treats weren’t around all year, I’d make sure to score an elephant ear donut. More than a million people visited Santa’s Enchanted Forest every year.
After its lease ended in 2020, Santa’s moved to Hialeah in Medley. During the 2023 holiday season, the park found itself in a precarious position as Santa’s and another holiday theme park, Christmas Wonderland, competed over the Tropical Park location. It’s unknown if the park will come back in 2025, but Miamians will no doubt be missing that little extra bit of holiday cheer this season.