Knott’s Merry Farm: Let It Snow, Charlie Brown!

My family was invited to a media preview of Knott’s Merry Farm to facilitate this review; all opinions my own. 

Knott’s Merry Farm: Let It Snow, Charlie Brown!

Knott’s Merry Farm is now on like Donkey Kong! The family – The Wife, Toddler Spawn and I – drove down to see the festivities for the first time. I don’t think I’ve been to Knott’s during the holidays since I was a kid. I can’t even remember if I ever have… though I must have some time…

It was Spawn’s first time at Knott’s Merry Farm, so we had to go! First up, Santa’s Christmas Cabin, located in the Ghost Town area (now transformed into Christmas Crafts Village).

Fact: Mr. Boysen (yep) tried to grow his boysenberry plants in the area and they wouldn’t take. Mr. Knott bought all of them from Mr. Boysen, started to propogate them (1932), and now, all boysenberry plants can be traced back to the Knott Farm. I learned this just by hanging out with the jelly ladies in Santa’s Christmas Cabin. (Pro tip: Come back in the Spring when you can buy your own boysenberry plant! That’s what I’m planning to do!)

We lined up to meet Santa. Spawn, wary of strangers, was not having it. That’s OK. I’m cool with her “stranger danger” radar. However, if your kids are a little older than Spawn, I’m sure they’ll enjoy chatting with the cheery, big guy in red.

A photo posted by Chris Lam (@thechrislam) on Nov 21, 2015 at 2:46pm PST

As we walked out of Christmas Crafts Village, we stopped by the Charles Schulz theater where the new ice show was playing. I’m sorry to say we missed it; I had a feeling Spawn wasn’t going to let us sit still for 30 minutes. So we kept walking and we ran into the Starbucks serving boysenberry lattes!

Thanks to Wendy’s and Xenia’s Instagram feeds, I’m obsessed with trying the boysenberry latte at Knott’s. I got an iced one since it was 87-F! It is pretty darn good. Full stop.

We watched as guests boarded “Christmas on Engine 41” (Calico Railroad), and then took a short break near the stagecoaches. Spawn danced while the sugarplum fairies danced on the Calico Square Stage. We people watched as guests hopped on and off the stagecoaches and the train.

 

After we had our fill of the horses, we headed to Camp Snoopy to see the new show Christmas Time Is Here, Charlie Brown. I loved it and so did Spawn. She was mesmerized by the music and the characters out on stage. The cast sang the traditional Christmas songs and I’m kind of surprised I remembered the words to all of them.

 

I kept noticing all the details around the park. If you are planning to go to Knott’s Merry Farm, be sure to LOOK UP. Look for the rocking chair in Ghost Town. Look for the Snoopy ornament at Camp Snoopy. There are just so many little details that I think people miss because they don’t look up.

After a quick nursing session, we rolled ourselves back to the Christmas Village for some dinner! Forget the usual burgers and fries, head to the Fireman’s Brigade BBQ, located right across from the Birdcage Theater. Order the chicken and ribs! You won’t regret it. We had so much food that I ended up giving our extra cole slaw and potato to the family next to us.

Lucky for us, we also ran into Cynthia and her family! It’s been over two years since I’ve seen her and it was so nice to reconnect and meet her hubby, even if it was for a quick minute.

We just missed Snoopy’s Merriest Tree Lighting and snow falling around us! But Spawn was breaking down and we had to get her home. As we were walking out of the park, it got darker and darker. The lights turned on and it was so festive! Again, look UP!

Our day at Knott’s Merry Farm was such a wonderful kickstarter to the holiday season!

You, too, can get in on the merry fun at Knott’s with a 2016 Season Pass, which includes:

• the rest of 2015
• no blackout dates in 2016
• discounts on select food and merch, and
• passholder access to year-round seasonal events! (We’re talking sneak previews for Halloween, Christmas, Spring and so on.)

Season passes start at $81 – that’s for a limited time. Merry Farm is also for a limited time – it starts NOW through January 3. Grab that photo with Santa, take a ride on Engine 41 and grub on some special holiday treats!

 

My family was invited to a media preview of Knott’s Merry Farm to facilitate this review; all opinions my own.