Join us for a hands-on adventure at Ottery St Mary and get ready for Christmas with our returning charity event for Hospsicare.

We are thrilled to be working in partnership with Hospiscare, our charity of the year. Since 2019, we have proudly supported Hospiscare, helping them provide essential care and support to local families.

Last year, thanks to your incredible support, we raised £23,000 from this event; this year, we’re aiming even higher! Every single penny goes directly towards helping Hospiscare continue its vital work.

Enjoy festive fun for all the family, whilst helping to support the amazing work of Hospiscare by attending our Festive Adventure!

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BOOK YOUR TICKETS FROM 15th SEPTEMBER

(Tickets for this event must be purchased in advance)

The event will run from Wednesday 17th to Tuesday 23rd December 2025 at varied times.

This event won’t be running on Thursday 18th December.

This event will be at our Ottery St Mary garden centre.

At Otter, we want to help give back to our community this Christmas and feel this Festive Adventure, will be a fun and excellent way to do this.

This is a non-profit event, with all proceeds being donated to Hospiscare.
You will not see Father Christmas at this event.

FIND OUT MORE

Jacqui Taylor, Managing Director at Otter Garden Centres says “We are very excited to relaunch our extremely successful Christmas event this year, as we partner with our charity of the year, Hospiscare.

We hope families will come together with us to create magical memories in our Festive Adventure, whilst also getting ready for Christmas and helping us raise much-needed funds for this vital local charity.

We think it’s a fantastic way to celebrate the season of goodwill to all and make a real difference in our community.”

Sharon Collins, Area Fundraiser says “This festive season, we’re celebrating a truly special partnership with Otter Garden Centres, a much-loved, family-run business that has supported our local community for six decades.

We’re delighted that Otter has chosen to continue supporting Hospiscare as their charity partner. Their commitment to local causes, especially during this time of year, brings real warmth and hope to families facing incredibly tough moments.

Thanks to this continued partnership, our local Otter Vale Friends Fundraising Group can carry on working closely with the Otter team, helping to raise vital funds for our care. This relationship is more than just a collaboration—it’s a heartfelt connection that makes a real difference in the lives of those we support.

Otter’s generosity, and the kindness of their wonderful customers, means that we can continue to be there for patients and families when they need us most. Their support helps ensure that no one has to face the end of life alone.

A huge festive thank you to everyone at Otter Garden Centres—and to every shopper who has supported this partnership. Together, you’re helping to bring comfort, care, and compassion to our community this Christmas and beyond.”

WHAT TO EXPECT

Christmas Mail Room
Begin getting ready for Christmas in the magical mail room. Children can bring their letters to Santa to post in the jolly mailbox. Grown-ups could also post a Christmas wish, a favourite memory from the year, or resolutions for 2025, there’s something magical about sending your special message.

Reindeer Retreat
Visit the enchanting Reindeer Retreat, where our charming animated reindeer will entertain you with their delightful festive tunes. It’s the perfect spot to pause and enjoy some musical holiday cheer.

Winter Wonderland
Capture memories that will last a lifetime! Explore our wintery wonderland, meet our lively animated characters, and snap your festive photos in this magical snowy setting.

Christmas Kitchen
Swing by the Christmas Kitchen to collect your special Christmas cookie mix – the perfect treat to bake on Christmas Eve. These delicious cookies are sure to add extra sweetness to your festive celebrations and an essential when getting ready for Christmas.

The Stable
Before you leave, don’t forget to gather some reindeer food to sprinkle outside your home on Christmas Eve. It’s the perfect way to ensure your Christmas magic shines bright and gives you the finishing touch to get you ready for Christmas.

Take a Little Train Ride
Once you’ve finished your adventure, don’t miss the chance to take a little train ride back! Hop aboard and enjoy the perfect ending to your Festive Adventure to Get Ready for Christmas.

By joining us at our Festive Adventure, you’ll not only experience the fun of the festive magic but most importantly you will be helping us to support our local charity, Hospiscare in their vital work.

Let’s come together to make a meaningful impact on the lives of families who need some extra help in our community this Christmas.

Ticket price includes entry to all our Festive Adventure activities plus a donation to Hospiscare.

Children and babies tickets also includes cookie mix and reindeer food.

Ticket prices:

  • £8 Children (aged 1-14)
  • £6 Babies 12 months and under
  • £6 for adults

BOOK YOUR TICKETS FROM 15th SEPTEMBER

GOT A QUESTION?

The event will run from Wednesday 17th to Tuesday 23rd December 2025 at varied times.

This event won’t be running on Thursday 18th December.

Yes, all tickets must be purchased in advance from our website.

Tickets can be purchased from 15th September.

All persons, adults and children, visiting the festive adventure must have a ticket purchased for them, including children under 1 and newborns.

You will be emailed an order confirmation that will include a unique booking reference code and barcode. You can take a screenshot of this on your mobile device, or print off a copy to bring along with you to the festive adventure at the time and date of your booking.

The Festive adventure’s purpose is to raise money for Hospice Care.

It is not a commercial grotto experience and Father Christmas will not be putting in an appearance.

There will be plenty of opportunities for festive family selfies, a little train ride, reindeer food and a magic cookie mix for the children to take home to make their own festive cookies to add to the excitement of preparing for Christmas.

We expect your Festive Adventure to last 20 minutes depending on the number of visitors at your booking time.

You must arrive 10 minutes before your festive adventure begins. Please report to the ticket desk with a copy of your booking confirmation. Each session starts promptly and unfortunately, we cannot wait for late arrivals. It’s a good idea to take children to the toilet before you arrive as there are no toilet facilities inside the festive adventure.

Yes, all attendees must purchase a ticket for this event in advance from our website.

Ticket price includes entry to all our Festive Adventure activities plus a donation to Hospiscare.

Children and babies tickets also include cookie mix and reindeer food.

Ticket prices:

  • £8 Children (aged 1-14)
  • £6 Babies 12 months and under
  • £6 for adults (any person over 14)

No this is a charity event and therefore any tickets/booking cannot be cancelled. If you need to add an extra guest to your booking, please contact festiveadventure@ottergardencentres.com and the team will be able to deal with your enquiry.

No, this is a family friendly event for everyone to enjoy. All attendees must have a ticket purchased for them.

Our Festive Adventure is an inside event.

There will be no food & drink available during the event but our garden centre restaurant will be open for you to visit before or after your Festive Adventure.

You can see our restaurant opening times here – https://www.ottergardencentres.com/coffee-shops/

Yes, these are located in the garden centre, not in the festive adventure itself. We recommend you visit these before you begin your festive adventure.

Yes we have plenty of parking and it is free.

Yes, the Festive Adventure is wheelchair accessible – however the little train does not have the facility for a wheel chair or a child’s pushchair or pram to get onto the little train – the little train is too little for these items.

It is only a short distance back to the garden centre from the festive adventure for wheelchair users or pushchairs or prams.

Yes, please take lots of photos and don’t forget to take a selfie or 2 at our wonderful selfie points.

Please wrap up warm to enjoy your Festive Adventure.

All children visiting the festive adventure will be given a bag of cookie mix and reindeer food as part of their experience, so to ensure no child is left out, all children from newborn must have a ticket purchased for them.

Adults must also have a ticket purchased for them, as this is not an event only for children, it is for all the family to join in and enjoy. Otter will be donating every penny of the proceeds from our Festive Adventure to Hospiscare.

For any bookings with over 10 children, please contact our event team by emailing festiveadventure@ottergardencentres.com and we will do our best to accommodate your visit.

Sorry but only guide and assistance dogs can join you on your Festive Adventure.

Due to the interactive nature and engagement of the experience we provide at this event, we do recommend that you leave your pushchairs and buggies at our ticket desk area, rather than bringing them through into the festive adventure.

We also are unable to accommodate pushchairs and buggies on the train ride at the final part of the festive adventure.

We will be donating every penny of the proceeds from our Festive Adventure to Hospiscare as they do such as wonderful job for the local community and losing a loved one at Christmas must be absolutely devastating.

Hospiscare is an independent charity which provides high quality care and support to people with a progressive life-limiting illness and those close to them living in Exeter, East and Mid Devon.

All the money donated to Hosipiscare from our Festive Adventure will allow Hospiscare to continue to be there and support local families who need the specialist end of life care during the most difficult time.

Please email festiveadventure@ottergardencentres.com and our team will aim to respond to your query within 48 hours.

Our email is monitored Monday to Friday between 10am and 3pm.

If you have any furthers questions, please email our dedicated Festive Adventure team – festiveadventure@ottergardencentres.com

We kindly ask that you refrain from calling our garden centres directly, as they will not have the specific details regarding this event.

Our dedicated team managing this email is best equipped to assist you, so we appreciate your patience while we work to provide you with the information you need.