Santa’s Land USA in Putney, Vermont

Holiday spirit, in all its forms, burned bright. It was just after lunch on an early December day, and families were busy soaking up the sights and goodies in the gift shop at Santa’s Land USA, a 42-acre theme park in Putney, Vermont. The fireplace crackled, illuminated presents glowed, and a selection of Christmas tree ornaments spangled the walls. There were oversize multicolored lollipops to delight the eye, shelves of teddy bears to squeeze, and quite possibly more trimmed trees per square foot than anywhere else on the planet. 

As members of her family perused the shop, an overwhelmed grandmother plopped down in a lounger not far from the fire and opened a paperback. Nearby, a mother took a knee in front of her young daughter, who was attempting to negotiate the purchase of yet another stuffed animal. Did the girl truly need it for her collection? the mother asked gently. A couple of soon-to-be teenagers meandered and pointed, eyes wide with a kind of Christmas Eve wonder, as they strolled through a blue-lit tunnel of Christmas trees that led to—you guessed it—more trees. All this, before any of the visitors had even stepped out into the grounds, where a kid-sized train, whimsical animatronic figures, and holiday dioramas amid a grove of evergreens were primed to ratchet up the yuletide vibe even more.

Presiding over the scene was Santa’s Land owner David Haversat, who looked on with pride. He knows from deep personal experience the power of this place. When he was 8, Haversat had a vision of his future. It was summer, and his family had just arrived at Santa’s Land for their annual vacation visit from Connecticut. Catching sight of a teenager mowing the park’s lawn, he told his mom excitedly: “That’s what I want to do when I’m older!”

He wasn’t the first kid this place had inspired to dream. The brainchild of broadcast radio pioneer Jack Poppele, Santa’s Land opened in 1957 to the delight of families from across Vermont and beyond, who flocked here for an immersive Christmas experience that ran from summer through the holidays.

It may have seemed like an audacious idea—Christmas in July?—but it proved a successful one. Located just four miles from I-91, which would open in this part of the state in 1961, Santa’s Land flourished under Poppele and then his successors, the Brewer family, who owned the park from 1970 to 1998.

After that, however, changing owners and changing times took their toll on Santa’s Land, leading to its closing in 2014. Over the next three years, the decline accelerated: Walkways became overgrown, buildings vandalized. Locals feared the theme park might never reopen.

Enter Haversat. A magician and auction house co-owner by trade, he bought the property in 2017 and immediately got to work: fixing up the original 1950s structures, rebuilding the rides, adding a nine-hole miniature golf course, and even introducing an antique carousel from Coney Island. He reopened Santa’s Land in late 2017, the icon of his childhood restored. “I remember at one point mowing the very same lawn and thinking, I can’t believe this really happened,” he said.

In 2018, Haversat earned an award from the Preservation Trust of Vermont for his work in saving the park. “To many who have loved the place over the decades, the reopening was a thrill only matched by the delight of children seeing it for the first time,” said the trust in its presentation of the award to the park’s new owner.

While he was humbled by the honor, Haversat said, what means the most to him is hearing from visitors who are grateful to have Santa’s Land back in their lives. It’s not a fancy amusement park chock-full of high-thrill rides or Disney characters—but that’s kind of the charm of the place. From the scent of the nearby evergreens to the sound of the train rolling down the track, they find comfort in rediscovering something so familiar, he said.

“It’s a place from another time,” he said. “People who came here when they were kids will tell me it looks just like it did back then. And that means something. Because maybe their parents are gone now, but for a moment, they can go back to when they were all together. That’s pretty special.” santaslandusa.com

Santa Also Keeps a Home in New Hampshire

The story goes like this: One day in the early 1950s, Normand Dubois saw deer crossing the road and got to thinking about reindeer. He and his wife, Cecile, had been looking for a way to bring more attention to New Hampshire’s North Country region, where they lived, on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. Normand’s thoughts of reindeer led him to thoughts of Santa, which prompted the couple to launch a Christmas-themed park in Jefferson called Santa’s Village. More than seven decades later, their family still keeps the holiday light on in the North Country, with 20 jolly amusement rides, yuletide decor, and of course, reindeer. santasvillage.com