It’s ho, ho — no!
Disney’s The Santa Clauses’ Winter Wonderland on the rooftop of Pier 17 in the South Street Seaport is advertised as being NYC’s “most magical holiday attraction of the season.”
But local parents say it’s just a dirty trick. They have taken to social media to complain about the “tiny” ice rink, a skinny Santa that really doesn’t fill out the red suit, and, worst of all, a “dangerous” slide that was reportedly shut down after a child was injured.
“It was a s–t show. The whole experience was frustrating,” Kamilla Cohen, 30 and a stay-at-home Upper East Side mother-of-two, told The Post.
She went to the Wonderland with her family on Saturday, paying $60 for two VIP tickets that included a fast pass entrance, skate rentals, hot chocolate, and entry to the “North Pole.” (Tickets start at $15 for general admission and $30 for VIP and go up during peak times. Children four and under are free.)
Both she and her husband allegedly experienced back pain after zooming down the slide.
“It cracked my back so badly. I probably need a visit to the chiropractor,” Cohen said. “We asked our daughter if she wanted to go again, and she said no, I think she hurt herself. It’s so unusual for her not to go back to a slide.”
After they left the slide area, they claimed they heard a boy wailing after going down the slide.
“It was so loud. I thought he was laughing at first and then I realized he was probably crying,” Cohen said. “People started to come up to him and someone said his bone was exposed – his ankle snapped.”
Shortly after, the slide was shut down by security and an ambulance was called, she alleged.
Disney did not immediately return a request for comment. Pier 17 declined to comment.
Another parent who attended around the same time as Cohen on Saturday wrote on Instagram that their daughter “sprained her ankles” and “many kids complained that the fall is painful. The drop is fast and hard for adults and children. I wouldn’t recommend having your kids play on it.”
The perilous slide wasn’t Cohen’s only complaint.
The attraction, which was presented by the event website Bucket Listers, was advertised as being tied to Disney. Its official name is “Disney’s The Santa Clauses Winter Wonderland” and a Disney logo appears on the ticketing page.
But Walt and Co.’s presence seemed imperceptible.
“There was nothing Disney inside – no Disney characters, we didn’t see a Disney trademark anywhere. The pictures online looked so nice that’s why we wanted to go in the first place,” said Cohen, who hoped her kids would see some favorites from “Frozen.” “When a business puts a Disney name on it, you expect to see a Disney character.”
Instead, after waiting 35 minutes, despite having a reserved time, all they got to see was a skinny St. Nick.
“We expected to see a big guy,” Cohen said, noting she and her family left in under two hours. “I don’t want to insult the man but he was definitely a small Santa.”
Other moms took issue with the size of the skating area.
In a one-star Google review, Jessica Teixeria fumed that the ice rink was “tiny and without ice.”
She shelled out $98 for two VIP tickets to access a lounge that didn’t have the fondue station advertised and ran out of hot chocolate.
It was “the worst money spent in my life!” Teixeria wrote online. “Tourist trap, recommended only if you want to spend $100 to take photos on Instagram.”
Another one-star reviewer, Sonia Gudino Jimenez, griped that the hot chocolate was “more like warm water with a cocoa flavor” and said Santa never showed up.
Cohen noted that the only thing wondrous about the experience was the rooftop view.
“But,” she quipped. “They can’t really take credit for that.”