The reviews are far from good.

With many traditional Santa visits cancelled across the country, many companies are turning to drive-through alternatives. I only recently visited a drive-through Santa and movie event over the weekend it was fantastic. Unfortunately though, not all of these events are getting rave reviews. In fact some are even parents demanding refunds, like from this event in Limerick. Many visitors to Christmas Drive-Thru in Limerick have posted shocking photos and reviews of the Santa experience claiming it was nothing like what was advertised.

"Guys please be aware of the Christmas drive tru event in limerick. I went there today with the two kids. It was an utter disgrace from start to finish it cost me 38€ for the car I waited 38 mins in a que of cars to get in with a snowman running up and down saying hi to cars. They we got to pass maybe 5/6 tents of “elves” who were no more than 16 all they asked is are ye good or what’s Santa bringing which was repeated every tent then we had to que again for Santa to then see a Santa who was 15 years old had no belly and had a plaster on his eye brow To braiding his piercing. An elf banged on the car to pretend to put toys in the car and that was it!"

Another frustrated customer had a very similar experience and didn't feel it was value for money at all;

"I am just back from this "magical" santa experience in Limerick racecourse and I must admit that was an absolute disgrace. There was only 5 stalls where each elf said the same lines. "Are you excited for santa?" Or "What are you getting?". Nothing magical about it. No Christmas lights. Nothing. The elfs portrayal of the grinch resulted in our child being scared and worried. She believed he had taken all her presents and santa wasnt giving her anything on Christmas day. Finally, that Santa costume was a disgrace. We could barely hear santa talk. An elf then proceeded to hit our boot and claim there was a gift inside even though this was optional and this was not the case. Our child was thoroughly disappointed and proceeded to cry hysterically. I cannot describe this disaster. And for 38 euro? Are you kidding me?"

According to the Limerick Leader the organisers of the event sent this email out to customers who have booked a visit with them: "We are very excited to have you at our Christmas event today. However, we have decided to change our opening time today from 12pm to 4pm." It goes on to say: "We're very proud of our actors and staff for pushing through a difficult time to try and bring some Christmas cheer to all children."

"We are aware that this may not suit everybody, and we apologise for any inconvenience that this may cause. As this is a pop-up style event during a pandemic, we would appreciate your understanding as this is a difficult situation for us to navigate."

The organisers have not commented on the criticism or bad reviews.