Denver’s ‘Camp Christmas’ Indulges All Ages (Review)

Disclosure: Lonnie Hanzon is a consulting client of our publisher Noah Nelson.

Let’s just go ahead and say it: Camp Christmas is lit.

Lit, in the traditional sense that there are thousands of lights illuminating the 10,000 square foot installation. Lit, in the modern sense that there are not one, but two festive bars slanging seasonally themed libations. Lit, in the overall sense that there’s a real party going on inside.

Indeed, the jingle hop has begun.

It’s not a play, nor is it a game. It’s a bit like a museum installation, but with more light and noise. It’s also a little like visiting your eccentric grandma at Christmas-time and marveling in her awesome collection of bizarre decor.

Camp Christmas was designed with both adults and children in mind. Just like an episode of Sesame Street, it’s mostly made for kids, but has plenty of content to keep the grown-ups engaged, too.

There are myriad activities for children to pour their energy into, such as guessing what toy is inside a box by touch, building a snowman out of sand, and collecting stamps in a field guide at various stops along the journey through Camp Christmas. Meanwhile, adults will find much joy in a rousing, three-dimensional game of “Guess the Pun” as they search for oddly decorated trees throughout the installation. Other engagements, like sitting around a fire, or writing your name on Santa’s naughty/nice list, appeal to all ages.

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The trip through Camp Christmas is open and nonlinear, yet loosely structured across eras and cultures. It’s packed with fun facts and figures about holiday traditions, giving context to the vivid agglomeration of Christmas knick-knacks occupying every inch of the installation. Curious children, history buffs, and Christmas fanatics alike will all find something to strike their fancy (or tickle their funny bone) here.

As someone who spends most of the holiday season on a soapbox ranting about mindless consumerism, the unavoidable obligation of gift-giving, and the unjustified taboo of only wanting cash for Christmas… I found plenty to laugh and smile about at Camp Christmas. I was pleased to find just enough kitsch and weirdness to keep me engaged and snapping photos the entire time.

Camp Christmas is exactly as advertised: an “over-the-top indoor immersive installation with mesmerizing displays of decorations that shift time and reality.” A timed ticketing system works perfectly to control the amount of campers in the room at any given time; my visit during peak hours (6:30 PM on a Saturday) was busy and full, but not unpleasantly packed.

Tickets range from $8 — $18 depending on the date and time of day you choose to attend. Accordingly, prices go up the closer we get to Christmas, and peak times (evenings and weekends) cost more than off-peak tickets. What’s more, Camp Christmas takes place inside the Stanley Marketplace, which provides ample and free parking, as well as limitless dining and shopping options before or after your experience.

Camp Christmas is open most days through January 5, 2020 from 10 am — 10 pm.

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