On Saturday 3 December, all the Excelsior Santas – staff, guests and members of the public who wish to take part, will take a swim in the chilly sea or take a splash in the pool to raise money for Puttinu Cares. Each Santa will receive a Santa Claus hat whilst Santa’s Elves will be on hand to give a bathrobe and a nice warm drink and cake to each Santa when they come out of the water. Facilities for showering and changing will be available.
The Grand Hotel Excelsior will be giving a Certificate of Participation to all Santas. Those who don’t have a tough enough spirit for cold water temperatures, are encouraged to come and give their support to the brave Santas.
The Anici Band Club of Qormi will also bring joy with their live Christmas music on the day. The meeting point will be at the Lobby at 10am. A donation of €10 from every swimmer will go to Puttinu Cares. The swim will also inaugurate the opening of the Hotel’s Christmas Village featuring Santa’s Grotto, Elves, a Christmas Forest, the Yummy Shop, The Post Office, Christmas carols, stalls selling handcrafted items and much more. The Christmas Village will be open during weekends and Public Holidays in December as well as Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Opening hours will be from 10am to 7pm. Private parties at the Christmas Village can be organized on request.
Other attractions include the traditional Gingerbread Castle display in the Hotel’s Lobby as well as a Christmas Charity Forest featuring trees decorated in unique ways by various corporate clients, schools and suppliers all of whom donated a sum of money to Charity. The Christmas Tree will be lit on 1 December.
In the meantime The Excelsior’s chefs won numerous Gold, Silver and Bronze medals at the Malta Kulinarja gastronomic competition held recently, including The Chef of the Year Award. The same team will be responsible for preparing the exquisite spreads at the staff and office parties, Christmas Eve Buffet, Christmas Early Breakfast, Christmas Day Buffet Lunch, New Year’s Eve Buffet Dinner, New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner and New Year’s Day Buffet Lunch.