Guides · Christmas Eve
The Santa key, for homes without a chimney.
No chimney? A wood burner? A gas fire? A decorative pretend Santa key can be part of your Christmas Eve story. Choose one that cannot open any real lock and leave it inside, beside Santa's plate.
Free to print
Four tags a page, with our poem. Thread a ribbon through the hole.
Download the Santa key tags (A4 PDF)How it works
- Choose a decorative pretend key that cannot open any real lock. Never use a working house key or a spare key for this activity.
- Tie it with a ribbon and add a tag. Print ours, or write your own.
- On Christmas Eve, hang the pretend key on the inside of the door, or leave it beside Santa’s plate, before bed.
- In the morning, the pretend key is beside the mince pie plate, ready to keep for next Christmas.
The poem
We don't have a chimney, / so here's a key for you. / It only works on Christmas Eve, / to let your magic through. / Please leave it by the mince pies when you go. Thank you!
Questions children ask
- "Can't burglars use it?" It’s a pretend key for our Christmas story, not a key that opens the house. Grown-ups should keep all working keys safely indoors.
- "What if we're at Grandma's?" Take it with you. Santa knows where everyone is.
- "Do the reindeer come in too?" No, they wait on the roof. That's what the reindeer food is for.
Santa's own magic key comes in the Christmas Eve Box, tied with a ribbon and a tag in his handwriting, with his letter, a Nice List certificate and reindeer food. From £14.99. Or just the key, posted, for £5.99: order the magic key. Last orders 15 December.
Talk with Santa is a phone call from Santa for children across the UK. Santa is an AI voice, made in Lancashire by PixelArc Ventures. He never asks for a surname or address, and never promises presents.