Beware! We had reservations for a 630 pm tour, as we arrived there were NO signs, NO buses, NO NOTHING. After walking around mockingbird station and asking other tours if they had seen the bus or even knew anything about the bus in the freezing cold for an hour, we finally decided we were scammed and left. If you try and call customer service they are conveniently located in new York and not taking phone calls at night. Basically if you want to walk around in the cold looking for a mysterious bus go for it, but you'd be better off saving your money and driving around yourself. read more

Scam!! I paid over $200 for what was advertised as a magical Christmas experience--decorated double-decker bus, in-character Santa and elves, hot cocoa and cookies, gifts, singing, dancing...the works. What we got instead was a full-blown no-show and two devastated kids. The morning of the event, I got a notification that the pickup location had changed from Grapevine Mills Mall to Hop & Sting Brewery. Inconvenient, but fine. We arrived 30 minutes early (per instructions)... only to find no bus, no staff, no check-in, and a brewery that had zero idea what we were talking about. They'd never even heard of the event. The bus was scheduled for 6:00 PM. By 6:20, there was still nothing. We were literally the last family standing on a dark corner, trying to reassure two little girls who were trying so hard to be patient. We finally gave up, loaded the kids into the car, and headed toward Main Street to salvage the evening. At 6:26 PM, I finally received a text: "delayed departure -- leaving at 7." My five-year-old begged us to try again, so we turned around. We arrived early again. We waited again. Another 30 minutes. Still no bus. Still no staff. Still no communication. My kids were crushed all over again. There was no working contact number, and the multiple support emails I sent went unanswered. At this point, it's hard to view this as anything but an elaborate scam. I spent $216 for nothing but a life lesson in disappointment for my kids. Save your money, your time, and your holiday spirit--this "experience" is not real. read more

AWFUL! The lights stayed on inside the bus the whole time which did not allow us to fully see the lights on the homes outside. It was a complete waste of money. We took the Trolley tour last year, and it was magical. I so wish they hadn't been sold out when I purchased tickets. read more

I do not write online reviews but this is important. DO NOT waste your money. Hugely disappointing experience. We attended the North Pole Express in Dallas (Dec 22, 6:30 PM) as a surprise birthday gift for my Mom, and it was a complete letdown from start to finish. The event was clearly oversold. The departure was significantly delayed, and when we finally boarded, there weren't enough seats for ticketed guests. People were confused, stressed, and some were even turned away. The "elves" tried to manage the chaos, but it felt disorganized and frantic - not festive in the slightest. There was no whimsical conductor at all, and they even forgot to give us our tickets. The actual experience was just as bad. The hot cocoa was so poor that even our kids refused to drink it. There was almost no commentary, and the supposed storytelling - the entire point of this attraction - was barely audible. There was zero sense of magic, immersion, or holiday charm. The seating situation was the worst part. Because of the capacity issues, my parents were separated from their grandchildren and forced to sit at the opposite end next to a stranger. Meanwhile, we, two adults and two kids, were crammed into seating clearly meant for two people. It was uncomfortable, unacceptable, and could have been avoided with basic capacity management. This was meant to be a meaningful family experience - my parents live in the UK and don't see their grandchildren often. Instead of creating a special memory, it turned into a frustrating, disjointed, and upsetting ordeal. Between the overselling, poor organization, inadequate seating, low-quality service, and failure to deliver what was advertised, this experience was not worth the money. I would strongly advise others to look elsewhere for a holiday activity. We have since attempted to resolve this directly with the organizers. While they offered a very small partial refund - which, although a start, does not come close to compensating for the experience - they repeatedly denied key aspects of our complaint, claiming their records did not reflect the same issues. This response felt dismissive and avoided any real accountability. Based on both the event itself and the way our concerns were handled afterward, I strongly recommend giving this one a miss. read more

Terrible! Rude staff! Bus never showed up! Kept sending later time changes via text with no results read more

North Pole Express - Late text - Bus Tours Near Me - Dallas, Texas

I can't believe that someone out there would scam little children who still believe in Santa! My husband and a 3 year old were looking forward to this event for a whole month! Yet, when they arrived (the event got also postponed for a week with no reason given), there was no bus in sight! They waited for 20 mins in the December cold, and no event took place. Please do not buy into this scam! There must be a special place in hell reserved for people who are trying to scan families with small children around Christmas time. Although we got our money back through credit card company's purchase protection program, my son has been devastated by the whole experience read more

It's a SCAM! I purchased 4:30 tickets in Dallas and there was no 4:30 tour. They sent messages stating the bus was delayed but a bus did not arrive until 6:30. Then they expected everyone to fit on that bus and made several people sit together in one seat. My family of 3 was asked to move to a 2-top. If I paid for 3 tickets I should not have had to share my seat. I've reached out in many different ways and cannot get a hold of the company. I want to get a hold of customer service! read more

We were supposed to depart at 4:30pm and the bus did not show up until 6pm. Once on the bus (which by the way no one asked for our tickets so anyone could have just got on without paying). We were welcomed in by a conductor that was holding her 5 page script talking over an overpowering sound system that she had to turn down at least 5 times during her first 5 minute speech. They then proceeded to pass out cups that were too small for the cup holders on the bus so you had to hold on to your cups with every bump. They were only able to fill up the cups of hot chocolate to half full because there were no lids. Then the cookies came out and instead of at least hiding that they were store bought, they passed out the $1.50 Grandmas Cookies straight in the wrapper. Half way into the night before Christmas reading the conductor remembered to pull out the book. After that we started to play "Santa Said" and where interpreted by the elf that said "Santa has to come now". Santa was the best part of the tour but I guess he was wearing his fake glasses instead of his real ones because he could not read any of the things on the wishlist. The delay alone was worth the 1 star but then the thrown together half effort for the actual tour itself was the icing on the cake. read more

5 wks ago I paid over 130.00 for 2 tickets, & had reservations for Thursday, December 11th, to do a North Pole Express Christmas light tour, through Highland Park, located in Dallas, Texas. A couple of days before my trip I received an email from North Pole Express informing me THEY HAD CANCELED the tour for the evening I'd already paid for, and suggested I rescheduled another evening. I live in Monroe, Louisiana, and could not, would not drive to back Dallas,Texas, a 5.5 hour drive, to do a 1 hour Christmas light tour. I want my money refunded! BEWARE of North Pole Express. read more