Visit Santa Claus' Lapland Village in Finland
Experience Festive Fun at Santa Claus' Village on the Arctic Circle
Oct 2, 2008
If proof were required that Santa Claus is a busy man then look no further than his home ’village’ in Finland where the jolly fellow opens the door to visitors 365 days a year.
At Santa Claus’ Village, near Rovaniemi in southern Lapland, guests can not only cross over the official Arctic Circle line but also meet the great man himself in his magical Santa‘s Grotto.
Laplanders lay a proud claim to sharing their homeland with Santa and as a result the Santa Claus Village has become a hugely popular visitor attraction, now the number one tourist destination in Finland.
The village is a fairytale place, whether visited in June or Christmas Day itself. Kids will naturally make a beeline straight for Santa’s office, home to his Grotto where bubbly elves invite guests in for a chat and photograph with Father Christmas himself.
Santa’s Post Office
Just as popular is Santa’s Post Office, which has dealt with something in the region of 12.5 million letters bearing addresses from 197 different countries since the village was first opened in 1985. Last Christmas alone Santa received no fewer than 700,000 letters.
Guests can choose from a range of postcards to send home with a unique Santa Clause postmark. As a nice touch, there is even an option to have them delivered at Christmas.
The Arctic Circle
In addition, people entering the village cross the Arctic Circle - lying 66 degrees north of the equator - and officially enter the Arctic itself.
Santa Claus’ Village has a pleasant atmosphere about it but there is also a distinct commercial feel to the operation. Whilst entry to the village and meeting Santa is free, having a photo taken with him costs €25, whilst there is also an option to buy a DVD recording of the encounter.
Santa’s Post Office is stacked full of DVDs, official Santa Letters, a plethora of cuddly toys and other Christmas-themed items baring reindeers and elves at every turn.
Despite this even the biggest cynic could not fail to have their heart warmed by the roaring log fire inside Santa’s grotto and it makes for a great half day trip from nearby Rovaniemi.
Rovaniemi
Santa Claus’ village is easily accessible from Rovaniemi, 8km away and Lapland’s largest town, by a 30-minute ride on bus number eight. Alternately, just 2km away lies Rovaniemi Airport (‘Santa Claus’ Official Airport’) that has charter flights to Sweden and the UK during the busy Christmas period and is well connected to Helsinki at other times.
The attraction is open every day between 10am-5pm January-May and September-November, 9am-6pm June and August, 9am-7pm July and December. Further information on the village can be found here.
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