① Santa Claus Village in Finland
As Christmas is fast approaching, everyone is likely making their holiday plans. When December rolls around, we often think of Santa Claus and Rudolph, symbols of Christmas. This is also the busiest time for Santa Village located in Finland.
In Northern Europe’s Finland, there is an actual Santa Claus Village. The capital of Lapland, Rovaniemi, is about 559 miles north of Finland’s capital, Helsinki. Traveling another 5 miles from there, you will arrive at Santa Claus Village.
Santa Claus Village is a top tourist attraction in Rovaniemi. Among all the Santa Villages around the world, it is the only one recognized as the authentic Santa Village. Letters written from anywhere in the world addressed ‘To Santa Claus’ are delivered to Santa Village in Rovaniemi.
The history of Rovaniemi becoming Santa Claus Village dates back to 1927. In 1927, an announcer from a Finnish radio station reported that Santa Claus lived on Korvatunturi Mountain, which is 1,591 feet high and located on the border with Russia. Afterward, children believed that Santa Claus lived in the forests of Finnish Lapland.
Finland suffered greatly during World War II and began recovery in 1946. Then, Rovaniemi began to establish Santa Claus Village, which gained worldwide fame when {Eleanor Roosevelt, the wife of U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, visited the village.
The village gained further recognition in 1984 when British Airways began flights to the Lapland region.
Since then, many tourists have flocked to the area, and a grand Santa Village was built in Rovaniemi.
② Where letters from around the world gather
The heart of Rovaniemi’s Santa Village is the central post office. Letters sent to Santa Claus from all over the world gather here. Santa’s elves help organize letters from children worldwide and send responses. The volume is enormous, with over half a million letters arriving.
The central post office in Rovaniemi’s Santa Village is the only officially recognized Santa Claus post office. In addition to the post office, there are Santa Claus’s office, souvenir shops, restaurants, cafes, and an igloo hotel. After touring Santa Village, tourists can also experience various activities that are only available here. Every December, you can meet Moomin at Santa Village.
You can see ice sculptures of Moomin, Finland’s representative character, and ride a reindeer sled.
You can also visit Husky Park and ride a sled there. During the Christmas season, the village bustles with tourists worldwide who have come to see Santa.
③ Reviews from tourists who have visited
To visit Rovaniemi’s Santa Village, you first must visit Helsinki, Finland. After a flight of over 10 hours from Incheon, you arrive in Helsinki. To get to Rovaniemi, you must take a domestic flight from Helsinki for about 1 hour and 30 minutes. You can then take a bus or taxi from the airport. Although the journey from Korea may be arduous, it is a destination that leaves lasting good memories.
In addition to Santa Village, you can also enjoy the Northern Lights in Finland. Spending time in the Ice Igloo Hotel is recommended. If you stay in a hotel made entirely of ice, you can have the unique experience of watching the Northern Lights while lying in bed.
A tourist who visited Santa Village in Rovaniemi, Finland, left a review saying, “This place makes you spend money. But the fact that there is Santa Claus somehow gives me a feeling of being in a fairy tale, which makes me feel good.” Other tourists said, “If I had to pick a few places to visit before I die, I would pick here,” “It feels like meeting the real Santa,” and “The reason to go to Finland. A place where children and adults can return to their childhood.”
On the other hand, some left reviews like, “Santa Village is nice, but there’s a limited amount to see, so I recommend also visiting nearby attractions,” and “The scenery is really beautiful, but it’s very, very cold.” Also, to take a picture with Santa Claus, you have to pay, and during the peak season, it can take over an hour to take a picture.
There were also opinions that the prices in the souvenir shop in Santa Village were very high. Many reacted to the fact that Santa Claus Village, mostly made up of souvenir shops, is commercialized. Nevertheless, the dominant response was that it’s a thrilling travel destination where you can truly feel the Christmas atmosphere.
By. Mia Han
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