Visiting Lapland: the good, bad and ugly sides to Santa Claus Village, Rovaniemi
- Not only do you get to meet the big man himself, you can also take in the Northern Lights under Finland’s stunning night skies
- But day-tripping tourists have turned a trip to the grotto an environmental disaster
The good
Rovaniemi’s festive foundations date back to 1950 and a visit from Eleanor Roosevelt. A small log cabin was built to welcome the by then already former United States first lady to the capital of Lapland and the letter she addressed to the serving president of the US, Harry Truman, was the first to be sent from the Arctic Circle.
The cabin still exists, surrounded today by Santa Claus Village. In a shrewd move some years ago, Rovaniemi trademarked itself as “the official hometown of Santa Claus” and has never looked back. Throngs of excited sightseers pour in from around the world. In 2018, airports across Lapland – the largest and northernmost region of Finland – welcomed 677 Christmas charters, including 280 to Rovaniemi. Last week, Turkish Airlines introduced a symbolically significant service from Istanbul. St Nicholas, the third-century saint who inspired Santa Claus, was from the Turkish city of Antalya.
Many visitors come on day trips. After riding a snowmobile 8km from Rovaniemi city to Santa Claus Village for a one-to-one with the Big Man, there’s the chance to experience husky-sledding, ice fishing and reindeer sleigh rides. Winter-sports enthusiasts can hone their downhill skills or try out the 800-metre toboggan run at the Ounasvaara ski resort, in the middle of town. A museum might sound like an odd way to pass time in Lapland but the excellent Arktikum science centre offers a crash course in Arctic ways of life, with exhibitions on issues affecting the region, such as climate change and the status of the indigenous reindeer-herding Sámi people.
Another must-see is the Snowman World Ice Restaurant and Bar, which serves up Lappish dishes in rooms carved out of snow and ice. No wonder it’s known as the “coolest place in the Arctic Circle”.