Santa Claus Office, Rovaniemi

I had missed it when I went into the commercial building the first time. Therefore, I find it worth mentioning that when you enter the main building, you have to enter the shop opposite to the main gate. Through the shop, you go through a pathway decorated with Santa-isc vibe. There was a long queue to meet Santa. Therefore, we did not meet him as we were already going to get a picture with Santa at the Santa Park.

The Santa Claus Village is the best and major tourist spot in Lapland – Santa’s own hometown! It is almost impossible not to cross the Arctic Circle in Rovaniemi. The Arctic Circle runs through the Santa Claus Village, located eight kilometres north of the city centre, where it is clearly marked. Santa Claus Village in Lapland is a popular place to cross the Arctic Circle: here the line is marked, and you can even get a certificate confirming the feat. At that moment, I felt I was the luckiest man in the world. We first stepped into the Santa Claus Office. The ambience was just fantastic and a real fairy-tale-like experience. We were ushered in by Santa’s hard-working and beautifully cute helpers, the elves. We couldn’t believe our eyes when we saw Santa seated inside on a wooden chair amidst a lot of gifts with his big fat belly resting on his lap! He is around 6.5F tall with a long real looking beard. He greeted us and gave us our seat. And had a little chit chat about the Xmas and arctic history. However, photos and videos are prohibited inside. For 45 Euros, we all got one photo each to cherish as a memoir for a lifetime.

Just a little out of season, but the Christmas cheer is surely present! No waiting line for Santa so visiting in summer has its perks. Everything is designed for you to spent money, but it has been one of the most enjoyable "tourist traps" we visited so far. There is a little bit of still untapped potential (we were expecting a more 'Efteling' feel), but sure worth a visit.

Amazing, the kids loved it, quite a wait for Santa as the day goes on so get in there early to spend more time in the village. Very helpful providing bags to take off your thermals to get a better photograph.

It's worth to visit though nothing to do there except buying souvenirs and sending mail. You can meet Santa for free, but they'll make you buy a picture of yours, which will be taken without your permission. Prices are very higher