Santa Claus Village () is an

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...

Rovaniemi Rovaniemi ( , ; ; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Lapland (Finland), Lapland. It is located near the Arctic Circle in the northern interior of the country. The population of Rovaniemi is approximately , while the Rovaniemi su ...

in the Lapland region of Finland. It was opened in 1985. Santa Land Rovaniemi Arctic Circle1

History

The first building to be built in the Arctic Circle in Rovaniemi was the Roosevelt Lodge, which was built in the 1950s for a visit by

Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...

, the wife of the at that time US-President,

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

. The first original home of

Santa Claus Santa Claus (also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or Santa) is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Chris ...

was Korvatunturi, built as the "Finnish equivalent of

Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It was the first theme park opened by the Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney, ...

". In 1985, Rovaniemi was declared as an official hometown of Santa Claus. There was an association called ''Joulumaa'', founded 1989 in Rovaniemi, consisting of 34 companies. The association was closed in 1992 due to financial difficulties as Joulumaa could no longer afford to continue the letter service, answering letters received by

Location and transportation

Santa Claus Village is located about northeast of Rovaniemi and about from the Rovaniemi Airport.

Attractions

* Arctic Circle: The

Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the northernmost of the five major circle of latitude, circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth at about 66° 34' N. Its southern counterpart is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circl ...

ostensibly cuts right through Santa Claus Village. A white line denoting the Arctic Circle (at its position in 1865) is painted across the park. Visitors officially enter the

Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

area when they cross the line. The line is a trendy photo spot for visitors. The Arctic Circle is actually 700 meters to the north, just south of the Rovaniemi airport.) * Santa's House of Snowmobiles: A museum about the history and evolution of snowmobiles in the Arctic areas. * Santa Claus's Office: A Santa Claus's Office is located inside the main building of the Village, for visitors to take photographs and chat with Santa Claus. However, Santa Claus has an "office hour" and he may not be in the office all the time even when the Village is open. *

Santa Claus' Main Post Office Santa Claus' Main Post Office () is a tourist destination in Santa Claus Village in the Arctic Circle, about north of Rovaniemi. It is the only official Santa Claus´ Post Office and part of the Finnish postal services. It is open all year and o ...

: A post office where visitors can read letters sent to Santa. Writers can also request a letter be mailed to them from Santa before Christmas. The office is an official Finnish post office. * Northern Lights: also known as

Aurora Borealis An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

. The Northern Lights are observed on around 150 nights in a year from mid-August until early April. The Arctic Garden and the top of Ounasvaara fell are the best destinations to witness Northern Lights. The phenomenon is caused by electrically charged particles from the Sun colliding with air molecules in Earth's atmosphere and deflected by Earth's magnetic field. This process results in the emission of colourful light, visible at night. Green is the most common colour in this process, while red, pink, violet, yellow, and even blue may be observable too.

Awards

The Santa Claus Park that is connected to the Santa Claus Village was in 2007 awarded by Topworld International and placed as the second best Travel Adventure in Finland. Since 2008, it still holds second position after Topworld invited travellers to vote for their own Top 10 list over adventures.

Gallery

File:Delta Star 501 Rovaniemi.jpg, Santa Claus Village back in 1990s File:Shop at Santa Claus' Workshop Village (Joulupukin Pajakyla) near Rovaniemi IMG 2716.jpg, Shop at Santa Claus' Village File:Santa's gift house interior from upstairs.jpg, Interiors of the Santa's Gift House at Santa Claus' Village File:Северный олень в упряжке.jpg, A reindeer in a carriage File:Rovaniemi-santa's-post-office.jpg, The main post office

References

External links

* {{Christmas Amusement parks based on Santa Claus Rovaniemi Amusement parks in Finland Buildings and structures in Lapland (Finland) Tourist attractions in Lapland (Finland) Christmas in Finland 1985 establishments in Finland Amusement parks opened in 1985