To Santa Claus on the Arctic Circle
From the capital of Lapland to Santa's village on the Arctic Circle.
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Rovaniemi calls itself the official hometown of Santa Claus. At Santa Claus Village on the Arctic Circle you can meet Santa every day of the year, cross the Arctic Circle line and send cards with a special postmark from Santa's post office. The walk starts in town, which was rebuilt after it burned in 1944. It goes to the Jätkänkynttilä bridge and Arktikum, the museum of life in the north, and then you take bus 8 up to the Arctic Circle. In December there is snow and only a few hours of daylight.
The stops
- 1
Rovaniemi Church
The church was rebuilt in 1950 after the town burned in the war.
- 2
Lumberjack's Candle Bridge
The town's landmark over the Kemijoki river. The light on top recalls the log drivers' campfires.
- 3
Arktikum
A museum and science centre on Sámi culture, the northern lights and Arctic nature, in a long glass hall leading down to the river.
- 4
Arctic Circle at Santa Claus Village
The Arctic Circle line is marked on the ground. Santa receives visitors in his office nearby, and the post office gives an Arctic Circle postmark.
About the trip
- Where
- Rovaniemi
- Getting around
- Public transport
- Time
- 1 h 47 min
- Distance
- 11 km
- Stops
- 4
- Themes
- Family, Nature
Practical
- Start
- Rovaniemi Church, a 10-minute walk from the centre.
- Finish
- Santa Claus Village. Bus 8 runs back to the centre and the station.
- Toilets
- In Arktikum and in Santa Claus Village.
- Accessibility
- Flat, but snow and ice in December. The bus ride from the centre to the Arctic Circle is about 8 km.