Finland Diary: A Solo Winter Trip to See Santa

Rovaniemi is Santa Claus's hometown. After seeing videos of reindeer pulling sleighs, I really wanted to visit. Three days were perfectly sufficient for a solo trip, and it wasn't too expensive. Day 1 • 7pm: Arrived in Rovaniemi. Stayed in the city center, took a taxi from the airport. • If you arrive before 8pm, you can book a city aurora tour. • The Santa Claus-designated McDonald's is in the city center. It was formerly the northernmost McDonald's in the Arctic Circle. Free postcards are available. Day 2 • Day trip experience: Reindeer sleigh ride + Husky sledding + Santa Claus Village • The departure point can be the city center or Santa Claus Village. Warm clothing is provided. • Reindeer sleigh ride: 10 minutes, the route goes through a small forest, and it's super atmospheric on a sunny day. • Husky sledding: It should be the company's own husky park. There aren't many dogs, but they are very enthusiastic and cute! • After the activities, you can take the bus to Santa Claus Village for free time or return to the city center. • Tip: You can participate in individual experiences directly at Santa Claus Village, but the queues are very long and cold, and it seems that single riders aren't allowed. So, the day trip is very convenient, hop-on hop-off, no queues, and no cold waiting. • I booked an aurora tour with the same company in the evening, but there was only one observation point. Luckily, I saw the dancing aurora, which was super worthwhile. Day 3 • Took a taxi from the city center to Santa Claus Village. • Photo with Santa Claus: Queued for about 1 hour. • Santa Claus can speak Chinese, "Ni Hao," and the atmosphere was amazing. • Afterward, you can send postcards, buy Arctic Circle certificates, and participate in various other activities, but queuing outdoors is really cold and not recommended. • There are live cameras in the village, so you can find yourself on the live stream. Because Rovaniemi is right on the Arctic Circle, the sky is often a beautiful pink and blue when it's sunny, which is super healing. Unlike further north in Norway, the pink hues last a really long time in Finland. Taking a taxi with Uber is very convenient and fast. I chose a homestay in the city center for accommodation. It was over 1,000 RMB and very spacious. Because it's quite cold, waiting for public transport can be quite uncomfortable. Although it's generally said that you'll regret not coming here, and regret even more after coming, there are still things to do. There are a lot of tourists with children, so it can be a bit noisy. As for the temperature, it's quite terrifying. I wore two layers of thermal underwear, two fleeces, a down jacket, a scarf, thermal pants, hiking pants, and cotton pants, and I was still cold.