Lost in the heart of Finland, Rovaniemi holds a special record. It occupies the largest area among the cities of the Old World, and it is more than 8000 square meters. km. This is 80 times the area of Paris and even seven times the area occupied by Los Angeles. The city received such an impressive size due to the annexation of nearby territories. But the center of Lappi province attracts its guests not only with a record area. Tours in Rovaniemi are usually bought by fans of winter sports and hiking against the backdrop of dim northern landscapes. But the most important thing that the largest European city is famous for is, of course, Santa Claus. It is in Rovaniemi that Santa's residence is located and thousands of children and their parents flock here on Christmas Eve.
Briefly about the important
- When booking tours to Rovaniemi, you should be prepared for difficult weather conditions. In the city located just eight kilometers south of the Arctic Circle, frosts down to -25 are not uncommon in winter, and the snow cover lays here for about six months. In the summer in the city, most often it is not warmer than +20.
- One of the main natural attractions of these places is the polar lights. Happy owners of the Rovaniemi tour can watch it in late winter and early autumn.
- You can get acquainted with the culture in Rovaniemi in the "Arktikum" center, where exhibitions devoted to the history and life of the people of Lapland are held. The occupations and customs of its inhabitants are also demonstrated by the exposition of the Peukella Museum of Local Lore.
- The northernmost zoo on the planet is also located in Finland. During a tour in Rovaniemi, you can get acquainted with fifty species of polar fauna.
- The easiest way to get to the capital of Santa Claus' possessions is by plane or train from Helsinki. The flight takes no more than an hour and a half, and it takes half a day to get there by rail.
Christmas wishes
Those who still believe in Santa Claus go on tours in Rovaniema. And let him here be called Santa or, in the Finnish manner, Joulupukki, both adults and children anticipate the joy of meeting a good wizard. Santa Village is an amazing amusement park with a regular bus from the city center. Ice caves, reindeer, souvenir shops and a meeting with the kind wizard himself - all these attributes of a real Christmas are available to guests of Lapland.
And the participants of the tours in Rovaniemi will certainly take pictures near the "Arctic Circle" sign, located at the northern entrance to the largest city on Earth.
