What's in Santa's hometown?

From the ruins after World War II, Lapland has transformed into a fairyland of Santa Claus. Visitors from all over, especially Asia, are always fascinated by Santa Claus’s knee-length beard and the scenery here.

What’s in Santa’s hometown?

The people of Lapland (Finland) always proudly introduce that they are the only homeland of Santa Claus. In 2018, the village’s tourism revenue was more than 1.1 billion USD, with about 2.9 million visitors and overnight visitors.

Since the 1980s, travel agencies have agreed to jointly present Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland, as the official and only home of Santa Claus in the world.

Santa Claus Village amusement park is like the heart of Lapland is a snow-covered wonderland. Visitors here can feel the Christmas atmosphere 365 days a year and freely ride reindeer, live in ice castles or igloo igloos or try the feeling of traveling on a sleigh.

At the center of this park is a wooden house made exactly like the house of Santa Claus in the fairy tale.

Rovaniemi also has a very special place: Santa’s office. Since opening in 1985, this place has received 15 million letters from 190 countries around the world.

The Santas at the park also work very professionally. In their knee-length white beards, trademark red capes and oversized gray shoes, Santas often converse with visitors in a variety of languages. The price of each photo taken with you can be up to 50 USD (about 1.1 million VND).

More and more visitors are coming to Santa Claus Village amusement park to experience winter in the Arctic. According to the Finnish Statistical Office, in the past 10 years, the number of visitors to Lapland has set a new record every year.

In 2018, this number was 2.9 million overnight guests. Of these, Asians make up the majority, especially Chinese.

Booming tourism not only brings in a large source of foreign currency but also reduces the local unemployment rate. Almost everyone has a job in the park, from posing as an elf to driving a sleigh.

The German city temporarily bid farewell to a Christmas culture

Four months before Christmas, the organizer of the Cologne city fair was forced to announce the closure of all Christmas markets, which are likened to “magnets” in the last month of the year in this city.

In an August 26 announcement, the organizer also said that the decision to close the Christmas markets this year was made after the city government was certain that it would not allow the organization of Christmas markets. in the context of the current pandemic. However, some Christmas markets will still be held, but on a small scale, with fewer visitors and with barriers. Those wishing to attend must register in advance.

The decision to close Christmas markets will cause significant economic losses to many related units and services, including hotels and restaurants, especially retailers. The failure to organize Christmas markets in Cologne is said to cause a domino effect across the country, as Christmas markets in the western city of the country are considered the second largest in Germany and lead the way. on the number of tourists visiting each year.

Among the Christmas markets in Cologne, the Christmas market at Cologne Cathedral is the largest, attracting about 5 million visitors a year, many of them from neighboring countries. The market has hundreds of stalls, shimmering with colorful lights and fun music at night, with traditional handmade dishes, many games, music performances, …

Christmas markets at the end of the year are associated with German culture and most people (nearly 60%) want to go to the Christmas market once, at least to enjoy a glass of hot wine Glühwein, a traditional drink during the season. Winter is cold not only at the Christmas markets in Germany but also in many other European countries.