Visiting Santa’s Cottage in Pohjolan Pirtti, Kuusamo, Lapland, Finland

There’s not much that’s more magical than visiting Father Christmas. And a visit to Santa’s Cottage in Pohjolan Pirtti, Kuusamo, Lapland is as amazing as it comes. We visited as part of a trip skiing in Ruka with Crystal Ski and took a group trip about 30 minutes outside of Ruka. But you can also book up to visit independently.

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The trip felt special from the start. With a drive through the deserted snowy landscape with wild reindeer crossing the road in front of our coach.

It was wonderful to spot them padding about the countryside and definitely made it all feel even more Christmassy.

Arriving

When we arrived at the series of cottages we were met by two elves who took us around the whole time. They made sure everyone was happy.

They started off by whisking us down to a series of slopes and provided us with sledges for around 15 minutes of sledging.

The children thought this was really fun, especially skidding on to the ice below.

They couldn’t believe we were stood on the edge of a frozen lake.

The log cabin

Just as we started to lose the sense of feeling in our toes (it was -14 when we visited), we headed indoors to a sweet little log cabin with warming fire pit in the middle and hot berry juice to sip on.

It was the perfect time to warm up. We listened out for the sound of bells which meant Father Christmas was ready to see us.

Meeting Father Christmas at Santa’s Cottage in Pohjolan Pirtti, Kuusamo, Lapland, Finland

When the bells jingled we all excitedly headed up the hill and around the corner in to Santa’s Cottage. Here we could spy him sitting inside through the window.

We were ushered in to the main room where Father Christmas (or Joulupukki to give him his correct Finnish name) and Mrs Claus were sat waiting for us.

Watching the children’s faces, this group of around 15 of them, eyes wide, was so special and I have to admit it brought a lump to the throat.

The children were called up, one by one to receive their elf hats. This meant they could help out and be elves for the day.

We were told how Father Christmas visits Finnish children on December 24th each year. Before making trips around the world on Christmas Day.

We were also told about his other houses across Lapland which he visits children from.

Then we were free to help ourselves to juice or gloggi, gingerbread biscuits and chocolates which was a nice treat.

There was a small gift shop with decorative elves, cuddly huskies and blankets etc You could also pick up postcards and buy stamps from Santa’s Cottage to send home to yourself which is a nice touch.

The experience

During this time families were free to have photos taken with Father Christmas and Mrs Claus. It was the perfect time to get a family photo and a photo of the children together with them.

Then it was back to sit down with Father Christmas again to learn the words to his favourite song.

An elf came in to show us how it was sung in Finland and it was beautiful to hear it as the words looked so difficult.

Then we were told the song line by line and what it meant. It was such a sweet song.

Finally we all got to sing it with Father Christmas and Mrs Claus, a few times which was a lovely experience.

Then every child got called by name to go up to Father Christmas and be handed a present which was very sweet .I won’t spoil the magic by letting you know what you get.

The whole experience was so lovely.

As we drove away Mrs Claus and Father Christmas stood on the porch to wave goodbye to us. We all felt quite emotional seeing them and this remote picturesque little world fade in to the darkness.

Visiting Santa’s Cottage in Pohjolan Pirtti was a really special experience and one we will remember for the longest time.

Find out more about Visiting Santa’s Cottage in Pohjolan Pirtti, Kuusamo, Lapland, Finland with Crystal Ski here or booking individually here.

Top Tips for visiting Pohjolan Pirtti

• Wear nice clothes under your snowsuits. We didn’t and regretted it as you take off coats and snowsuits when you’re inside. So it’s the perfect time to get a lovely family photo.
• If you book with Crystal Ski then transfers are included. It is more expensive if you’re not with Crystal Ski but then you do have some extra experiences including sausages after sledging and an opportunity to make gingerbread and sweet buns with Father Christmas and Mrs Claus.
• The whole experience lasts for around three hours so there’s plenty of time to get photos with Father Christmas.
• We bought three postcards for each of our children and got Father Christmas to sign them before sending them home for them. You can also ask for these to be sent for Christmas the following year if you like.

Check out all our other reviews and features on a family trip to Lapland here. And see our ultimate guide to skiing with kids here.