ROVANIEMI, Finland — As the icy ground crunches beneath their feet on a chilly December afternoon, throngs of tourists are making their way into Santa Claus Village, an enchanting winter-themed amusement park located just beyond the Arctic Circle.
Visitors engage in a range of festive activities, from enjoying snow-filled playtimes to taking exhilarating rides on reindeer-drawn sleighs. They can also indulge in cocktails served in an ice bar or have a face-to-face encounter with Santa Claus in Rovaniemi, the energetic capital of Finnish Lapland, proudly promoted as the “official hometown of Santa Claus.”
The Santa Claus Village attracts over 600,000 visitors each year, gaining particular popularity during the holiday season. Polish tourist Elzbieta Nazaruk expressed her delight, stating, “This is like my dream come true. I’m really excited to be here.”
Tourism in Rovaniemi is witnessing a remarkable surge, generating excitement among hotel and restaurant owners as well as city officials due to the substantial revenue it brings to the region. However, this influx of tourists—ten times the town’s population during the Christmas season—has raised concerns among some locals.
Antti Pakkanen, a 43-year-old photographer and member of a local housing network, conveyed the escalating worries, saying, “We are concerned about the rapid growth of tourism. It has increased so quickly, it’s no longer manageable.”
Such sentiments resonate in other well-frequented tourist spots across Europe, like Barcelona, Amsterdam, Malaga, and Florence. Locals in these destinations have expressed their frustrations against “over-tourism,” where the influx of visitors starts to take its toll by damaging historical sites, straining infrastructure, and complicating daily life for residents.
This phenomenon of over-tourism seems to have reached the Arctic Circle, with Rovaniemi recording a staggering 1.2 million overnight visitors in 2023—a remarkable 30 percent increase from the prior year, as the travel industry bounced back from pandemic-induced setbacks.
“Nordic travel is trending,” declared Visit Rovaniemi CEO Sanna Karkkainen, surrounded by snow carvers at an ice restaurant. “Travelers are increasingly drawn to cool climates where they can experience snow, witness the Northern Lights, and, of course, meet Santa Claus.”
To accommodate rising demand, Rovaniemi Airport launched thirteen new flight routes this year, connecting the city to destinations such as Geneva, Berlin, and Bordeaux. While tourists primarily hail from France, Germany, and the UK, Rovaniemi’s allure is reaching even further afield.
Accommodations are in high demand this winter, with Tiina Määttä, the general manager of the Original Sokos Hotel, which has 159 rooms, anticipating that 2024 will set new records.
Critics of mass tourism argue that many residential buildings in Rovaniemi’s city center have been converted into short-term rental properties, with some of these accommodations now inaccessible for local residents. They claim that this surge in rentals is inflating housing costs, displacing long-term residents, and transforming the city center into a transient enclave for visitors.
Finnish regulations prohibit the use of buildings meant for residential purposes for professional accommodation services, prompting advocates to demand stricter enforcement from local authorities. Pakkanen stated, “The rules must be enforced better.”
In contrast, Mayor Ulla-Kirsikka Vainio pointed out that some locals benefit financially from short-term rental ventures. Regardless of differing opinions, it seems unlikely that significant regulatory changes will be enacted before the ongoing winter season is over. Thus, despite the apprehensions voiced by residents, there is an expectation that Rovaniemi will continue to enjoy growing tourism through 2025—a time when visitors are eager to experience the region’s extraordinary festive spirit, especially during the holiday season.
As one visitor from Bangkok remarked, “It’s Christmas time, and we would love to see the Northern Lights. Rovaniemi seems to be a good place.”
