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Im sorry if a similar thread is lurking anywhere but just wondered if anyone has taken their LOs and could advise

Just the usual questions really

What age where your children?
What company?
Day visit/ short break?
Worth the money?

Thanks in advance

bump

Hi, we are going this year. We have plannedthe trip independantly, flying Finnair to Rovaniemi, and staying in the SantaClausVillage log cabins. We have booked a private visit with the big man in Joulukka, which just looks fantastic.

We can afford to do a private meet, a visit to elf school, husky and reindeer ride, and an eveing under the stars with the elves because we booked independantly and saved 1000 against the Canterbury trip.

Canterbury and Esprit seem to do the least commercial tours, however a couple of our friends had their Canterbury trip cancelled last week due to low numbers.

Many people speak well of First Choice etc, however I think they do the busier route to santa via the Santa Park and Santaclaus village (we are only staying there due to proximity and availability), and not really the personalised search for santa theme.

If you check trip advisor for Rovaniemi or Yllas, Levi, Saariskella you will find feedback on the trips and hotels.

It's a pain looking through the trips as it is a lot of money and you want to get the correct tour for you,and each one is ever so slightly different. As we couldn't get the dates we wanted, i looked at my other options 5 days is costing us £1100 in accommodation, suits, breakfast and flights for 2 adults and 1 ds. This includes a flight to Helsinki, and afternoon there and a later flight to Rovaniemi. the owners of the log cabins are collecting us from the airport and there is a kids club free for 2 hours each afternoon with the elves in Santa Village.

www.joulukka.com/ this is where we are meeting Santa a private meet for 5 costs 850 euros, a lot I know, but the trip with a tour company would have cost us 3500 minimum, so this is a real bonus.

The people we have been in contact with in Joulukka have been amazing, and apparently we pay the elf when he comes to pick us up and transfer us to the park. Lol! I have also organised a snowmobile ride for DH, me on the back, and ds in a sleigh.

DS is 6 btw.

Hope you find what you are looking for, it is a maze!

DH took DD 4 Christmases ago when she was almost 8. To this day, she says it was the greatest thing ever to happen to her.

They went from Manchester to Rovaniemi or 4 days with Thomas Cook. During that they went on a snowmobile ride, a trip on a husky sled, learned to drive a reindeer sleigh, went to Santa's village and met him, crossed into the Arctic Circle and experience a traditional Sami Ritual with a shaman and stuff, had an adventure with the Elves in the Enchanted Forest, had lunch in an ice restaurant and breakfast with Mrs. Claus, amongst other things. They also had a day where the could please themselves, so they went to the museum of arctic life and whatnot. Also plenty of sledging/snowballs etc.

The trip was half board and hot drinks and things were provided on the excursions. The hotel was nice, the food was good. DH says that he has never experienced anything like it.

TBH, it was a huge amount of money for us, we saved up all year for DH to take DD, but it was worth every penny. So much so that DH has been working 2 jobs and about 20 hours overtime a week since April to take DS4 this year.

They are going to Levi with Thomas Cook for 4 days from Glasgow. He is also 8.

We went in December 2008 when DD1 was just 4. The company we went with was Esprit because friends had used them and gave glowing references. Our trip was to Saariselka (I think we stayed at the Holiday Club), full-board leaving on 24th December for 4 days and it was truly wonderful.

It was fantastic and DD1 is desperate for us to go again in the future (she is unaware that when we booked it we'd been told we couldn't have any more DCs - I'd spent the previous Christmas in hospital having surgery for a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, Lapland was my way of having something to take my mind off the agony of the memory and what it represented). When schoolfriends tell DD1 that FC isn't real she simply tells them that she knows he is.... she's been to Lapland and seen him/his elves/reindeer.

If money were no object I'd love to go again. We now have a DD2 and DD1 is forever telling me it's unfair that she hasn't been to Lapland... it won't be for a while though!

SE13, my DD will be 12 this December and will still argue that Santa is real because SHE HAS MET HIM!!!! and been to his house, eaten his porridge, seen his reindeer....

DH took her just at the age the others started to lose belief and it kind of backfired, tbh. Nothing will persuade her that he isn't real, now.

binfullofmaggots - please come back after & tell us how it went, have bookmarked this thread. Thinking of going next yr and was looking at canterbury travel thank you and have a magical time!

Will do! I'm getting very exited now, have to keep it under control for my DS lol I don't want to spill the secret!

I have a friend who had her Canterbury trip cancelled and has now booked with another company. She is going to Saariselka, I'll get feedback from her too.

I won't be back until boxing day though!

It'll be quite experimental to take DS away for Christmas!

We are going for 4 days with Esprit from the 20th December. Our kids will be 10, 8, 5 and 3.
DD1 is a bit old really, but she believes for the sake of believing and won't spoil it for the others. DS will be almost 4, so we are hoping he's not too young.
I'm hoping it'll be okay as Esprit have had some ropey reviews.

i priced a 5 day trip with a tour operator in december for 2 adults and 2 kids for £1300 recently - cant remember now who it was with as just getting prices as an idea for next year- but went on loads of websites - 4 nights for 2 adults and 2 kids came up less than £1600 with activities on most - think thats a good deal myself - just gotta talk dh round to the idea!

Wow, I am just so excited about doing this, and we won't be going for a few years as DS is only just one. Something to look forward to. Please do post back with your verdicts, and have a marvellous time! If anyone can share photos too, that would be fab.

Billfullofmaggots- just ressurecting this thread to find out how you got on?

I can't find any suitable dates with Canterbury travel and don't like the idea of shuttling off on excursions every day, I'd rather plan my own itinerary, so am going to book a trip independently.

So how was it? Was it really magical? Was santa authentic- please do tell all.

Sleepy

Just found this thread!

We were lucky enough to win a trip to Lapland last year and it was truly amazing!!! I booked it through Inghams Travel and stayed at Levi. Our boys (2 and 5) are still completely overwhelmed that they went, as indeed I still am!

Even the flight was magical. Apparently, the week before we got there, temperatures dipped to -19, but we had a very 'mild' -1, which is fine when you have small children.

I would say it was excellent value, and is something I would certainly love to do again. We opted for a 4 night break, which was the perfect length of time. It included a husky ride and a reindeer sleigh ride (breathtakingly magical) plus my husband and eldest son did a snowmobile safari. The Inghams staff were fantastic from start to finish, and our meeting with Santa was perfect!

I can't wait til Christmas this year when we can unpack all the lovely decorations again that we bought while we were there!

Bumping for Binfull, and any others!

Wow, Jdub, what an amazing win! Truly lucky! How did you win that?

Yes- I know! I'm still in shock and we've been back 2 months!!!
It was something through the company I work for - you can 'wish' for your ideal holiday, and if you are lucky, you get to go! (I think my boss must be Santa in disguise!)
It really was truly perfect, and even with older children, or no children at all, it is just so magical, it sets you up for Christmas and indeed the whole year!
We didn't tell our children til December (after finding out in February!) and it was wonderful knowing such a magical secret for SO long!

Amazing! What a great company! Just wow!