Rovaniemi, Finland AP —Shuffling across icy ground on a cold December afternoon, lots of tourist groups poured into Santa Claus Village, a winter-themed amusement park perched on the edge of the Arctic Circle.
However, not everyone is happy about the onslaught of visitors, 10 times the town’s population, each year at Christmas time.
Rovaniemi counted a record 1.2 million overnight visitors in 2023, almost 30% growth on 2022, after rebounding from pandemic travel disruptions.
“People want to travel to cool countries to see the snow, to see the Northern Lights, and, of course, to see Santa Claus,” she added.
Santa Claus Village is a winter-themed amusement park perched on the edge of the Arctic Circle.
Persons:
Saint Nick, ”, Elzbieta Nazaruk, “ I’m, it’s, Antti Pakkanen, Taina Torvela, James Brooks, “ overtourism, Sanna Karkkainen, Tiina Määttä, Ulla, Kirsikka, “, Joy
Organizations:
CNN, Finland AP, Santa, AP
Locations:
Rovaniemi, Finland, Santa Claus, Finnish Lapland, Santa, ”, Rovaniemi —, Tourism, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Malaga, Florence, Geneva, Berlin, Bordeaux, France, Germany, Rovaniemi’s, Bangkok, “ Rovaniemi