A December trip to Finnish Lapland lands your family in the middle of a country that takes Christmas wonderfully seriously. Knowing a few Finnish traditions before you fly turns small details into stories: why the porridge matters, who joulupukki actually is, why everything goes quiet at noon on Christmas Eve. It is also a gentle way to stretch the holiday, because the traditions your children learn about in Finland can come home with them. We have written before about why the weeks before Christmas work so well for a Lapland trip; this is the cultural companion to that timing.
Christmas Eve is the main event
The first thing to explain to children is that Finland celebrates on the 24th. Christmas Eve is the day of the feast, the day the tree is finished, and the evening joulupukki arrives in person to hand over presents, no chimney involved. Visit Finland notes that gifts are opened that same evening, which most British children consider a clear improvement on waiting until morning.
At noon on Christmas Eve the Declaration of Christmas Peace is read aloud in Turku, a tradition traced back to the 1320s. It is read from the balcony of Brinkkala Mansion in Finnish and Swedish and broadcast across the country by Yle, and for many families it is the official start of Christmas. Most of our departures bring families home before Christmas Eve itself, which is rather nice: you land back in Britain with Finnish ideas still to use.
The Christmas sauna, and an afternoon of calm
Between the Declaration at noon and the evening feast sits one of the loveliest Finnish habits: the Christmas sauna. Families bathe together in the afternoon, unhurried, and come out scrubbed, warm and calm for the evening. Finland's official culture site describes it as the moment the rush of preparation finally stops. You do not need a sauna to borrow the idea. A deliberate pocket of quiet on Christmas Eve afternoon, a bath for small children, warm clothes, candles lit before the main event, captures the same rhythm, and children respond to the change of pace more than adults expect.
Joulupukki, the Santa who lives at Korvatunturi
Finland's Santa is called joulupukki, and Finnish children will tell you exactly where he lives: Korvatunturi, a remote fell in eastern Lapland whose name means Ear Fell, the better to hear children's wishes. Letters addressed to him really do arrive, at Santa Claus' Main Post Office, postcode 96930 Napapiiri, on the Arctic Circle. Children who want to get a message in early can write your own letter to Santa through our letters page before the trip, and every family staying at Torassieppi has a private meeting with Santa and his elves in his own log cabin during the holiday.
The porridge with a lucky almond
On Christmas morning Finnish families eat joulupuuro, a creamy rice porridge with cinnamon and sugar, sometimes followed by a fruit soup made from plums. One almond is hidden in the pot, and whoever finds it in their bowl gets good luck for the year, along with the duty of looking extremely pleased. It is the easiest tradition of all to copy at home, and if you are wondering about food on the trip itself, our guide to what children eat in Lapland covers the everyday mealtimes.
Counting down: calendars, letters and Lucia
Finnish children count December down as keenly as British ones. Advent calendars reached Finland in the 1940s and are now everywhere, and letters to joulupukki are written and posted well before the big day. On 13 December, Lucia arrives: a procession led by a singer in white with a crown of lights, marking brightness in the darkest stretch of winter. Homes are decorated with himmeli, geometric mobiles woven from straw that catch candlelight beautifully. If your Lapland trip is still a secret, the countdown season pairs perfectly with our reveal ideas.
Things to make together: gingerbread and ice lanterns
Two Finnish makes travel especially well. The first is gingerbread: piparkakut are rolled thin, cut into stars and hearts, and decorated by children with more enthusiasm than precision. The second is the ice lantern. In Finland you leave a bucket of water outside overnight, tip out the unfrozen middle once the sides have set, and stand a tea light inside the ice shell; a British freezer manages a smaller version. Set one glowing by the doorstep and December feels different immediately.
Spotting it all on your trip
Our flights leave London Gatwick between 28 November and 24 December 2026, so every departure lands inside the Finnish Christmas season. Once you know the traditions, your children will start noticing them everywhere: the himmeli in a window, the gingerbread at the buffet, the elves who seem suspiciously well organised. Dates and availability for this winter are on our 2026 Lapland holidays page, and if you would like help matching a departure to your family we are happy to talk it through, just request a quote.
Five Finnish traditions to try at home
- Hide one almond in the Christmas morning porridge and let the finder claim their luck.
- Post a letter to joulupukki at Santa Claus' Main Post Office, 96930 Napapiiri, Finland.
- Bake and decorate thin gingerbread stars and hearts the Finnish way.
- Freeze an ice lantern outdoors or in the freezer and light it by the front door.
- Declare your own Christmas Peace at noon on Christmas Eve: everything calm from that moment on.
When do Finnish children open their presents?
On the evening of Christmas Eve, 24 December. Joulupukki traditionally delivers them in person, knocking on the door rather than coming down the chimney, and the presents are opened the same evening.Will we be in Finland for Christmas Eve itself?
Usually not. Departures run between 28 November and 24 December 2026 and most families are home before Christmas Eve, so the trip becomes part of the countdown. Exact dates for each departure are on the Lapland holidays page.Can children really send a letter to the Finnish Santa?
Yes. Letters reach Santa Claus' Main Post Office at 96930 Napapiiri on the Arctic Circle, and our letter to Santa page helps children put one together before the trip.What is the story with the almond in the porridge?
Finnish Christmas rice porridge, joulupuuro, hides one almond in the pot. Whoever finds it in their bowl is promised good luck for the year, and it is a very easy tradition to recreate at home.Ready to Plan Your Lapland Adventure?
Family-first Lapland holidays at Torassieppi, Muonio — 3 and 4-night breaks from London Gatwick. Tell us about your family and we'll build your quote.
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