The bucket list Christmas family holiday with a surprisingly affordable price tag

AS the sky turned pink between the snowy trees, our sleigh crunched the icy ground and my five-year-old babbled excitedly.

We were blasting through a Lapland forest on a snowmobile-driven sledge as the sun rose, in search of Santa Claus.

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After a magical 15-minute ride, we pulled up outside a log cabin where a friendly elf tending a campfire welcomed us with warm berry juice and gingerbread biscuits.

As a travel editor, I’ve been to see the big man in some special places with my son, but nothing could top this — Snow Village in the Yllas region above the Arctic Circle.

We were then ushered to see Father Christmas, who was the real deal with a Lappish accent.

My son presented his wish list and had a lovely chat, free of time pressure, then was presented with a stuffed toy elf.

He was elated on the ride back to the Snow Village but more fun was in store.

There was gingerbread-decorating, husky-sleigh riding, sledging and the Snow Village itself — a multi-room palace made of ice and snow, which they start building in late November.

Rooms this year were underwater-themed, with murals of sharks, polar bears and mermaids carved in the snow caves.

Feeling inspired, several kids started to build their own igloo, and there was plenty of snow left over for snowball fights with the cheeky elves roaming the village.

They were a presence from the moment we landed at Finland’s Kittila Airport, joining guests on coach transfers to their hotel.

We were blessed with Figgy Pudding, a 228-year-old elf, decked in red and green, who sounded uncannily like a twentysomething bloke from northern England — and he was an instant hit with everyone on our bus, aged two to 52.

Figgy joined us on all our excursions during the holiday, and it was one big party. We had sing-alongs, quizzes, Santa stories and so many jokes it was like our tour group had known each other for years.

Airports, flights and transfers are often the worst things about holidays, except for when you are travelling to Lapland, it seems.

When my son and I boarded the Tui “Santa Flight” from London Gatwick to Kittila this week, it was a riot of fun right from the bleary-eyed bag-drop at 4am.

Elves greeted us with the kind of enthusiasm usually reserved for a Disney theme park, and check-in staff wore sparkly headgear and Santa hats.

Night-time snowmobiling

Aboard the plane, crew in festive jumpers dished out activity packs and led passengers in renditions of Jingle Bells and We Wish You A Merry Christmas.

It was bucket-list stuff but with a relatively affordable price tag.

Tui’s three-night Santa trips to Yllas cost from £1,000pp, including return flight, half-board at the hotel, Snow Village day trip and a festive dinner on the last night.

Then you can extend your trip by a day, which we did — and also add forest snow-mobiling at night, and reindeer and husky sleigh rides, with trips to farms to meet animals and learn about Finnish life.

It was fascinating to meet a husky owner who takes her 30 dogs on a week-long ride through northernmost Finland at season’s end, camping in several feet of snow.

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She even makes beautiful sweaters from fluff she collects from brushing the dogs’ coats.

We also managed two thirds of a day’s skiing, as our Lapland Saaga hotel was beside the mountain lift at Yllas, Finland’s largest ski resort.

It was only two thirds of a day because, unlike in the Alps, the sun doesn’t rise until 9.45am at this time of year — and it sets at around 2.45pm.

It feels like you are perpetually experiencing sunrise or sunset, while the slopes take on a beautiful pink colour.

This is not the only special light, though, as in winter the Northern Lights appear about half of the time when there is no cloud.

On the first night of our trip, those still awake at 10pm after a day’s travel (not me) were treated to the green shades of the Aurora Borealis in the sky over the village.

My son and I were fast asleep in the comfy beds of our twin room, which also had a lovely terrace facing directly on to the slopes, where we made snowmen.

The hotel had a fine swimming pool and spa, too. In pools as supposedly family-friendly ski resorts, kids are often restricted to an hour or two a day — but not at Saaga.

Meals-wise, the pinnacle had to be the festival finale on the last night

Caroline McGuire

There were even floats, hula hoops and goggles laid on.

With all the activities, it was a welcome relief that the two on-site restaurants were also great.

All meals were served buffet style, with a range of salads, hot food, soups and puddings every lunch and dinner.

There were also great breakfasts, both hot and continental.

But meals-wise, the pinnacle had to be the festival finale on the last night, when we were served a Christmas dinner buffet.

This was accompanied by plenty of festive entertainment from enthusiastic Tui performers.

As hundreds of parents and kids sang along to a rendition of All I want For Christmas Is You, it felt as if we had been living in a festive bubble for four days, with no idea at all of what had been going on in the outside world.

It was perfect preparation for the next few weeks of December mayhem.