Rovaniemi wants to level out tourism peaks – well-being and nature as attractions in addition to Santa Claus
The success of year-round tourism requires Rovaniemi to find another attraction alongside Santa Claus. The city helps local businesses seek sustainable growth from the well-being and unique nature of Lapland.
“I can see the planes landing at Rovaniemi airport from the window of my home. Last Christmas Eve, I calculated that approximately six planes would land there per hour,” says Pirjo Kutinlahti, Development Manager at Business Rovaniemi.
Snow, Santa Claus and the Northern Lights attract a huge number of tourists to the capital of Lapland during the winter season. Although tourism brings jobs, short employment relationships are not enough to attract residents or the best talent to stay in the area more permanently. The infrastructure built for tourism is also underused most of the year. A longer season and more steady tourist flows would protect the otherwise cyclical tourism industry from economic fluctuations. At the same time, they would solve the problems caused by the overheated winter tourism season for locals.
“A year-round season would bring more jobs, permanent residents and tax revenue to the city,” says Kutinlahti.
Does this mean that Rovaniemi is trying to turn summer into winter? The city’s goal is not to significantly increase the number of tourists, but to distribute tourism more evenly throughout the year. Kutinlahti is sure that in five years’ time, the city’s tourism season will extend from the beginning to the end of the year.
“Year-round tourism enables new investments in routes, quays and ports, for example, so that both tourists and locals can enjoy the waters and nature. The new investments will benefit the entire city and the people of Rovaniemi,” says Kutinlahti.
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