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Family reindeer visit from Tornio: ages and getting there

Two reindeer walking through deep snow as snow falls, the nearer one with a single antler

Illustration photo: reindeer in falling snow, not at the places named here.

Lapland Handbook Staff How we research this

The short answer

With a baby or a toddler, go to the Santa station in Ylitornio: it is the only one of the three that says anything about the youngest, and under-fours go free. With school-age children, the farm visit out of Kemi is the shortest drive and lends the whole family winter clothing. The Ranua park suits older children who will enjoy leading a reindeer and sledging, but it is the longest drive from Tornio.

Three reindeer outings are within reach of Tornio, and for a family the useful differences are age and distance.

Who each one takes

Only the Santa station says anything about young children: under-fours go free and the ticket covers feeding the reindeer.1 The Kemi farm visit prints no age limit, and neither does the Ranua park. That is not the same as a welcome for babies. Neither describes how a small child travels in the sleigh at Kemi or the snowmobile-towed sleigh at Ranua, so ask before you book with a child who cannot sit up securely.

How far each one is

The Kemi visit starts at the company’s safari house, 21 minutes from Tornio, and the company drives you from there to the farm. Ylitornio is 49 minutes up the river, with the station’s gate as the meeting point. The Ranua park is 96 minutes away, a long stretch for small children each way.

Putting it together

Toddlers: Ylitornio. Children who can manage an afternoon outdoors: Kemi. Older children who want to do rather than watch: Ranua. The rest of what the Kemi visit includes is on reindeer farm from Kemi.

Tours you can book

Questions people ask

Can we bring a pram?

The Santa station's listing describes the site as wheelchair-accessible, which is the nearest thing to a yes for a pram. The Kemi farm and the Ranua park say nothing about it, and both move you on by vehicle from the meeting point, a car at Kemi and a snowmobile-towed sleigh at Ranua, so a baby carrier is the safer thing to bring to either and a pram may stay in the car.

What should small children wear?

The Kemi company lends overalls, boots, wool socks and gloves, and the Ranua park lends winter outerwear, but neither says whether it has sizes for small children. Bring a child's own snowsuit, hat and mittens as a fallback, and wool underneath, because feeding reindeer and waiting for a sleigh are the still, cold parts of a day outdoors.

Is there somewhere warm to go during the visit?

At the Kemi farm the visit ends with a hot drink and a pastry in a hut, and the Ranua park includes a sauna along with its warm drinks and sausages. The Santa station is a converted railway building with a café among its extras. None of the three says how long you spend outdoors before reaching the warm part, so ask if your children feel the cold quickly.

Written by

Lapland Handbook Staff

Lapland Handbook is written by its editorial staff in Rovaniemi. Every price, age limit and group size in a comparison is read from the operator's own page and marked "Not stated" when the operator does not publish it. Each guide names who should not book, and names the operator that suits each kind of group, whichever it is.

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