Thoughts On Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa Rovaniemi

Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa is a beautiful self-catered house in the heart of Santa Claus Village, offering families and groups a fabulous setting for their trips to the area.  Below you’ll find the details of our experience following a 3-night stay in the 3-bed upstairs apartment.

Please note this trip was researched, organised, and funded by us.  All opinions are our own.  We are not affiliated with any of the companies mentioned. That said, we’d like to thank Mari and Juha for a wonderful stay!

What Is Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa?

Santa’s Luxury is a small family business in Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland.  Run by local couple Mari and Juha Kotaniemi, their Boutique Villa is right in the heart of Santa Claus Village, the official year-round home of Santa Claus himself!

This self-catered luxury villa is split into two apartments – a 3-bed apartment upstairs and 2-bed apartment on the ground floor beneath.  The apartments are available to rent separately or as a whole unit for larger groups.

Where Is It?

Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa is based in Santa Claus Village which lies precisely on the Arctic Circle in Finland.  The village is 7km from Rovaniemi town centre and only 1.5km from Rovaniemi airport.

Just a stone’s throw from the main square and a mere 50m from Santa Claus’ year-round office, the villa is ideally positioned for exploring Santa Claus Village.  The lovely restaurant Santamus is directly opposite the villa and the village bus stop is literally just around the corner, with the taxi rank a short walk beyond that.

The location cannot be bettered for exploring the village, and there are pretty views towards the main square from the main living room windows.  It is worth noting however that there is no outside space attached to the accommodation (although this isn’t really an issue, particularly in the winter months) and it does have car parks immediately on two sides.  (The car parks were not particularly busy nor noisy whilst we stayed there.)

The Apartment

We stayed in the upstairs 3-bed apartment, deciding to treat our sons to separate bedrooms.  The owner Mari greeted us personally upon arrival and showed us around, and was available by phone/message throughout our stay.

The apartment was beautifully appointed and extremely comfortable.  Bigger than we were expecting, with three double bedrooms, a well-equipped kitchen, a ‘wetroom’ with shower and sauna, separate WC, and beautiful glass-walled lounge/dining area with views towards the main square.  There was even a decorated Christmas tree that twinkled away throughout our stay.

Exploring the Rooms

The entrance way had lovely big cupboards for storing coats and boots.  A hanging rail for drying wet gloves and hats would have been useful (I would bring a travel clothes line with me if I were returning).

The kitchen had everything we needed with plenty of crockery and cutlery for our family of four, plus cooking equipment to make sandwiches, a pasta dish, cooked breakfast, etc.  There was a microwave, oven, dishwasher, and electric hob.

The bathroom was quite small and operated more like a wetroom as the shower doors were retractable and blocked off the WC when in use.  It did include a sauna though which our son in particular loved.  There was an additional separate WC however too.

The bedrooms were lovely (5* hotel grade) with extremely comfortable double beds, wardrobes, and even dressing gowns provided.  The master bedroom had an extra single bed plus flat screen TV.  The second bedroom was also a good size with a window.  The third bedroom didn’t have a window and was quite cosy.  It worked perfectly for our younger son but may feel a little claustrophobic for some.

The lounge/dining area was beautiful, with floor-to-ceiling glass windows on two sides.  It was a little cooler due to the glass but still very comfortable and we enjoyed watching a movie here on the smart TV on our first night.

Just one word of caution – there’s no blind or curtain on the glass walls.  So, with such a central location, you’ll want to be clothed coming out of the bathroom!

Is Food Provided?

Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa is self-catered, sort of.  A ‘do-it-yourself breakfast is included in the room rate‘.  We weren’t quite sure what this meant but in fact it was brilliant, far exceeding our expectations and taking the accommodation from lovely to utterly fabulous.

When we arrived, the fridge and cupboards were full of food.  There was plenty of fruit, yoghurt and cereals.  Also bread, pastries, and jam.  Plus frankfurter-style sausages, bacon, Scandinavian meatballs, ham, eggs, salad veg, cheese and so much more. 

On top of that were crisps and cookies for snacks, lots of hot chocolate powder and even a packet of spaghetti!  Oh and teabags (predominantly fruit, definitely not Tetleys!) and a coffee machine. 

We really wanted for nothing and were able to enjoy all our breakfasts, plus several other meals and snacks.  Mari explained that we should just message her in the morning each day if we needed anything more and she’d top things up.  

Is There A Supermarket Nearby?

Between the restaurant meals booked before we had arrived and the generous provisions we didn’t get as far as needing to source food.  But there isn’t a food store in Santa Claus Village, so we would have required a trip towards Rovaniemi to find a supermarket (the nearest was 3km away). 

What About Restaurants?

Santa Claus Village has a good selection of restaurants on offer.  Including a buffet of local specialities at neighbouring Santamus, freshly cooked salmon in a wooden tepee at Santa’s Salmon Place, a Chinese dim-sum restaurant, and even an ice restaurant at Snowman World. 

The villa is right next door to Santa’s Pizza and Burger restaurant as well if you’re in the mood for fast food (we didn’t try it).  There’s no doubt the eateries are focussed on the tourist trade so expect high prices and a need to book in peak season. 

What Is There To Do Nearby?

One of the best things about Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa is its location.  It was the main reason we chose it.  Stepping outside, you are literally slap bang in the middle of Santa Claus Village, with its complete array of activities on your doorstep.

From seeing Father Christmas to husky dog sled adventures, reindeer sleigh rides, kids’ snowmobiles, ice karting, and more, we could tick off most of the ‘big ticket winter activities‘ within a 5-minute walk of the apartment.

Plus, we found most activity companies offered free transfers to and from Santa Claus Village for excursions further afield.  

And, with heaps of snow in all directions and beautiful forest around the village, there was plenty of free winter entertainment on offer too.  The apartment came with a plastic sled which our boys (and we!) put to good use, several times each day!

We happily filled our 4 days in the area and reckon we could have filled one more day before we would have wanted transportation to start exploring further away.

Other Points Of Interest

A few other thoughts / questions answered:

• The WiFi was great.  No complaints from the teens (always the ‘gold standard test’!)
• The villa / apartments come with free parking adjacent to the property if needed (we didn’t use it).
• The 3-bed apartment was upstairs with no lift access so would be challenging for people with restricted mobility.
• Luggage can be left for storage at the villa before check-in and after check-out if needed.
• Towels, bedding, and dressing gowns were provided.
• Toiletries were provided in the bathrooms.
• The kitchen came with everything required for the dishwasher and washing up.
• I don’t recall any clothes washing facilities at the apartment.
• We organised outer layer clothes and snow boot rental delivered to and collected from the apartment with Winterent.
• Santa Claus Village has a year-round bus connection with Rovaniemi town centre, plus seasonal buses to the airport.  We walked the 1.5km from the airport when we arrived – it requires a bit of clothing prep but is perfectly doable.
• There are no general food stores in the village but there is a petrol station on the opposite side of the main road selling snacks, fast food and some basic provisions.
• There is too much light around the villa to see the Northern Lights from there.  However, there are plenty of excursions on offer to take you away from the lit-up areas for good viewing opportunities.  And walking to the edges of Santa Claus Village may be sufficient on strong aurora nights.

If you want to know anything else about our experience and stay at Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa, share a question in the comments below.

Overall Conclusion

We cannot fault the location or condition of the apartment.  Both were ideal and made for a wonderful, comfortable, easy, warm stay in Santa Claus Village.  It’s not a cheap option.  But it’s a great size for a family / group.  And the generous food provisions meant that our overall visit was more economical than we had anticipated.

Whilst there are more novel accommodation options available at a similar price point (e.g. glass igloos and even an ice hotel), we loved the freedom of having our own fully-equipped apartment and lots of space but still being fabulously located.  And I loved waking early to sip my morning tea by tree light as I watched the colours of the village lights and arctic sky.  It really felt like there was Christmas magic in the air.

What We Think You’ll Like:

• Central position, close to all the amenities of the village.  Easy to pop back and forth between activities.
• Beautifully appointed accommodation that guarantees a comfortable stay.
• Generous food selection makes for great breakfasts (and more!), keeping meal and snack costs low.

Things To Bear In Mind:

• Floor to ceiling glass windows offer great views of the village but limited privacy.
• Villa has car parks on two sides and no outside space.
• 3-bed apartment is upstairs with no lift.

We stayed at Santa’s Luxury Boutique Villa’s upstairs 3-bed apartment for a three night stay in February 2024.  For latest availability and prices, visit the Santa’s Luxury website.  And, be sure to check out our articles on what to do in Santa Claus Village and how to pack for the Lapland winter for lots more information and first-hand tips.

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