Visiting every household in the world in the span of one night can’t be an easy job, but Santa manages it every year! If you’re curious about the logistics of this gift-giving journey, take a look at his route for yourself.
Santa’s voyage always begins in the South of the Pacific Ocean, with the Republic of Kiribati being the very first stop. This is a collection of islands, one of which is coincidentally known as “Christmas Island” thanks to being named on Christmas day. After the inhabitants of Christmas Island receive their Christmas presents, it’s off on a westward journey for Father Christmas.
Next up are the countries of New Zealand and Australia. Here, Christmas arrives during the summer holidays, so Santa gets the pleasure of a soft summer evening breeze. He may even take a quick stroll along the beach too, as this is where many people will spend Christmas day with a barbecue lunch.
After his brief experience with warm weather, Santa Claus heads into Asia, making a stop off in Japan. He’ll have to be careful not to be spotted by anyone here, as Christmas Eve is a big deal for the Japanese, so the streets will be packed. Santa-San (as he’s known in Japan) must also resist the temptation to get a quick bite to eat from KFC, as this fast food chain is a popular destination for Christmas meals in Japan.
Santa continues delivering presents through Asia, until he hits the border of Eastern Europe, at which point he dips down to the continent of Africa. One of his destinations in Africa is Nigeria, a country which focuses on family at Christmas by throwing parties all night long. Santa will have to tiptoe across the rooftops so he’s not seen or heard amongst the celebrations, but luckily there will be children singing in choirs to mask all the noise he’s making. He’ll also have to be careful to avoid firecrackers, as children in Nigeria sometimes play with these at Christmas!
Once Africa has all its presents, Santa makes his way through Europe. If he reaches Italy early enough, he may see children singing carols and playing songs on shepherds pipes in the streets, whilst wearing shepherds sandals and hats. When he climbs down chimneys in Belgium, he’ll be greeted by childrens’ shoes, so he leaves the presents in and around the shoes.
Father Christmas finishes up his tour of Europe with a stop in the UK, before heading over to America. Before hitting the USA, he goes to Canada, where many people of French descent will be having a ‘Réveillon’ – a huge feast. Luckily, Santa will have a feast of his own when he dines on all the milk and cookies left by American children.
Near the end of his journey, Santa Claus goes next to Mexico, trying not to get mistaken for a piñata amongst all the Posada parties. As he delivers gifts all over South America, he reaches his final stop, Argentina. In this country there is a tradition of fireworks, and Chinese Lanterns being let off into the sky at midnight. Argentinians do this to toast the start of Christmas Day, but Santa secretly likes to consider it a celebration of his hard work. Children all over the world have their presents waiting for them, and his job is done for another year.
If you’ve left it a little late to do your Santa duties, check out our list of last minute toys to buy.
