Ho! Ho! Oh. My Trip to the North Pole
As soon as I saw North Pole, Alaska was near Fairbanks, I knew I was going! (This by the way is the same logic that had me up in Barrow, AK, though that reasoning was “Look how far north that is!â€)
I did a little bit of research, and was not surprised to see there was a Santa Claus House and a post-office where you could get letters postmarked. Done!
I was expecting extreme kitsch, and yet still found it lacking. And unless your children equate Christmas with buying tshirts and ornaments, DO NOT BRING THEM HERE.
The place was for adults like me. People coming for the cheesiness, to take silly pictures, send letters to the kids in our life, and pick up souvenirs. There is a live Santa. Sitting in an alcove surrounded by toys and Christmas ornaments for sale. For a child coming to the “North Pole”, this commercial atmosphere might be a little devastating.
Anyway, if you do like North Pole souvenirs and Santa themed tshirts, they have tons! But be aware, many of the mugs and postcards are also available for a lot less at the Fairbanks Walmart.
Another tip – none of the postcards are appropriate for sending from Santa. You can buy decent “letters from Santa†for $10-$15. If I had it to do over again I would have written the letters myself in advance and just brought them to mail from the Santa Claus house or North Pole post office.
But if you like cheesiness, it is a lot of fun! There’s a giant Santa statue you can park next to.
You’ll note my name does not appear, so clearly I’m on the naughty list.
There’s also a sleigh at the edge of the gravel parking lot you can pose in (why!?). And next door is a stable with a bunch of sulky reindeer behind two layers of fence.
I had a good time, but it was not what I was expecting and I definitely wouldn’t make a special trip unless you have other reasons to be in Fairbanks.
More from this trip:
Suite Life at Sheraton Anchorage
Pancakes at Night & Other Fun at the Holiday Inn Express Fairbanks
I missed the Salmon and the Man in the Bear Suit…
The Place Where You Go to Listen
Great Alaska Outhouse Experience
Denali: To the End of the Road and Back
I don’t know if it will be a good experience or not. But it really is sad to know if a place wouldn’t meet our expectations..much more with having kids around. I guess this is fun for taking selfies. LOL!