5 Mistakes to Avoid on the Santa Claus Express Train

How do you make mistakes on a train?

Easy. Book the Santa Claus Express.

Don’t get us wrong—the train is great. We rode it and had the best time. 

But you’ve got to come prepared.

These are the 5 common Santa Claus Express mistakes that you should avoid if you also want to have a magical, stress-free journey.

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Here’s a little bit about our journey, if you are new here! If you know us, feel free to skip this part.

After leaving our old life in Scotland in March 2022 (it rains too much there), we travelled full-time for almost 2 years. Sounds fancy, doesn’t it? Well, it was. If you think that carrying overpacked backpacks in 45°C heat around streets that aren’t even on Google Maps is fancy. And that’s just 1% of all the fun we had! 😆

During the 2 years we volunteered in Italy and Bulgaria (free travel while learning new skills, anyone?), explored other amazing European countries and backpacked Southeast Asia. Btw, even our secret wedding was more of an expedition than a wedding. 😅

And, of course, we researched and planned everything ourselves, because you gotta keep the budget low, right? If you are like us, you’ve come to the right place, because we want to share all the useful travel tips and info with you!

Excited? Good. Let’s get into it so you can go on your own epic adventures too!

Lapland holiday tips

If you’re reading about Santa Claus Express mistakes to avoid, we’re assuming you’re planning a Lapland trip.

So exciting!! 

Let us help you along the way—by sharing not just mistakes to watch out for, but also other posts that will make your planning easier:

• Here you can find a full guide on taking the Santa Claus Express night train, including how to buy tickets, what cabins are available and lots of useful tips.
• If you’re curious what travelling on Santa’s train is really like, in this post we shared our honest experience—the good and the bad.
• Are you taking Santa Claus Express to Santa’s village? We’ve got a few posts that will help: find out how to meet the real Santa and not get scammed, learn the 10 insider tips for visiting Santa Claus Village and discover the free hack that no one is talking about.
• Looking to save money? We did Lapland on a budget and shared all our money-saving tips in this post.
• Need help with planning your Lapland holiday? We can jump on a call with you and chat through any of your concerns—book here.

Santa Claus Express mistakes

You’d think it’s pretty hard to mess up a train journey—especially when you’ve taken trains a million times before. And yet!

This is not a normal train.

It’s Santa’s magical train.

Meaning it comes with its own magical challenges that you’ve got to overcome.

And that’s where we come in. We’re here to help you avoid these 5 common Santa Claus Express mistakes, so you have a stress-free journey and don’t end up getting to Santa’s hometown looking like a spat-out soggy noodle.

Mistake no. 1: Expecting Christmas atmosphere

This is probably the no. 1 of all Santa Claus Express mistakes.

And we have to admit we made it too.

How could you not expect Christmas vibes, or at least some decor, on a train literally called Santa Claus Express, though?

A train that takes you straight to Santa’s village, where the real Santa Claus lives?

The thing is, this is just a normal train.

Yes, it does take people straight to Santa Claus Village, but, equally, locals use it to get around their country year-round.

So don’t expect Christmas songs, decor or themed-menu in the restaurant car.

The theme of the train is nature/forest, similar to the toilets at the Helsinki Airport, which play bird sounds instead of music (very weird, the first time you go, btw!).

What can you do to create a Christmas atmosphere

Good news is, even though the train isn’t Christmas-themed, you can add magic to your journey yourself!

Here is how:

• When taking a picture with the train, make sure to position yourself in front of the carriage that has Santa’s head on it, that way it will be more obvious you’re taking the Santa Claus Express!
• Have a Christmas playlist ready to go and play it in your cabin (the perks of having private cabins!). You can also plan to watch a Christmas movie before bed.
  
  Pro tip: since wifi on the train is not always stable, make sure you have any songs and movies ready as offline versions.
• Pack Christmas snacks for the sleeper train. We took the Santa Claus Express at the end of March, so we made sure to save some Christmas snacks from the previous festive season to have on the train (do we admit here that we then forgot about this plan and only realised once we got to our northern lights resort in Lapland?  Another of Santa Claus Express mistakes! So a pro tip here: add a note to your itinerary about the Christmas snacks, so you don’t forget to actually have them on the train!).
• Another smart idea? Bringing a book to read. It doesn’t get more cosy than reading a Christmas book on Santa’s train! If you have kids, take Christmas-themed activity books or sheets with you to keep them entertained.

Mistake no. 2: Not choosing the right cabin 

Did you know you can choose your cabin on the Santa Claus Express?

And we don’t just mean whether you want a downstairs or an upstairs one (with a shower!!). 

We mean the exact cabin, in whichever carriage you want.

What to think about when choosing your cabin

When buying your train tickets, you’ll be automatically allocated a cabin by the booking system.

Make sure to open up the map of the train and check where the cabin is located.

• Maybe you want to be near the restaurant car.
• Maybe you want to be in the last carriage, so you won’t have many people passing by your cabin.
• Maybe you want a cabin right by the stairs or the train entrance, so you don’t have to be dragging your suitcases far.

Basically, choose the best cabin for your needs – don’t make a mistake of just taking whatever the booking system allocates you.

Mistake no. 3: Not packing smart

Why is it important to pack smart?

Because you will regret not doing so once you see the size of your cabin.

The best way to avoid making this mistake is by planning well in advance:

• Packing what you’ll need for the night on the train
• Having handy everything for the next day, once the train drops you off at your destination (most likely, Santa Claus Village)

We talk more about how to pack well for the Santa Claus Express train here—have a look, so you don’t spend your night on the train rooting through your suitcase looking for a toothbrush.

Mistake no. 4: Wasting money on food & drink

An easy Santa Claus Express mistake to make?

Planning to eat in the restaurant car.

Why?

1. The car is small, so you might end up wasting a lot of time waiting for a free table
2. The food is expensive and, well, train-quality, so basically all you’re getting for your money is the convenience of eating right on the the train

If you’re hoping to do Lapland on a budget, don’t waste your money on food on the Santa Claus Express. And drinks too, actually!

What we would recommend instead is that you board the train prepared. 

That means either having dinner beforehand, or bringing your own food with you.

We talk about how we ate on the Santa Claus Express train here.

Burgers for dinner, pastries for breakfast

Mistake no. 5: Not having travel insurance

Lapland is magical. But it can also be pretty dangerous.

Think freezing cold temperatures. 

Deep snow. 

Icy roads and paths. 

Adrenaline sports. 

Reindeer jumping out of the forest in front of your car or a bus. It’s the Arctic after all!

In the name of saving money, it’s easy to think skipping travel insurance is okay.

From all the Santa Claus Express mistakes, though, this one might turn out to be the most costly.

Do this if you want to save money on travel insurance

What would we recommend to you?

First, don’t risk having to spend a lot of money on expensive medical treatments if something happens.

Be prepared by having travel insurance.

But don’t buy just from anyone.

Pick a good travel insurance company that offers a great value for money. One that won’t cost you a fortune.

We rely on True Traveller when we explore the world, because they:

• are a company created by travellers, so they know exactly what you need for your trips
• are super approachable – one of our secret hacks for checking whether a travel insurance company will suck or not, when you actually need their help
• have a claims process that will blow your mind
• offer prices that are lower than anyone else’s, letting you save money while being covered for any emergencies

Check out how much travel insurance from True Traveller would cost you here (no email or phone info needed).

We hope this post will help you avoid these 5 Santa Claus Express mistakes, so you look like a pro traveller in Lapland, rather than like someone Santa’s Rudolph would be disappointed in!

If you have any questions, you can DM us on our Instagram or book a call with us where we can chat about your Lapland plans in more detail.

Have the best journey on the Santa Claus Express train and say hi to Santa from us!