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Oct 08, 2026

Eleanor Roosevelt cabin, Rovaniemi: how Arctic Circle tourism began

Guests on our Santa Claus Village days often notice a small, dark log cabin among the much larger buildings and ask what it is. It is the Roosevelt Cottage, and it is older than everything else around it: it was the first building on the Arctic Circle at Rovaniemi, put up in a single week in June 1950 for a visit by Eleanor Roosevelt.

Its story is also the story of how a town rebuilding after the war discovered that people would travel a very long way simply to stand on the Arctic Circle. Below we tell it using the history published by the Regional Museum of Lapland and the City of Rovaniemi, and Visit Rovaniemi.

In short: the Eleanor Roosevelt cabin is a 34-square-metre log cabin built between 3 and 10 June 1950 to welcome Eleanor Roosevelt, who arrived on 11 June 1950 to see Lapland’s post-war reconstruction. It stood at the Arctic Circle, became its first visitor attraction, and today stands in Santa Claus Village, about 8 km from Rovaniemi city centre. You can visit the village with our guide on the Santa Claus Village Tour (from 169 €, 5 hours).

At a glance

• From: 169 €
• Experience type: Santa Claus Village / Culture tour
• Duration: 5 hours
• Difficulty: Vey easy
• Book in Advance: Cut off: 4 hours before start time
• Included: A Tour Guide in English (other languages available on request: (Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, German & Finnish. PLEASE NOTE LIMITED AVAILABILITY FOR OTHER LANGUAGES) If another language is required. Please send us an email or WhatsApp after booking.); Winter clothing (Adult & Child size), overalls, boots & gloves; Meeting Santa Claus himself!; Local lunch; Pick-ups and drop-offs are included in the price in 10 km radius from Rovaniemi city center; Photos taken with your own device; Air conditioned car
• Cancellation: We will charge a cancellation fee of 15% if the booking is cancelled 15 days or less before the event. Otherwise, the standard cancellation policy is 24 hours before the event, after which the remaining amount is also non-refundable.
• Accessibility: Not wheelchair accessible; Not stroller accessible

Why Eleanor Roosevelt came to Lapland

Finnish Lapland and Rovaniemi were devastated in the final stages of the Second World War. The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) gave significant help with the reconstruction, and in June 1950 Eleanor Roosevelt — widow of President Franklin D. Roosevelt — travelled to Lapland to see the rebuilding for herself.

The town wanted to receive her properly. On 1 June 1950, Governor Uuno Hannula, Mayor Lauri Kaijalainen and other local decision-makers met at Hotel Pohjanhovi to plan the reception, and forester Jarl Sundqvist took a key role in gathering the materials and people. The idea they settled on was a cabin exactly where the visitor would want to be photographed: at the Arctic Circle.

A log cabin built in one week

The numbers in the museum’s history are remarkable. Construction began on Saturday 3 June 1950 and was finished by Sunday 10 June, the day before Mrs Roosevelt arrived. The crew worked in two shifts, 16 to 18 hours a day.

• Architect: Ferdinand Salokangas
• Master builder: Yrjö Kamunen, with a team of local carpenters and a mason
• Logs: supplied by the Kemiyhtiö and Veitsiluoto companies
• Size: a modest 34-square-metre log cabin
• Contract price: 120,000 Finnish markkas

The land was donated by a local teacher, Eemeli Karinen; ownership was formally transferred to the borough of Rovaniemi only on 18 June 1954. One detail we always enjoy sharing: the cabin actually stood about 108 metres south of the Arctic Circle line.

11 June 1950: the visit

Eleanor Roosevelt arrived on 11 June 1950. Visit Rovaniemi keeps a photograph of her with Governor Uuno Hannula at the Arctic Circle, and dates the cottage’s completion to that same day. The visit itself was short, but the building stayed — and so did the idea that the Arctic Circle was somewhere worth visiting.

From one cabin to a visitor destination

Through the 1950s the little cabin became a proper stop for travellers. According to the museum history it offered:

• a special Arctic Circle postmark — which the Finnish Post first rejected before it was approved
• certificates for crossing the Arctic Circle
• a souvenir shop, a drinks stand and a post office

In summer it was open from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., staffed by young women who often wore regional national costumes and lived on site. In 1952 a natural-stone patio with a fountain was laid in front of the cottage, with patio furniture designed by Alvar Aalto, and in 1956 Salokangas designed an L-shaped extension (later dismantled). By the end of the 1950s around 50,000 visitors a year came, from some 30 countries.

Famous guests at the Arctic Circle

The cabin’s guest list grew well beyond its first visitor. The museum history names, among others, President Lyndon B. Johnson (1963), Leonid Brezhnev, Josip Broz Tito, Golda Meir and the Swedish Crown Prince Carl Gustaf. For a building made in a week, it has seen a remarkable slice of twentieth-century history.

How the cottage got its name — and what came next

Originally it was simply the Arctic Circle Cottage. As visitor numbers kept rising, a new, larger Arctic Circle Cottage designed by Lempi Purdy opened in 1965, with a working kitchen and room for around ten summer staff; it was doubled in size in 1975–1976. The first cabin was gradually sidelined, and people began calling it the Roosevelt Cottage around the late 1960s or the 1970s at the latest.

Its later life was varied: a seasonal souvenir shop, a store room, Santa Claus’s official transmitter station in the late 1980s and a beer house in the 1990s. Today a plaque reads “Roosevelt Cottage – Rooseveltin maja 1950”.

From midnight sun to Santa Claus

For decades Rovaniemi was a summer destination. The museum history notes that until the 1980s the midnight sun drew more visitors than winter did; Santa Claus themed tourism began shifting the main season towards winter from the mid-1980s, and visitors have been able to meet Santa Claus in Rovaniemi year-round since 1985.

The site that began with one log cabin is now Santa Claus Village. Visit Rovaniemi describes the Roosevelt Cottage as its first attraction and notes that the village welcomes more than half a million visitors every year. Crossing the Arctic Circle, marked in the village’s central square, is free, as is meeting Santa at the Santa Claus Office.

How this shows up on our tours

We run our Santa Claus Village Tour for families who want the village without having to plan it: from 169 €, 5 hours, very easy. As listed on the product page, it includes an English-speaking guide, winter clothing in adult and child sizes, meeting Santa Claus, a local lunch and pick-ups and drop-offs within 10 km of Rovaniemi city centre. If you would like to see the Roosevelt Cottage while you are there, mention it to your guide — how much time there is on the day depends on the programme, so do ask us when booking.

For a quieter Santa moment, our Magical Private Santa Visit takes your family to Santa’s Secret Hide-out, and guests staying at Postmaster Hotel or Aurora Hill Resort can book the Private Santa’s Surprise visit in their own room. All our Santa experiences are on the Santa Claus activities page, and our nature and culture tours cover more of Lapland’s story. You may also like our guide to meeting Santa Claus in Rovaniemi and our reindeer tours for 2026–2027.

Frequently asked questions

When was the Eleanor Roosevelt cabin built?

It was built in one week, from 3 to 10 June 1950, and Eleanor Roosevelt arrived on 11 June 1950.

Why did Eleanor Roosevelt visit Rovaniemi?

She came to see Lapland’s post-war reconstruction, which UNRRA had supported, after Rovaniemi was devastated in the final stages of the Second World War.

Where is the Roosevelt Cottage today?

It stands in Santa Claus Village at the Arctic Circle, about 8 km from Rovaniemi city centre.

Is the cabin exactly on the Arctic Circle?

Not quite. The museum history says it was located about 108 metres south of the Arctic Circle line.

How big is the Roosevelt Cottage?

It is a modest log cabin of 34 square metres.

Can I visit Santa Claus Village with StayLapland?

Yes. Our Santa Claus Village Tour (from 169 €, 5 hours) includes a guide, winter clothing, meeting Santa Claus, a local lunch and pick-up within 10 km of the city centre.

Ready to book?

You may also like

• Magical Private Santa Visit — from 249 €, 1,5 hours
• Private Santa’s Surprise visit — from 199 €, 15 minutes

Sources

• Regional Museum of Lapland / City of Rovaniemi: The Roosevelt Cottage – History of the first building in the Arctic Circle (2025)
• Visit Rovaniemi: Santa Claus Village at the Arctic Circle