French postal service, La Poste, announced that their annual Santa Claus letter drive has begun.
Children across France can send their letters anytime until December 20th – these can be posted in any postbox in France addressed simply to Père Noël, and they will find their way to the man himself.
Thanks to Santa’s 60 helpful ‘elves’ (postal workers), kids can be sure they will get a response, free of charge.
And because both Santa and his elves are magic, they can send replies in either English or French.
The service was first launched in 1962, and it receives around a million letters every year.
It all began after then-minister for the post and telecommunications, Jacques Marette, heard about two postwomen in Maine-et-Loire and Veules-les-Roses who were taking it upon themselves to answer children’s letters.
How to write to Santa
These days kids can write to him either by a traditional letter or electronically.
READ MORE: 14 things you can do at a French post office (apart from post letters)
If opting for the traditional format, children simply write ‘Père Noël’ as the recipient, with no need for any postage. Be sure that they do not forget to add a return address, in order to get Santa’s response.
To write electronically, you can click ‘Ecrire au Père Noël’ on La Poste’s website.
Letters to the elderly
This year, La Poste has also started a new initiative. They are inviting children to send kind messages to the elderly, in order to bring them ‘warmth and comfort’ (chaleur et réconfort).
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The postal service will transmit these letters to residents of retirement homes with help from the association ‘1 Lettre, 1 Sourire’ (One Letter, One Smile). More info here.
