2019 Santa trackers: Best ways to follow Father Christmas across NZ

Santa on his sleigh pulled by 8 reindeer in front of a large moon and fog.
Photo credit: Getty

The day is almost upon us - Santa is loading up his sleigh and will be taking off at lightning speed across a tour of the continents.

But how will you know when he's heading your way? Technology has brought us many wonderful things, and perhaps one of the most wonderful is the variety of tracking devices for Father Christmas. 

Using one (or many) of these sites will ensure you know exactly when to expect Saint Nick.

Google

You can paint, create your own elf or help a machine learning robot learn English by drawing holiday words.

But if you're not in the mood for a game, Google also offers various learning opportunities. You could find out how different countries celebrate Christmas, or even learn to code. 

Weather Watch.co.nz

If you'd prefer to keep your Christmas espionage local, home-grown weather site Weather Watch has a Santa tracker too.

The radar will keep watch on Father Christmas from 1pm on Christmas Eve up until 11pm when Santa arrives over New Zealand airspace.

If you're not going to be near a computer on Christmas Eve then you can download the Weather Watch app which will include the forecasters Santa tracker.  

 

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD)

For 11 months of the year NORAD is a serious organisation charged with aerospace control. 

But come 1 December NORAD turns festive and tracks Santa for anyone who wants to make sure they have presents coming their way.

NORAD began tracking Santa way back in 1955. An advertising misprint led children to call directly through to the commander-in-chiefs operations hotline, but rather than turn them away, he got his staff to check their radars for Santa and hand the information back.

It's a Christmas tradition that's been going strong for 64 years.

 

Reindeer cam

While it's not actually a tracker, Reindeer Cam and its app offer a live stream of Santa's reindeer throughout the holiday season. 

There are also videos of Santa reading bedtime stories, playing the tuba and singing along with his elves. 

The man himself occasionally pops in to the stream feed his reindeer ahead of the long flight on Christmas Eve.

 

Santa Video Call and Tracker

This Apple app uses "the very latest Elfish satellite technology" to track Santa's location anywhere on earth within an Elfish micrometer - apparently much smaller than a regular micrometer.

It's also a direct line to Santa. The app will let you video call him, and he'll even know your name and whether you've been naughty or nice.