Santa Mail is back for the festive season, inviting kids across Australia to share their Christmas wishes with Santa at over 3,300 participating Post Offices across the country.
Australia Post is encouraging families to join in the much-loved tradition by helping little ones write a letter to Santa, seal it in an envelope (no stamp or return address required), and deliver it to their local Post Office by 20 December to ensure it reaches the North Pole before Santa takes flight on Christmas Eve.
In return, letter writers will receive a special reply from Santa and one of three lucky dip Christmas tree ornaments that celebrate a distinctly Aussie Christmas, including 'Poppy the Pavlova', 'Bonnie the Bon Bon' and Australia Post mascot, 'Pip the Koala'.
Kayla Le Cornu, General Manager, Retail Product & Supply Chain at Australia Post said Santa Mail is a highlight every year, connecting kids from every corner of Australia with Santa.
"For nearly 50 years, Santa Mail has been a treasured Christmas tradition, and it's something our teams look forward to just as much as the kids do."
"There's something pretty special about helping thousands of Christmas wishes make their way to the North Pole, and we're proud to spread a little festive magic across Australia once again," said Ms Le Cornu.
And that festive magic will be travelling from just about every corner of the country.
Santa's Australian mailbag will cover some serious ground this Christmas, with letters making their way from more than 3,300 participating Post Offices, from mountaintops and tropical islands to the Red Centre and the tip of Cape York.
Christmas wishes will be sent from Australia's highest Post Office in Perisher Valley, 1,720 metres above sea level, the far north in Bamaga, Queensland, just 40 kilometres from the tip of Cape York. Further south, letters will travel from the Tasmanian hamlet of Huonville, and from mainland Australia's easternmost Post Office in Byron Bay - and a further 1,398 kilometres east from Norfolk Island. In the west, the aptly named Christmas Island Post Office will once again send festive wishes, while in the heart of the Red Centre, Alice Springs Post Office is keeping the Christmas tradition alive for children in remote and regional communities.
The magic of Santa Mail will also come to life in Melbourne's Southern Cross Lane on 9 and 10 December, with interactive family activities including letter-writing stations, photo opportunities with Pip and friends, a festive photobooth and surprise Parcel Locker reveals for children posting their letters to Santa.
Australia Post has also released two new Christmas stamp ranges for the festive season.
For this year's secular stamp range, Santa swaps snow for sand on the Kimberley coast near Broome. Ghost Crabs, an Echidna, Bilby, Wallaroo and Flatback Turtle join the festivities, while Snubfin Dolphins breach offshore and an elf rides a camel past the Gantheaume Point lighthouse on Cable Beach. The range includes two 65c stamps and a $3.50 international stamp.
A separate religious stamp set blends traditional storytelling with sacred Indigenous artistry, featuring works by artists from the Nauiyu community. Bright Star, by Grace Kumbi, offers an interpretation of the Nativity, while Christina Yambeing's Annunciation depicts Mary and Joseph with the infant Jesus. The minisheet showcases a detail from The Gift by Wadi Wadi woman Reverend Robyn Davis, with emus representing the three wise men. The range includes a 65c stamp and a $3.50 international stamp.
