Portable North Pole or a Two-Way Santa Phone Call: Which Is Better for Young Kids?

By the Santa Wishes team · Updated November 8, 2026 · Facts checked November 8, 2026 · How we check our guides

For a young child who is ready to chat, a two-way phone call usually feels more personal, because Santa hears what your child says and answers it. For babies, toddlers and very shy children, a personalized video from Portable North Pole (PNP) is often the gentler start, since they can simply watch.

PNP now offers more than videos, including its own live chat with Santa, so the real choice is how your child will talk with Santa, and what you want to know when it's over. Here is what each option is, going by each company's own pages, and how to match it to your child.

What Portable North Pole offers

Going by PNP's own pages, it offers several kinds of Santa moments:

• Personalized Santa videos. PNP's Premium page lists Santa videos, calls and stories among what its Magic Pass unlocks, and says you can start free.
• Scheduled calls from Santa. PNP describes a Santa Call as "a personalized message that arrives as a real phone call from Santa." You pick a scenario, personalize the message and schedule it to the number you choose, at the time you set.
• Talk to Santa. This is PNP's live chat. PNP calls it a live, two-way conversation where your child speaks with Santa and hears his replies. Each chat runs up to ten personalized exchanges, and you can pick Parent & Child, Groups or Ask Your Questions. PNP says it happens online.
• How you pay. You can start for free, buy a single Premium video or call on its own, or get the Magic Pass, which PNP calls its annual Premium pass. PNP says exact prices show on its Premium page and vary by country.

Plans and prices change from season to season, so check PNP's site for what is offered where you live this year.

The alternative: a two-way Santa phone call

A two-way call rings a phone, and your child and Santa actually talk. Santa Wishes is one example, and here is exactly what it is:

• A three to five minute two-way phone call from Santa to a US phone number.
• Before the call, you tell Santa your child's first name and age, their wish list, a good thing they did this year, something to gently encourage, and extras like a pet's name.
• You choose the kind of call: Wish list, Just the magic (no gift talk) or The meaning of Christmas.
• You schedule it between 8:00 am and 8:30 pm, up to 90 days ahead, or press Call now.
• Afterwards you get Santa's notes, with every wish in your child's own words and the one they want most, plus the MP3 recording and transcript for 30 days. Then they are deleted.
• It costs $19 per call, recording included.

Side by side

Which is better for your child?

There is no single right answer for every child. These are the situations that usually decide it.

A video is often better if:

• Your child is a baby or a young toddler. Very young children often stare at a phone rather than talk into it. Watching a personalized video can be magic enough.
• Your child freezes on the phone. Some kids go quiet the moment a voice they don't know speaks to them. A video asks nothing of them.
• You want something to watch together. A video is something the whole family can watch at once.
• You'd like to start for free. PNP says you can start free, then decide.

A two-way conversation is often better if:

• Your child loves to talk. Many preschoolers and early school age kids have a lot to tell Santa. A conversation gives them someone who listens and answers.
• You want it to feel personal, not scripted. A message is the same however your child reacts. In a conversation, your child's own answers shape what happens next.

Both PNP's Talk to Santa and a phone call like Santa Wishes give your child a two-way conversation. The differences are where it happens, how long it lasts and what you get afterwards.

A phone call like Santa Wishes is often better if:

• You want the phone to ring. For a little one, a ringing phone with Santa on the line is part of the wonder.
• You want to know exactly what they're wishing for. A child might tell a grown-up "a bike" and tell Santa "a red bike with a bell and a basket." Santa's notes give you every wish in their own words and the one they want most.
• You want clear rules about what Santa says. Santa never promises a specific gift, and he never asks for an address, school, last name or anything personal.

PNP is often the easier fit if:

• You are outside the US. Santa Wishes only calls US phone numbers. PNP says its calls can be scheduled to the number you choose.
• You want many Santa moments across the season. PNP's Magic Pass covers videos, calls and stories, not just one conversation.

Questions worth asking any Santa service

Whatever you choose, these five questions are worth an answer before you pay. Here is how Santa Wishes answers each one, so you have something concrete to compare.

1. Will Santa promise a gift? On a Santa Wishes call, no. He says he'll talk to the elves, so nothing is promised that you then have to find.
2. Will Santa ask for personal details? Santa never asks for an address, school, last name or anything personal.
3. How long is the recording kept? The recording and transcript are yours for 30 days, then deleted.
4. What if the call doesn't connect? If nobody answers, or the call drops in under 45 seconds, you can call again, up to 4 tries.
5. Can you skip the gift talk? Yes. Just the magic is a call with no gift talk at all.

For PNP, look for the same answers in its own FAQ and privacy pages before you buy.

For more on the first two questions, see our guide to a Santa call that won't promise gifts or ask for personal info.

Can you do both?

Yes, and they don't compete. A video can build excitement early in December, and a call closer to Christmas lets your child answer Santa in their own words. If you have children of different ages, you can match each one to what suits them: a video for the two year old, a conversation for the six year old.

The honest answer

Neither option is better for every young child. If your child is very young or very shy, a personalized video is gentle and easy. If your child is ready to talk, a two-way conversation lets them tell Santa about their year and hear him answer. And if you also want a clear picture of what they're hoping for, down to the color and the kind, pick a call that sends you Santa's notes, with every wish in your child's own words.

Questions people ask

Sources

• Santa Wishes: a personalized phone call from Santa santawishes.app
• Call Santa: Personalized Phone Calls, Portable North Pole portablenorthpole.com
• Chat with Santa: Talk to Santa Live, Portable North Pole portablenorthpole.com
• Portable North Pole Premium and Magic Pass portablenorthpole.com