On Saturday night, Zackiel is going to leave the roof door ajar and have a hand torch handy, just in case Santa Claus decides to drop by to leave him a present. The seven-year-old, who admits he was not well-behaved all year, wrote to Santa to ask for forgiveness and to assure him that he will leave him some cookies and fresh milk, and some carrots for Rudolph the reindeer.

Zackiel is one of hundreds of children in Malta who this month wrote to Santa to convince him that they are deserving of presents and to let him know what they really wish to get this Christmas.

Another boy, Liam, insists in his letter that he “did everything well” and even got an A grade, while Jaiden, who would like a Pikachu toy, believes his parents are very proud of him. Dairushka, meanwhile, promises she will be on her best behaviour next year and asks for an interactive doll.

Every year, Maltapost receives letters, some of which have no address or affixed stamp, addressed to the man who lives up north. The public postal service takes these letters seriously and sends them for free to an address in the Arctic Circle, Finland. Sometimes the senders actually receive a reply from Father Christmas.

The postal service takes these letters seriously and sends them for free to an address in theArctic Circle in Finland

Yolande Spiteri, head of customer experience, said this tradition remains strong, as each year the number of letters received increases. Some of the letters are sent with the regular post.

However, to add to the Christmas magic, Maltapost this year placed a special letterbox next to Santa’s Post Office, opposite the Law Courts in Valletta. Some posted their letters there, while others handed the letter over to Santa himself. He was hanging around in his temporary post office.

Ms Spiteri noted that most of the letters are posted without a stamp or even envelope. Others do not have an address and are simply addressed “Dear Santa”. However, Maltapost makes sure all are forwarded to Santa in Finland. The company this Christmas launched a separate initiative, also related to writing to Santa Claus, through which it collected funds in aid of Inspire.

For Letter from Santa, children wrote to Santa, and their parents or guardians made a donation to Inspire. The children then got a personalised letter from Santa himself.

Each year the number of letters Maltapost receives for Santa increases. Photo: Chris Sant Fournier