Updated 2025.
For years, young children tuned into the radio on Christmas Eve to follow Santa's journey around the world. They waited breathlessly for updates provided on NPR as NORAD (the North American Aerospace Defense Command) "tracked" Santa's arrival at cities across the globe. For many military families, this tradition became a shared holiday moment passed down through generations.
The days of listening to this time-honored tradition on radio are long gone. However, Santa has kept up with the digital age! These days, you can keep up with this holiday tradition and track Santa on your phone, tablet, or laptop.
For the most trusted Santa tracking resource, gather the kids and visit NORAD Tracks Santa or download the app to your mobile device. Children can count down the days until presents land under the tree while listening to a holiday sound track. In the days leading up to Christmas, an interactive menu offers a gift shop, an arcade with a new game unlocked each day, a "music stage" featuring Santa's favorite songs, a theater with movies about Santa and NORAD, a library of holiday stories, and an overview of NORAD and their Santa tracking tradition. The NORAD Tracks Santa website launches each year in early December and is available in multiple languages, making it accessible to military children and families stationed around the world.
The history behind this tradition is heartwarming. Our military members serve our country every day, but they've also been caring for children during the most joyous season of the year for decades. Here’s a little background on NORAD’s Santa tracking.
How NORAD'S Santa Tracking Tradition Started
For over 60 years, NORAD and its predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD), have tracked Santa’s flight, but it all started as a mistake.
In 1955, a Colorado Springs based Sears, Roebuck & Co. advertisement misprinted the telephone number for children to call Santa. Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD Commander-in-Chief's operations hotline. After multiple calls from children seeking Santa's whereabouts, the Director of Operations, Colonel Harry Shoup, asked his staff to check the radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and the tradition was born.
In 1958, the governments of Canada and the United States created a bi-national air defense command for North America (NORAD), which then took on the tradition of tracking Santa. What started as a typo turned into one of the Department of Defense's largest community outreach programs! As of 2025, NORAD marks the 70th anniversary of the Santa tracking tradition, which began in 1955.
NORAD's Modern-Day Santa Tracking
These days, NORAD relies on volunteers to make the program successful, as well as support from sponsoring companies (see their site for the list). The NORAD Tracks Santa Program uses minimal government funds. Each year, volunteers work to dutifully report Santa's location to millions of children around the world. Don't miss their adorable and witty "Sleigh Technical Data."
Though the site is live with loads of activities and holiday spirit in the days preceding Christmas, mark December 24 as the day to visit NORAD at its site or app or call 1-877-HI-NORAD for the most up-to-date Santa tracking information. In addition to the phone line, NORAD also offers web-based calling through its official site on December 24. Oh, what fun!
Perhaps following NORAD or interacting with Santa virtually will become a new holiday tradition for you and your family. For military children who may be far from extended family or experiencing a parent’s deployment, traditions like NORAD Tracks Santa can offer a sense of continuity and connection during the holidays.From all of us at MilitaryByOwner, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and happy holidays!
