How to track Santa Claus as he makes his way across Yorkshire - and the exact time he'll arrive in Leeds

That person, of course, is Santa Claus.

Over the course of an evening, the Chief Supply Chain Officer of the North Pole has to navigate a logistics plan that would make even the most seasoned courier weep.

According to the latest data, approximately 2.4 billion children are awaiting a visit, and to reach them all, Santa has to exploit every available time zone, stretching Christmas Eve into a 31-hour window.

To get the job done, he isn't just "speeding"—he is essentially folding the laws of physics.

Experts suggest he has to visit approximately 2,500 homes every single second. That means he has less than 0.0004 seconds per household to land the sleigh, slide down the chimney (or quantum tunnel through the radiator), distribute the gifts, and—most importantly—polish off any snacks left behind.

So, as you’re sat in a bit of traffic on the M62, just remember: at least you aren't trying to deliver a billion kilograms of cargo at 650 miles per second.

But for those who are inquisitive and want to follow Santa’s steps, or sleighing as it were, this Christmas, then you have options - and an answer to the all-important question many parents and guardians will be asked later today.

How can I follow Santa Claus this Christmas?

You have two readily available options, one of which is steeped in Christmas tradition.

While many of us know NORAD (North American Aerospace Defence Command) as the elite organisation responsible for monitoring the skies over North America, for one night a year, their mission shifts from satellites and jet fighters to reindeer and sleigh bells.

It is the gold standard for Santa tracking, used by millions of UK families every Christmas Eve.

The tradition started 70 years ago due to a simple misprint in a local Colorado newspaper. A Sears department store ad invited children to "Call Santa" on a private number, but the digits were wrong.

Instead of reaching the North Pole, the calls rang directly into the top-secret Continental Air Defence Command (CONAD) operations centre—the precursor to NORAD.

The man who answered the phone was Colonel Harry Shoup, a straight-laced military commander.

When a small child’s voice asked, "Is this Santa Claus?", Shoup could have been a Scrooge, but he wasn't. Realising a mistake had been made, he instructed his staff to check their radar for any signs of a sleigh heading south from the North Pole.

It’s a tradition that has stuck, and with the advent of modern technology, NORAD each Christmas Eve morning start tracking Santa’s progress through their official NORAD Santa Tracker website.

Alternatively, Google have also recently gotten into the Christmas spirit with their iteration of Santa’s sleigh tracker.

On Christmas Eve, a real-time dashboard that uses Google Maps technology will show Santa's location with incredible precision, and you can see his travel speed, the local weather in the cities he's visiting, and a live counter of how many billions of gifts have been dropped.

What time is Santa Claus expected to arrive in Leeds this Christmas?

While Santa’s flight path is technically classified and subject to the whims of a lead reindeer, historical radar data from NORAD gives us a very clear window for the Yorkshire leg of the journey.

In most years, the big man officially crosses into UK airspace between 9pm and midnight on Christmas Eve, with his arrival over the Leeds skyline usually occurring between 10.30pm and 11.30pm.

Since Leeds has been officially crowned the most generous city in the UK for 2025, word at the North Pole is that the sleigh might be slightly heavier than usual this year, so if the radar shows him running a few minutes behind schedule, don’t panic—he is likely just navigating the extra cargo destined for West Yorkshire postcodes.

However, even the most generous residents must follow the ultimate rule: Santa’s reindeer sensors are incredibly sensitive to movement, and he only stops when children are fast asleep.