Study Shows Sarasota Is The Best Place In Florida To Spot Santa And His Sleigh On Christmas Eve
Good news for kids in the Sarasota, Florida area. You have a much higher chance of spotting Santa and his sleigh as he and his reindeer cruise over South Florida. A new study from Assurance broke down the chances of Santa spotting on Christmas Eve across the country, and Sarasota ranked higher than Fort Myers, Tampa, Miami and really anywhere else in Florida!
How do they determine your chances of seeing Santa on Christmas Eve?
There’s a lot of factors that they took into consideration. The first, is people from the area logging on to the Santa Tracker. By logging in on the NORAD site, kids know when to go outside and look. Elevation and light pollution also factor in. Obviously we have no elevation, but heading away from the city out to the keys around Bradenton, or Anna Maria Island, is a great way to see darker skies. Probably also explains all the UFO sightings out there. Rounding out the data includes average vision difficulties among the residents, and December cloud cover. It’s certainly been a lot cloudier in Southwest Florida lately, but hopefully it can clear up for the weekend.
Where’s the best city to spot Santa?
Colorado Springs, Colorado. It’s all about the elevation. The city is more than a mile above sea level and if you’ve ever been out there, it’s some of the most amazing stargazing you’ll ever see. Once you get over the altitude sickness. Here’s the top 15, including Sarasota at number 14.
So, Sarasota is the best place in Florida to see Santa. Lakeland also ranked pretty high, but not enough to crack into the top 15. If you really, really, want to have a chance at spotting Santa, going out west will increase your odds. No joke about that altitude sickness in Colorado Springs, though. Getting on a plane in Fort Myers at roughly 20 foot elevation, and then flying somewhere at over 6,000 foot elevation can mess with your body. Drink a lot of water.
So if you live in the Sarasota/Bradenton area, step outside this Sunday night and you might just catch a glimpse of Santa and his sleigh. Or it could be a UFO. Either way, keep your camera phones ready.