Over a thousand people turned up in Santa Claus outfits at the alpine ski resort of Verbier, in Switzerland, last Saturday.

To celebrate the ski season's official opening weekend, skiers who showed up dressed as Santa Claus were given a free day ski pass.

This year, 1,200 skiers donned red and white suits, twice as many as last year, reported The Local, a Swiss website. This is the third year the Santa promotion is being held.

Verbier is located in the south-western part of Switzerland, in the canton of Valais.

It was one of the first resorts to open limited slopes early this year as snow fell in the middle of last month, reported The Local.