Finnish Lapland

You don’t do cold!!!?? These were the first words hubby uttered to me when I said SURPRISE I have booked a three-night snowmobiling adventure to Finnish Lapland. Kilpisjärvi is based at the foot of the snow-capped Lyngen Alps, and perched on the edge of Lake Kilpis, it is the perfect base from which to explore the most northern parts of True Lapland. Having visited Iceland & Norway I was surprised how different Finland felt. Landing in a winter wonderland at Enontekiö arctic airport is quite unique, this small airport is so small it doesn’t have a luggage carousel, yet it effortlessly manages in the region of 30,000 international passengers a year. Enroute to Kilpisjärvi we stopped to collect our snowsuits & waterproof boots plus take on some gingerbread biscuits & warm glögi a spiced fruit drink. As we drove to resort it was lovely to sit back & take in the pretty white expanse of frozen tundra & snow laden trees. Upon arrival at the Tundrea we dropped our luggage at our Malla Premium Cabin which offered us a warm cozy home for the following 3 nights. With the log fire roaring it was lovely to sit & rest the aching bones looking out over the white landscape in the evenings keeping an eagle eye for the chance to spot the Northern lights. Our cabin had all the facilities needed with 2 double bedrooms, kitchenette, drying cupboard, sauna, shower & a little to my amusement a washing machine in the wet room. There was also the option to sleep upstairs on the mezzanine landing with gorgeous views over the lakes. We had a little tour of the Wau cabins which are blessed with stunning views & the chance to see the aurora from the comfort of your bed. So, what did we do? We spent a few hours at the Sami reindeer farm where we listened to a multigenerational Sami Reindeer farmer talk about their history, their way of life & what the future might hold. I am always in awe listening aboriginal inhabitants who speak so fluently in English as they tell their tales & the way their sense of pride & humour shines through as they talk. We learnt some interesting facts that but Finnish law every reindeer has to have a legal owner; they are also masters of extreme temperatures managing to live in from 30 degrees to minus 50 degrees C. We then had & chance to feed the reindeers before a short sleigh ride. At 7pm we dressed in our layers with thermal suits, boots & mini hand feet warmers ready for our search for the Northern Lights via snowmobile. , So we hopped on our snowmobile and ventured out to the remote arctic tundrea in the hope of catching the swaying Aurora overhead. Despite the Aurora being illusive it was breathtaking trip in so many ways, stopping for some warm glögi & doughnuts in the middle of nowhere is a little surreal. An undoubted highlight of this tour is venturing out on snowmobile to the ‘three borders’ point, where Norway, Finland and Sweden meet, no passport control, no duty free just one giant yellow concrete bollard – circle around all three countries in less than 30 seconds! Zipping back across the frozen Tundrea on our snowmobiles the artic sun began to set filling the sky with soft pink hues as the snowflakes began to fall. This really was a trip I had never considered bucket list but since our return we can’t stop talking about how amazing our trip was. This was an adult only trip, but we offer alternatives for families where under 17s can travel in the sleigh of the group leader. If this sort of holiday interests, you please do get in touch. Tracy