Northern Scandinavia in Winter
8 Days Starting in Rovaniemi and ending in Tromso
Visiting: Rovaniemi, Lulea, Lapland, Tromso
Tour Overview
Make the most of the cold season and take a trip to Lapland in winter – this is Northern Scandinavia blanketed in white! Over eight days, you’ll travel through Finland, Sweden and Norway to see a hotel carved from ice, bake bread the traditional Swedish way, visit the UNESCO-listed church town of Gammelstad and search for the Northern Lights
Highlights
Itinerary
Day 1: Rovaniemi
Location: Rovaniemi
Accommodation: Hotel
Tervetuloa! Welcome to Finland. Your adventure begins in Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland, with a welcome meeting at 6 pm tonight. This city is an urban oasis in the Arctic wilderness, full of culture and scenic hiking opportunities. If you arrive early, maybe explore the city at your own pace, visit Santa’s workshop, or go hiking among the rapids and aapa mires. After the meeting tonight, consider heading out with your leader and fellow travellers for an optional welcome dinner.
Included Activities:
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Optional Activities:
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Day 2: Rovaniemi
Location: Rovaniemi
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: breaksfast
Head out on a leader-led orientation walk of Rovaniemi this morning. Almost totally destroyed during World War II, this modern city is known for being the ‘official’ hometown of Santa Claus, as well as a popular spot to see the Northern Lights. After your walk, you’ll take the bus to the Arctic Snowhotel – carved differently every year and with a temperature of 0 to -5 °C, the walls and furniture inside are all completely made from snow and ice! Explore the rooms, adorned with snow art and light installations and maybe stop at the ice bar for a drink. After, return to Rovaniemi and maybe visit Arktikum – a museum and science centre that explores the Arctic region and the history of Finnish Lapland. You might like to spend the afternoon pedalling through the city on a bike, or on the Ounasvaara walking trail – here, you can wander through the forest, past a ski area to a wooden observation tower for views over the white expanse.
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Day 3: Lulea
Location: Lulea
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: breaksfast
Drive to Lulea – a coastal city in Swedish Lapland known for its cluster of well-preserved wooden houses and the stone Nederlulea Church, built in the 1400s. When you arrive, head to the open-air museum of Hagnan for a bread-baking workshop. You’ll learn about the Swedish baking traditions of kladda bread, try the techniques out for yourself and hear about Swedish folklore beliefs (it's said that the number of folds on your bread will reveal how many suitors you’ll have!). Tonight, head to the UNESCO World Heritage site of Gammelstad Church Town – unique to northern Sweden, these towns speak of the past when there were few churches and locals had to travel from far away. With no way to get home, the people built small homes around the church to stay the night. You’ll meet with a local guide who will take you on a tour of the town by lamp light. Later, maybe go in search of the Northern Lights!
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Day 4: Lapland
Location: Lapland
Accommodation: Guesthouse
Meals Included: breaksfast
Travel like the locals this morning and hop on a public bus from Lulea to Kiruna – Sweden’s northernmost city. When you arrive, take a leader-led orientation walk to get your bearings, then take the opportunity to rest at your accommodation. Tonight, you’ll head out in the darkness to the incredibly scenic Abysko National Park to go hunting for the magic of the Northern Lights with a local guide. If you’re lucky, you might see the natural displays of colours – green, red and purple – light up the sky. Did you know that the Vikings believed the Northern Lights were Valkyries taking fallen soldiers to Valhalla?
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Day 5: Lapland
Location: Lapland
Accommodation: Guesthouse
Meals Included: breaksfast, lunch
Today, you’ll head out on a daytrip to the Sami Village – the Sami are Europe’s only recognised Indigenous people. When you arrive in their homeland, you’ll meet with some of the locals and learn about traditional Sami culture, traditional knowledge and their relationship with nature. Meet with a local reindeer herder and hear stories about how reindeer are integral to their livelihoods. You’ll then sit down to enjoy a traditional lunch with the locals. After, head back to Kiruna for the night, where you’re free to find a good dinner spot or rug up and sit outside, in search of a sky lit up by colour.
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Day 6: Tromso
Location: Tromso
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: breaksfast
Today will be a bit of a long travel day as you head to Tromso. You’ll first take the train to Narvik, where you’ll have a couple of hours to stretch your legs and find some lunch. Narvik is an ice-free port, originally built to ship iron ore from the mines in Kiruna – Nazi Germany tried to gain control of this vital supply during World War II and the Allies tried to stop them. If you like, you can visit the war museum here and learn more about the town’s history. Then, take the bus to Tromso – this picturesque city in Norway is one of the best places in the world to see the Northern Lights!
Optional Activities:
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Day 7: Tromso
Location: Tromso
Accommodation: Hotel
Meals Included: breaksfast
This morning after breakfast, head out on an orientation walk through Tromso’s colourful houses, backdropped by snowy peaks. With your leader, you’ll explore some of the sights of this gorgeous city, then you’re free to choose your own adventure. Maybe go on a show-shoeing mission to help the local Arctic owls! This project aims to provide nesting sites for three species of local owls and monitor their population in response to a mission for sustainable tourism. You’ll meet with a local guide from Wild Lab Projects – this organisation partners with The Owl Team and Birdlife Troms to connect travellers with nature conservation – and, depending on the time of year, put nest boxes in trees, check existing boxes for owls and learn about these amazing birds. You’ll enjoy some homemade sandwiches, cookies and hot drinks together, then return for a final night in Tromso.
Included Activities:
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Day 8: Tromso
Location: Tromso
Meals Included: breaksfast
With no further activities planned after breakfast, your trip comes to an end this morning. If you’d like to extend your stay in Tromso and increase your chances of seeing the Northern Lights, just speak to your booking agent ahead of time and organise additional accommodation.
What's Included
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Accommodation
Hotel (5 nights), Guesthouse (2 nights) -
Meals
7 breakfasts, 1 lunches -
Rovaniemi - Welcome meeting
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Rovaniemi – Rovaniemi Leader led orientation walk
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Rovaniemi - Snow Hotel Entrance
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Lulea - Gammelstadt Lantern Tour and Bread baking
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Kiruna - Orientation Walk
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Abysko NP - Northern Light Hunting Trip
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Lapland - Trip to Sami village with lunch
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Tromso - Orientation Walk
Transport
- OVERNIGHT TRAIN
- Finnish overnight trains are a very comfortable way to travel long distances without losing valuable time to explore the destinations. Compartments usually consist of 3 or 4 berths (2 bottom bunks and 1 or 2 top bunks), lockable doors with key-card access, communal bathroom facilities at the end of each carriage (sink and toilet), and plenty of space for luggage. Blankets, pillows and linen are provided, and each berth has a reading light. The exact layout of the cabin depends on the carriage type the group are allocated to. All trains have heating, however please note that windows can't be opened.
Accommodation
- OCCASIONAL ALTERNATIVE ACCOMMODATION
- The style of accommodation indicated in the day-to-day itinerary is a guideline. On rare occasions, alternative arrangements may need to be made due to the lack of availability of rooms in our usual accommodation. A similar standard of accommodation will be used in these instances.
- TWIN SHARE BASIS
- Accommodation on this trip is on a twin/multishare basis. We pair up solo travellers with another traveller of the same gender as per the gender marker on each of their passports. Please note there may be times where facilities will be shared rather than ensuite and rare occasions when you share a room with passengers travelling on different Intrepid trips than your own.
- CHECK-IN TIME
- Throughout the trip we request that our hotels prepare rooms in time for our arrival, especially if we're arriving prior to normal check-in time. However this isn't always possible which means we won't be able to check-in immediately on arrival at some hotels. Instead, we can store our luggage and explore our new destination.
- PRE/POST TRIP ACCOMMODATION
- If you've purchased pre-trip or post-trip accommodation (if available), you may be required to change rooms from your trip accommodation for these extra nights.
- FACILITIES
- Your accommodation may not always have private en suite facilities or air-conditioning. European hotels generally don't provide kettles or fridges.
Important Information
- 1. A single supplement is available if you’d prefer not to share a room on this trip, subject to availability at the time of booking. Please also note that due to the small properties we use in Europe there is only a limited amount of single supplements available per trip departure. If you would like to book a single supplement and enquire about availability please speak to your booking agent for further information.
- 2. Scandinavia can be extremely cold at this time of year. Please bring appropriate clothing for adverse weather conditions. Please see the Packing section in the Essential Trip Information document for what we recommend you should bring along.
Check out our Q&As
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Is this trip right for you
Lapland can be extremely cold in winter. Please bring appropriate clothing for adverse weather conditions and see the ‘Packing’ section in the ‘Essential Trip Information’ for more details.
Your leader may have to alter the itinerary and activities due to the weather. In this case, alternatives will be offered. Even though it will be cold, there may not always be snow cover, so snow dependent activities will be replaced.
The Northern Lights (also known as the Aurora Borealis) are a natural display of coloured lights in the night sky of the northern hemisphere. While sightings can never be guaranteed, you do have a higher chance of seeing them in locations at high latitudes, such as Northern Finland. Keep your fingers crossed for clear skies!
Accommodation on this trip is twin share and hotels in Europe often don't have double beds, but rather two single beds that can be pushed together/apart. Single travellers will share a room with another traveller of the same gender. If you’d prefer not to share, a single room supplement is available at an additional charge.
Rooms in Finland can be small, and at times you may be accommodated a short walk away from the main building. Many guesthouses will also have shared bathrooms, rather than ensuite facilities.
Finland can be an expensive destination, so budget accordingly if you plan to take optional activities and eat out.
It’s advised to pack lightly, with a maximum of 15 kg, as you’ll be expected to carry your own bag between destinations and on and off public transport. You'll also need a day pack to carry water and a camera for daytrips. -
What policies are in place for Covid-19?
Please contact us for latest COVID-19 policies
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How long has the tour company been trading?
Intrepid Travel has been taking travellers around the world for over 30 years
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Will the accommodation included meet local health and safety regulations?
Yes
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What Ethical Travel credentials does the tour company have?
Since 2002, The Intrepid Foundation has supported over 130 organisations across the world. We’re creating positive impact through the joy of travel, community and connection.
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Do you operate a “single share” option and how does it work?
Over 50% of traveller travel solo with Intrepid. You can choose to share a room with another solo travelle of the same sex for no additional charge, or choose to pay a single supplement if you’d like your own room. Please request this when booking, and we will secure you a single supplement wherever possible. Please note, if you are booking a last-minute trip, it may be harder for us to secure a single room
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Free Date Changes
Intrepid Travel allows you to make 10 free date changes, as long as the change is made at least 56 days before the start of the tour.
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Transfer as credit to Future Tours
Intrepid Travel allows you to transfer existing payments to a future tour to avoid cancellation fees if you can't travel and inform intrepid travel, 56 days before departure.
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Low Deposit
Intrepid Travel requires a minimum deposit of 400 USD per person or the full booking value, whichever is less, with the final balance not due until 56 days before departure.
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Cancellation Policy
We don't charge a cancellation fee, here is a summary of intrepid travel charges.
Up to 56 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of deposit.
At 55 days before tour starts: Forfeit 30% of booking price.
At 30 days before tour starts: Forfeit 60% of booking price.
At 14 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of booking price.
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Terms and Conditions