If you are looking for the ultimate holiday travel destination where you could experience a true winter wonderland, then Lapland, Finland should be the first place on your bucket list! Visiting Lapland will not only make all of your childhood dreams come true, it is also the best winter destination to experience unique activities that you cannot do anywhere else.
Lapland is the northern-most region of Finland, and much of it lies within the Arctic Circle. The region has also adopted its own claim to fame as being the home of Santa Claus. Lapland has embraced that moniker, and somehow makes it seem true. It is a gorgeous land worthy of visits at any time, but Lapland holidays are magical.
I am Taylor Deer, a world traveler who has visited 4 continents and most of the US, and the owner of the travel site Brown Eyed Flower Child. (You may already know me from my previous articles on Gypsy With Day Job, including, Planning a Perfect Sicily Vacation.) I recently spent part of my holidays in Lapland, and found it unforgettable!
I have put together a list of all the fun and traditional winter activities that can be done when visiting Lapland that will make you feel like you are at Santa’s North Pole!
Celebrating the Holidays in Lapland – Fun and Festive Activities to do in Lapland, Finland
Get into the Holiday Spirit at Santa Park
Santa Park is easily considered an amusement park for all of those who believe in the magic of Christmas. This cheerful attraction is full of Christmas lights everywhere, snow hills and forts, beautiful Christmas trees and so much more!
One of the best parts about Santa Park is that no matter what age you are, you could bring out your inner child and no one will judge you. Throughout the park are cheap plastic sleds that you could purchase and use to sleigh down the snowy hills and slides.
As you walk through the park, you will find fire pits where you could sit around and warm up. It is highly recommended that you grab some hot chocolate and enjoy a cozy bonfire!
The highlight of visiting Santa Park is actually meeting Santa Claus himself! To avoid waiting in long lines, it is best that you meet the big man later on in the evening. As you walk in, there is a whole North Pole exhibit set up. When you get to the main room, you will be greeted by Santa’s elves that will walk you to Santa. In addition to meeting Santa and having fun outside, you can visit the Toy Factory Shopping Area, Elf School, Santa Park Magic Show, Magic Train, Elf Workshop, Angry Birds Activity Area and Mrs. Gingerbread Bakery.
Enjoy a Traditional Lappish Dinner in an Igloo
Located right next to Santa Park is Snowman World. Situated in the heart of this icy wonderland is an igloo where you could enjoy a traditional Finnish or Lappish dinner. One of the most amazing parts about this igloo is that there are Swarovski crystal chandeliers hanging from the ice ceiling! It is so beautiful.
When you first enter the Ice Restaurant, you will be given a fleece blanket to keep yourself warm. Then, you will be served glögi, which is a heated spiced drink that has been enjoyed by the Finnish for years. You could even add a spiced liquor or vodka to your glögi as well. This drink is a staple among the Finnish and is the perfect beverage to warm up with.
During my own personal dinner at Ice Restaurant, I was served delicious French red wine. My appetizer was a hearty king crab bisque that was served with Finnish rye bread. I am still dreaming about it! For the main course, I was served Arctic char, which is similar to salmon and found in Arctic and Subarctic waters. This fish was served with a side of warm veggies.
For dessert, I savored a warm molten chocolate cake with hot chocolate. One thing to note when visiting Lapland, is that the Finnish LOVE their chocolate cake after a fulfilling meal, any time of year. Overall, eating dinner in an igloo was simply a wonderful experience!
Sleigh Ride with Real Reindeer
Another exciting excursion to get you into the spirit of your holidays in Lapland is sleigh riding with reindeer through Lapland Safaris!
When you first arrive to the reindeer farm in Raanujärvi, there will be a plastic reindeer. A rope will be handed to you to pretend like you are catching a reindeer, similar to what the Finnish did back in the day. Even though this has nothing to do with your sleigh riding excursion, it is a lot of fun trying to catch the fake reindeer with the rope.
Reindeer sleigh riding is a traditional way of traveling through snowy forests in Scandinavia. Before you hop on your sled, you will be given a brief education about how to maneuver the sled the proper way so that the reindeer would be comfortable. When you actually get into the sled, there will be fleece blankets to keep you warm as you sleigh through the heart of the world’s best winter wonderland!
About half way through the trip, you will stop for lunch. There will either be a teepee or igloo set up for you with a fire pit. Before you indulge in your own lunch, you will be given a mossy plant that is found in the Lappish forests for you to feed your reindeer. The plant is filled with rich nutrients.
During my own sleigh riding tour, we were given a stick and pre-cooked sausage to cook over the fire. Since we were in the middle of the forest and were “toughing” it out as if we were camping there, we were not given bread and condiments to eat with our sausage. For dessert, our tough guide had pre-made batter that he brought along with a skillet. He cooked the batter over the fire for a few minutes and made delicious sugar crepes out of them and used homemade blueberry jam as a filling. It was delicious and the blueberry filling came straight from the blueberries that are found in the forest we were in. We were also given coffee to wash it down with.
Sleigh Riding the Traditional Way with Huskies
Another fun winter adventure to participate in during your time in Lapland is sleigh riding with huskies at Tuulenpesä Family Husky Home and Retreat. Before you start sleigh riding, you will be partnered up with another person and will be given a lesson on how to navigate the sled.
One person would navigate the sled on the back and the other person will relax in the sled and enjoy the ride. Don’t worry though, you will take turns navigating and relaxing in the sled. This type of sleigh riding is similar to being on skis, except the dogs do all of the work and all you have to do is press the break pedal to either slow down or stop.
Overall, this is just as fun as sleigh riding with reindeer and it will give you more of an opportunity to enjoy the gorgeous Arctic nature around you.
Snowmobile through Lappish Forest
For all of you adventure junkies out there, it is recommended that you do not miss out on a fun snowmobiling adventure! While visiting Lapland, I went snowmobiling at night. As we began our adventure, I realized that these Lappish forests are just as breathtaking at night as they are during the day!
We drove through both smooth and bumpy paths and we even took a few turns into more narrow trails that took us deeper into the forest. We had such a blast!
Float in Arctic Ice
A rather unique activity to do while visiting Lapland is Arctic ice floating through Safarctica. During my time in Finland, we went to a beautiful Lappish space with a lake. Located deep in the forest is a beautiful log cabin that had a walking path out to the frozen lake where we went swimming.
Before you go ice floating, you will be given instructions and a thick neoprene wet suit that you will step into with your winter coat and pants on. Please note that the suits are super thick and heavy and it will zip all the way up to your chin, leaving just your face exposed.
During my ice floating adventure, there was a little swimming hole that I walked into and floated away. As I slowly walked down the ladder and got into the water, my wet suit quickly filled up with air. Since my suit was bigger than me and it was filled with air, I had no choice but to lie on my back. What is awesome is that not one part of me got wet.
Once I lied on my back, I automatically felt the lightness of my body float on the calm water and it ended up being one of the most relaxing experiences of my life. The whole experience was so serene. You could relax, not think about anything and look up to the sky and all of the snow-covered trees around.
Watch the Northern Lights Dance through the Sky
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The Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) and Aurora Australis (Southern Lights) are the result of electrons colliding with the upper reaches of Earth’s atmosphere causing a natural light display in the sky. They are usually seen in Arctic and Subarctic areas of the world.
Depending on the weather and solar activity, you could see the Northern Lights in Lapland. During my time in Lapland, I got a notification from my Aurora app letting me know that there was Northern Lights activity in the area I was staying in Lapland. The lights always start off looking like a cloud that is curved perfectly. As the Earth rotates, the lights start to change and dance in the sky. The night that I saw the Northern Lights in Finland was one of the most exciting experiences in my life! I even got to see some shooting stars. It was perfect!
You will enjoy Finland, and your Lapland holidays!
I hope you all were excited discovering the magical and traditional adventures of Lapland holidays. You can still plan a trip to Lapland this year, but if it is too late for your scheduling, you can certainly start planning your Lapland holidays for next year! Believe me, you will feel like a kid again when visiting Lapland.
Most international airlines do not fly into Lapland, so the best option is to fly into Helsinki Finavia airport. From there, there are domestic flight options into many of the ajor Lapland cities, including Rovaniemi, where Santa Park is located. A more adventurous option is to take the overnight Santa Claus Express, a Finnish double-decker train with sleeping rooms
Many travel companies offer a variety of excursions for visiting Lapland, which include lodging. Most tour operators also provide the necessary winter gear for your outdoor adventures, although you still need to wear your winter clothes and coat. Tours 4 Fun Lapland trips include most of the activities we suggest, and lodging in a glass igloo.
You can also easily make your own arrangements through the companies cited for each activity. This is our favorite option, as it allows you to create your own time frames and schedules. And, you can get great deals on Lapland hotels, including treehouse rooms, log cabins, and arctic huts, as well as regular inns and resorts.
If you would like to read more of my adventures in Lapland, I split them into two stories, which you can find on my website, at Christmas Time in Lapland, Finland, and the Ultimate Winter Trip to Lapland, Finland.
Have a wonderful holiday season! Happy Travels! –Taylor
Taylor is a world travel blogger, writer and content creator from New Jersey who created Brown Eyed Flower Child to show the world through her eyes. The travel bug bit Taylor when she studied abroad in Salamanca, Spain during summer 2012. Ever since then, Taylor’s sense of wonder has expanded to several different countries and regions in Europe, Asia and Africa as well as throughout the United States. Whether she is traveling to get out of her comfort zone and find herself, to gain better insight on the world, to help someone or participate in an event or retreat, each travel journey is special and means something different to her. For more travel articles and inspiration, visit Taylor’s blog at www.browneyedflowerchild.com or follow her on her Facebook page, or Instagram.
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