Booking a trip to Finland may not be at the top of everyones list, but I highly suggest that you make the trip! We primarily wanted to go so that we could try to catch the northern lights. We did a ton of research on when the best time would be, where to go and what place to stay at. You can catch the Northern Lights in a few countries closest to the Arctic Circle such as Iceland, Norway, Finland, Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Sweden. The best time to catch them varies depending on the country but primarily you can gage your trip between August/September through April. I recommend doing research on the country you choose and pin point exactly what time of the year it is most visible in that country.
Spoiler alert** with all of the research we did, we still didn’t end up seeing the Northern Lights. It really is a gamble, and I want you to know that before you book your trip solely with the intention of going for ONLY the lights. Even if it is the “best time” to see them, weather conditions affect them, how active they are affects if they come out, and you still have a 50/50 chance of seeing them no matter how hard you try to predict.
Although we didn’t get to see the lights, we had an amazing trip! We got really lucky, as we were actually planning this trip for 2021 we stumbled across the widely known Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort on booking.com with open availablity for an extremely low cost to what the resort would usually run for. Kakslauttanen is known for their glass Igloo rooms making the resort very instagram famous (duh). With the shocking low rates, we decided to forgo 2021 and book the trip right then and there for 1 month later!
Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort
Because we are indecisive we decided the we wanted to check out two different rooms the this resort had to offer; the Glass Igloo and the Kelo Glass Igloo. We booked the large glass igloo (sleeps 4) because it also had a shower as well as a toilet while the smaller glass igloo only has a bathroom and a shared shower. The Kelo glass igloo is half chalet and half igloo which sleeps 6 people and is basically a very large cabin with the igloo attached on the end. There are many activities you can do on the resort but I definitely recommend pre booking them so that you are guaranteed your spot. In the winter you can choose from snow mobile safaris, husky safaris, reindeer safaris, cross country skiing, ice fishing and aurora hunting. The activities will run you around 150+ per activity but totally worth it!
One thing I wish I knew before heading to the resort was that they provide snow suits, shoes, gloves, hats etc for you on the activities. With that being said, you’ll still want to pack a warm jacket and boots BUT you do not need to bring your own snowsuit! This will save you a ton of room while packing all of your winter gear. To get from your igloo’s to the main dining hall, or really anywhere around the resort you will be walking, so dress warm and be prepared. Another thing that we found conflicting while researching the resort was that you have to wheel your suitcases to your igloos over snow recommending that one brings a backpack instead. Let me tell you- although a backpack was convenient, they do have sleds for your luggage so if you bring a small carry on suitcase you will be just fine!
Don’t forget to also pack lots of snacks! Although Breakfast & Dinner were included in our stay, we found ourselves often hungry (due to the time change) post dinner and past 9 pm… nothing is open!