Independent trip to Lapland in March 2023. In my opinion, March is the perfect time to visit Lapland. There’s still plenty of snow, but the frost isn’t as harsh, and the days are much longer since the polar night is over. The details about the Finnair flight are outdated because this was before the war when flights to Israel were still operational.
Hotel
We stayed at the apartment hotel Santasport Apartment Hotel. Each room is a three-room apartment with a fully equipped kitchen (refrigerator, stove, oven, dishwasher, kettle, toaster, coffee maker, etc.) and all necessary utensils. Conveniently located in a forest just 10 minutes’ drive from Rovaniemi, the hotel offers trails for skiing, snowshoeing, and hiking. They also provide rental equipment for all activities.
Car Rental
We rented a car from Alamo via their website. What’s great is that they don’t require credit card details when booking (payment is made upon car pickup). You can also rebook multiple times if the price drops — I used this option twice. Waze worked perfectly, downloading Finnish maps without issues. We opted for a small Toyota Yaris, which managed well, but for icy roads, an SUV or jeep would be safer, depending on your budget. However, the roads are well-maintained and cleared quickly.
Connectivity
While waiting for our transfer at Helsinki Airport, we purchased a Telia Prepaid Netti SIM card. For €20, we got unlimited internet. Since we traveled together, one SIM card was sufficient. A mobile hotspot was set up to provide everyone with internet access.
Shopping
We did our shopping at the hypermarket Prisma. It’s an enormous store where you can buy absolutely everything—food, clothing, footwear, home appliances, kitchenware, outdoor gear, and much more. If you’re staying in a cabin in the woods rather than a city hotel, it’s very convenient to stock up on all the essentials there and travel worry-free.
Warm Clothing
We kept our warm jackets from previous winter trips. We bought thermal underwear, thermal socks, gloves, hats, and footwear at Decathlon in the Ski section. Of course, you can order these items on Amazon or Aliexpress, many people do. As they say, everyone decides for themselves. While we were there, the temperature could vary from minus 20 to plus 3 degrees during the day. No one froze. It was freezing at night, thawing during the day. The key is a waterproof and warm outer layer: jacket (down jacket), pants, shoes, and gloves. Underneath, thermal underwear and a light or thick sweater (depending on the weather).
We went to an audience with Santa Claus. It was amazing!!! A place where adults turn into children. Meeting Santa and chatting with him for a few minutes doesn’t cost any money, but taking a photo costs 40 euros. It will be an A4-sized photo in a beautiful envelope, taken by a professional photographer dressed as an elf.
In the Santa Claus Village, we rode husky sleds, reindeer, and there is a place where you can play with huskies. There is also a mini-zoo Elfyard, where you can walk through a snowy forest, leading a reindeer on a leash. And at Santa’s post office, you can send a postcard that will arrive by New Year. It’s a great place to spend the whole day. However, it’s worth noting that these are demo versions of the attractions. You can visit a real farm where they breed reindeer or huskies and spend the whole day there. The Santa Claus Village is open year-round; you can visit when it gets dark to enjoy the illuminations, and if you’re lucky, see the Northern Lights.
We spent the whole day at the Ranua zoo, a wildlife park with huge enclosures in a snowy forest. The beauty is incredible. Polar bears, wolves, owls, and other Arctic animals against the backdrop of an ocean of snow.
Another day was spent visiting the ice waterfalls Korouoma. From the parking lot, you need to choose the path Koronjaa and walk clockwise, following the yellow-green signs. Several kilometers of the path pass by all the ice waterfalls. Sometimes, to move forward, you need to slide down an icy slope on your bottom, there’s no other way. So, dress appropriately. There are also long climbs, so a bit of physical preparation won’t hurt. The beauty around is extraordinary.
Now, for the main attraction of Lapland – the Northern Lights. We went hunting for it every night. Twice we were really lucky, and the sky put on an absolutely incredible show. It’s best to watch away from the city to avoid the lights interfering. There’s a great app My Aurora Forecast, which predicts the Northern Lights in your area. There are also several beautiful spots near Rovaniemi, where the foreground complements the pictures in the sky. Practically revealing secrets here. The hotel made of igloo cabins Apukka Resort, the suspension bridge with a roaring, non-freezing river beneath it, Vikakongas, Lake Olkkajärvi, and Lake Norvajärvi. There’s also a wonderful website in English Aurorahunting, where you can find even more locations.
We traveled independently, without a group or guide. We encountered buses with groups of Israeli tourists along the way. You can easily recognize them by their matching outfits. Traveling by bus from morning till evening, visiting attractions, might be interesting, but in my opinion, it gets tiring. We wandered wherever we wanted, whenever and for as long as we wanted. When we were tired, we went back to the hotel to rest. Fortunately, the room had a sauna where we could relax. One day, we simply took snowshoes from the hotel and spent a few hours walking through the forest until we collapsed from exhaustion.
