Lapland travel guide

Top places to visit and things to do in Lapland

Rovaniemi

Rovaniemi, the administrative capital of Lapland, all but nudges the Arctic Circle and is the launching point for most trips into the province. The town, well placed at the confluence of the Ounasjoki and Kemijoki rivers, has been completely rebuilt since World War II, and its population has grown rapidly (now about 60,000) in the process. In early summer timber is still floated down the Ounasjoki from the forests of central Lapland for processing into paper and other commercial products.

The reconstruction plan for Rovaniemi was devised by Alvar Aalto, who also designed the fine Lappia Hall complex on Hallituskatu, containing a theatre and congress facilities and, next to it, the Library. The beautiful Arctic Centre (Arktikum), half-buried underground and thus offering a sensation of midnight sun through the glass ceiling, has exhibits illustrating Arctic history and culture.

Also in the Arktikum building, the Lapland Provincial Museum gives visitors a good introduction to Lapland’s flora and fauna, Sami traditions and Rovaniemi’s history, but you will get a better feel of bygone living from the 19th-century farm buildings at the Rovaniemi Local History Museum south on Road 78. 

The city is also home to a number of interesting events: the Arctic Lapland Rally in late January, the Reindeer Race in late March and the Snowmobile Races in early April. 

Father Christmas

Everyone knows that Santa Claus comes from Lapland, and he is now one of the biggest tourist attractions in Finland.

Not far from Rovaniemi is the Santa Claus Workshop Village which straddles the Arctic Circle (Napapiiri). Its post office annually handles hundreds of thousands of letters from children worldwide, and there is a collection of souvenir shops, a puppet theatre, art exhibitions, a glass factory, a few reindeer and, of course, Santa Claus.

Santa Park is in a man-made cave inside the Syväsenvaara Hill just south of the Arctic Circle. A miniature train transports visitors to the site, which was originally planned in cooperation with British theme park designers but which has since changed its concept into a more traditional idea of Christmas.

Sledging in Lapland

The easiest way to traverse Lapland’s vast and largely flat (or gently undulating) landscape has always been on skis or sledges. There are many different types of sledging, but the most popular and readily associated with northern Finland is the dog sledge. Four or six husky dogs, hardy beasts naturally acclimatised to snow and ice, are harnessed to the front of a sledge, with passengers standing on the back runners. The huskies are not readily controllable, so keeping the sledge stationary – or bringing it to a halt – is achieved by means of a hook wedged deep in the snow. Once the hook is withdrawn, the dogs immediately lurch forward. 

Reindeer sledging, as epitomised by images of Santa and his sleigh each Christmas, is another method of getting around, with the advantage that these animals can cover longer distances (and are better at coping with deep snow cover), although they are slower than the dogs.

Many centres in Lapland now offer the chance of sledging excursions for tourists – contact tourist information offices in main towns for more details. It is essential that the right equipment is worn: thermals, waterproofs, hats and goggles are necessary to combat the dampness and icy bitterness of the snow.

Snowmobiles

The snowmobile has evolved as a defining aspect of Sami society in the north of Finland. For Samis, snowmobiles are most definitely a core means of transportation for plying the fells, valleys, mountains, plateaus, iced-over lakes, tundra and permafrost of Lapland. The vehicle is now as integrated as the ski or the showshoe for Arctic Finns.

For visitors, however, it is largely a means of recreation and thrill-seeking, with hundreds of skidoo-able trails. Numerous tour companies organise snowmobile/skidoo trips around all areas of Lapland.

Gold panning

Gold panning has been practised in various parts of Lapland for well over a century, and at Tankavaara there is an entertaining Kultakylä (Gold Village); its Kultamuseo (Gold Prospectors’ Museum) not only chronicles man’s historical endeavours to discover gold, but for a modest fee provides tuition and allows you to pan for gold yourself for an hour, a day, or several days, in an authentic wilderness setting. At nearby Kultala (kulta is the Finnish word for gold), in trackless wilderness to the northwest, on the banks of the Ivalojoki you can also observe a gold-washing station dating from 1870.

When in Lapland why not visit the home of Santa Claus?