A Mother-Daughter Trip to Finnish Lapland

Like most people, I’ve had “see the northern lights” at the top of my bucket list for as long as I can remember. But a trip to Finland, Norway, Sweden, or Iceland from Los Angeles was not only intimidating to plan, afford, and find time for, it seemed like the kind of once-in-a-lifetime trip I would only want to experience with someone I love.

Two marriages and several failed relationships later, tired of waiting for The One (To Share This Trip With), I realized I already had a travel companion I loved: my 13-year-old daughter, Olivia.

Olivia had two weeks off school for spring break — the tail end of northern lights season in Lapland. Flight and hotel costs were down and I could take time off work, which meant all we needed was warm clothing, clear skies, a bit of luck, and a good plan. Here’s ours.

When to go

There is no guarantee you will see the northern lights on your trip to see the northern lights. That’s something you have to make peace with, but you can improve your chances significantly by going during the season (August through April in northern Finland), going as far north as possible, staying as many nights as possible, and getting an aurora alert app. (We used Northern Lights Alert.)

According to Visit Finland, northern lights in Finnish Lapland, the northern-most region of the country, are visible roughly 200 nights a year -- or every other clear night -- and although winter, with its long, dark nights, is the most popular time to visit, autumn and spring are the most active northern lights seasons. In autumn there might be no snow, and while that would make packing easier, I always envisioned snow, so the scales tipped toward spring.

My strategy was to plan a trip so fabulous we wouldn’t mind if we didn’t see the northern lights. Lying in bed in a glass igloo as slow-moving shooting stars crossed the sky felt like a pretty nice consolation prize.

If you plan it, they will come

Although trying to coordinate a trip abroad with friends, couples, or families can cause you to postpone your dreams indefinitely (they can’t plan this far ahead, their spring breaks or work schedules don’t line up, they already planned a big trip for this year), DO NOT BE DETERRED!

Instead, once you have your itinerary in place (see ours below), you can share it and see who wants to join! At my friend Tom’s Christmas party, Olivia and I were talking about our upcoming trip with his producing partner, Susanne, who said she’d always wanted to see the Northern Lights with her 9-year-old daughter (also named Olivia)! I told her to feel free to join us, and a few weeks later, she called to see if I was serious. As a fellow single mom, she was so impressed with the planning I’d done, and she assured me that if she and her Olivia came, they would do plenty on their own, but maybe we could meet up for some meals and activities and share a rental car? That sounded perfect to me, and in the end, it was such a treat to have friends in Finland.

What to do (try everything!)

The Arctic SnowHotel and Glass Igloos not only checked two goals off my list (snow hotel: check! glass igloo: check! – more on our overnight in SnowHotel shortly), it also offered a long list of activities and excursions. While there we tried ice fishing, electric snow scooting, innertube sledding, a trip to Santa Claus Village, a visit to a reindeer farm, and ten minutes in what they called “the only real Snow Sauna in the world!” On the hotel grounds there was a sledding hill complete with innertubes and sleds, and a vast frozen lake which you couldn’t even see the end of, so several of these adventures were just outside our glass igloo.

For ice fishing, our guide walked us out onto the lake and let us experience drilling holes with an auger (a spiral-shaped device equipped with razor-sharp blades). This was not as easy as he made it look, because the ice on the lake was more than a foot thick (which is reassuring when you’re standing on top of it). Mercifully, he had already drilled holes for us to fish in, then he gave us a small, light rod that is very sensitive to movement, baited it with grub, and suddenly we were ice fishing! What we didn’t have was a warm hut around us, we were out among the elements, but just as I was starting to think we might be more likely to catch a cold than a fish, one of the youngest members of our group who was visiting with his parents from Japan got a nibble and pulled out a small perch. This was so adorable and exciting to watch, it didn’t matter that we didn’t catch one ourselves. And he proudly and generously let the less fortunate rest of us take a photo with his perch.

Snow scooting (an electric scooter you can ride, standing up, across the frozen lake) was one of my favorite activities because I was surprisingly good at this sport that I didn’t even know was a sport! The key is giving your snow scooter enough power so that the forward momentum helps you balance, but not so much that it flies out from under you. Olivia had a tougher time, but even after falling repeatedly, she didn’t give up, and when she finally got the hang of it, the victory was that much sweeter. After almost an hour of scooting, our guide took us to a spot across the lake where we sat in a warm cabin and roasted sausages over an open fire and drank warm berry juice (there was always warm berry juice!). He explained why everyone in Finland loves a sauna. It's not just part of a spa routine there, it’s a warm place for family and friends to gather, relax, and share stories. His family had built their sauna before they built their house, and he seemed particularly proud to tell us it was big enough for 20 people.

Which leads me to the snow sauna. We had booked a private sauna experience which included a traditional sauna, hot tub, and ten minutes in a snow sauna. There was a row of them, and the only things not made of snow or ice in the snow sauna were the wooden bench tops and the door. It’s hard to imagine being hot inside of what is basically an igloo, but as Olivia poured water over the coals, and steam rose around us to the point that we couldn’t even see each other, we became so warm we didn’t even make it our full ten minutes!

One of my favorite activities was a short van ride away: The beautiful and tranquil Konttaniemi reindeer farm, one of the oldest working farms in the area. We learned that reindeer (which are considered “half-wild”) have a connection to people that is thousands of years old, first through hunting, then through domestication and herding. In Northern Lapland, reindeer farming is still a major source of income, and as snow fell on the Christmas tree forest that surrounded us, we met and fed some of these beautiful beasts, and then got a reindeer driver’s license after flying in a reindeer sleigh. (I say “flying” because our reindeer went turbo after spotting a rabbit.)

We had equal amounts of fun at Northern Lights Ranch, where there were sleds, cross-country skis, and snowshoes for the taking. Olivia and I set out on the snowshoe trail, which, turns out, is a hard trail to follow because it gets covered with fresh snow daily. (This seems like a flaw in the design.) It was peaceful and beautiful, but as our snowshoes began to sink deeper and deeper, it was Olivia who decided it was time to turn around, turn in our snowshoes, and turn on the hot tub. Smart girl.

One of our last and most magical stops in Lapland (made possible thanks to the rental car we shared with Susanne and her Olivia!) involved a ride in the “Amethyst Pendolino” (a warmed wagon pulled by a snow machine), to the top of an ancient forest where we dug for purple amethysts in Lampivaara Amethyst Mine. The digging wasn’t the magical part. For that, we went inside a wooden A-frame on the top of a mountain and descended what seemed like 100 steps, finally passing a giant crater where one of the largest amethysts on record was found -- (it’s on permanent display at the Arktikum Museum in Rovaniemi). Then “my” Olivia and I dug in the cold, hard dirt until our gloved fingers were nearly frozen and came up almost empty, as Susanne’s Olivia found amethyst after amethyst. Her frequent shouts of “And another one, and another one!" had me secretly looking forward to the moment when our guide would go through our finds and break the news to her that sadly, she had mostly rocks. But no! Almost all of hers were amethysts! And almost all of ours were rocks! My Olivia and I each ended up with a tiny shard of purple, but that didn’t matter because the ride up and down the mountain –- huge dollops of snow like whipped cream on the treetops, rabbit tracks criss-crossing the otherwise untouched blanket of white, made us feel like we were in the Dr. Suess book, “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”

What to have done (spend the night in an ice or snow hotel)

Olivia’s review of our night in the Arctic SnowHotel: “It was freezing.”

That’s true, but I’ve wanted to experience this since the first time I saw a documentary about Sweden’s original Icehotel. These magical structures made annually of ice and snow are canvasses for sculpting by local artists, each room and hallway a new and different experience every year. The Arctic SnowHotel was open for touring during the day, but only the overnight guests had it all to themselves at night.

Olivia and I opted for dinner by the roaring fire at Kota Restaurant (wearing wool sweaters) instead of the Ice Restaurant (wearing thick parkas). Our “creamy carrot soup with smoked cheese cream and crispy onion starter” was a delicious and warm welcome, and Olivia declared our salmon, prepared in a traditional method, “glow-fried by the open fire,” some of the best she’d ever had.

Around 10 p.m. we were tired and full enough to sleep, so we went to the heated locker room to begin our adventure. I noticed a few bunk beds in there. Bunk beds of shame, I thought, but was comforted to know we had an escape hatch if our room left us, shall way say, cold.

Our room was called The White Raven, and giant snow-sculpted wings enveloped our entrance and bed. A placard on the wall explained that artists Anna Koivukangas & Juha Kakela “drew from the mystique and symbolism associated with the raven as the spiritual guide and awakener of inner abilities.”

I was hoping it would awaken our inner ability to stay warm in thermal underwear in a thermal sleep sack in a down sleeping bag on a bed frame made of ice on a mattress topped with reindeer fur. What you don’t want most of all is to have to get up and go to the bathroom in the middle of the night (which I did), because you have to leave your warm sleeping bag, find your gloves, snow boots, and coat, and then make your way down the eerie ice corridors to the (thankfully) heated common bathroom, and then you have to leave the heated bathroom (which might have been the hardest part of this entire experience), and feel your way around your ice room to find your ice bed, then remove your coat, boots, and gloves, and wriggle back into your cocoon.

You get really twisted up in the sleep sack inside the sleeping bag, and then must zip yourself in like a mummy. It was only after I’d finally gotten myself situated again when Olivia informed me that she couldn’t sleep, which led to a lot of sighing and sleeping bag rustling that was greatly amplified in our otherwise silent snow tomb, so I couldn’t sleep either. That is how I learned the key to making it through the night in a place like the SnowHotel is sleeping through the night. You don’t want to be awake in this place. You want to pass out immediately and wake up to warm berry juice, which we finally did, and then we got a diploma so we could say we did it, which is what I am doing here.

What not to do

Do not follow your night in the SnowHotel with a day in Santa Claus Village.

Rovaniemi, which is the lovely little city where we began this trip, is known as the official hometown of Santa Claus. I’m not sure how that was determined, but it gave rise to the family-fun park of Santa Claus Village, which includes a post office where all the letters mailed to Santa end up. That post office, with its notes from children all over the world, was my favorite part of the experience. Otherwise, even if your kids believe in Santa (especially if your kids believe in Santa!), Olivia and I would not recommend it.

To be fair, it was snowing (and not in a pretty way but in a snowstorm way) on the day we were supposed to visit. We were too tired after our night in the SnowHotel for this all-day excursion, but our hotel clerk said it was too late to cancel. We had a lunch and a husky ride scheduled, she said, and she made it seem like it would be disrespectful, not just to the people who were coming to pick us up, but also… to Santa? So being dropped off in the Arctic Circle (honestly, you can walk across a line there and be in the Arctic Circle) and told our pick-up wasn’t for another four hours made us feel like we were being held ho-ho-hostage.

Here's the thing. It was the end of the season, so Santa could maybe be excused for no longer feeling jolly, but even the youngest, truest believers (who waited an hour in line for a meeting) could see this Santa was phoning it in. Also, Snowman World — a big part of Santa Claus Village, with snow slides, ice skating, a snow labyrinth, snow and ice structures, and an ice disco — was closed for the season, as were the nicer restaurants. But fear not: The souvenir shops were open! As for the husky ride: It was over in five minutes. As for the lunch: The buffet was not good even if you can overlook the inclusion of reindeer stew. Yes, I enjoyed reindeer meat throughout my trip – it’s delicious and a major part of Lapland’s economy – but I worried how kids might feel eating Dasher and Dancer. I half-expected to find a flashing red light in the reindeer stew, reindeer jerky, reindeer sandwiches, or reindeer kebabs that were on offer around every corner in Santa Claus Village.

What about the northern lights?

During our overnight in the SnowHotel, we were assured someone would wake us if the northern lights made an appearance (although given how complicated it was to get out of our sleeping bags, we very well might have missed them). The next two nights in our glass igloo, there was an alarm that would go off to alert us, but cloudy skies meant no such luck.

We saw people checking out who were disappointed to be leaving without seeing them. That’s when I realized our extra days in Lapland were at least increasing our chances. And as we made our way further north for three nights at Northern Lights Ranch, blue skies gave us some hope.

When we checked in, we were told to download Northern Lights Alert, which is based on real-time Aurora Borealis on-location cameras in selected areas of Lapland, and one of those selected areas was Northern Lights Ranch.

I was in bed with the lights off looking out of the glass walls of our room and Olivia was in the shower when I saw something that looked like a grey shadow. As it started to grow, I yelled to Olivia we might be getting northern lights! Then our Northern Lights Alert app sounded the alarm, and I yelled to Olivia again, and we decided hopping into our hot tub would be more time efficient (and warmer) than bundling up to go outside.

This is how I discovered that although you must avoid getting your hair wet (because it will freeze), watching the northern lights from your hot tub is the bucket list dream I never dared to dream.

We didn’t have a tripod (which is recommended), but by setting my iPhone on the edge of the hot tub to keep it steady, (being careful not to get it wet), I was able to take some photos that captured the magic. Your camera can see more than the naked eye even when just looking through it due to some science I don’t understand (and for the photos, due to the extended exposure). By the way, if you’ve ever thought about upgrading your iPhone, the time to do it is before this trip!

As steam rose around us, the shadows became more green and vivid, and danced and shape-shifted for over an hour as we watched in awe, feeling grateful, lucky, and humbled.

OUR 10-DAY ITINERARY

- Fly direct from LA to Helsinki (10h35m), then connect to Rovaneimi (2h25m)

We flew coach on an overnight FinnAir flight with a free seat between us (booked one aisle and one window). If you have the miles, fly business!

- 1 night in the Arctic Light Hotel in Rovaneimi

We loved this place and could have stayed longer, especially with a sauna in our room and the delicious Arctic Restaurant downstairs. We also splurged our first night on a magical dinner in a heated igloo at Gustav Kitchen & Bar.

- 3 nights at the nearby Arctic SnowHotel and Glass Igloos

As mentioned above, we spent the first night in the SnowHotel, which, like writing, is something that you are happy to have done, and the next two nights in the much warmer glass igloos. The six hours between checking out (fleeing!) the SnowHotel and checking into our glass igloo seemed endless (especially since we made the mistake of spending it in a snowstorm at Santa Claus Village). If we get a do-over (which we will not, Olivia informs me), I’d pay for an extra night in the glass igloo to have a warm, cozy room waiting after a night in the SnowHotel. I HIGHLY recommend touring the SnowHotel, even if you don’t stay there, and having dinner in the Ice Restaurant, and then ending your night by smashing an ice shot glass against the ice wall in the Ice Bar.

- 3 nights at Northern Lights Ranch

Less than a 2-hour drive from Rovaneimi, and just 15 minutes from Levi ski area, the Northern Lights Ranch, with its glass walls and heated glass ceilings, lived up to its billing as “a five billon star boutique hotel.” I decided at the last minute to upgrade to a Deluxe Plus Sky View Cabin (which had a kitchenette, living room, and private outdoor hot tub), because after two nights in the close quarters of a glass igloo, any couple (whether mother/daughter or honeymooners) might appreciate a little more space. I was also happy to discover that driving the snow-covered roads of Finland was much easier than I had feared because the rental cars have spikes in their tires, and the roads are well maintained.

- Drive back to Rovaniemi with a short detour to see the Amethyst Mine in Luosto, then overnight train to Helsinki from Rovaniemi train station. This might be another Not To Do, especially if someone young person in your party drank a giant hot chocolate that made her sick to her stomach all night. I think I was imagining something closer to the Orient-Express (or at least a train with shock absorbers) when I put “sleep on an overnight train” on my bucket list. Our ensuite cabin was more like a sardine can with bunk beds, and the bathroom was a smaller sardine can with a sink that swiveled like a secret door that unfortunately didn’t lead to another room, but just converted the bathroom into a shower with a toilet. Around 1 a.m. (with another eight hours to go), Olivia, who had been such a trooper this whole time, finally cried uncle (or just cried) and said, “I just want to get off this train and go home.” Luckily our final stop was…

- 2 nights in Helsinki at the beautiful Hotel Maria (see my review)

I’d almost forgotten how nice it is to go to breakfast without putting on ski clothes! And oh, the breakfast buffet! And the beautiful sauna in our room! And the spa!

PACKING LIST

I compared many online packing lists and brought a lot of extra winter wear, but the items I wore most, loved most, and found most essential were:

- Base Layer (Cuddl Duds – super soft and warm and good as PJs too!)

- 100 % silk thermals (I’ve had mine forever – feather light to pack and wear)

- Mid layer (Merino.tech – stylish, lightweight, and often the only layer I needed)

- Snow pants (Rdruko – I wore these daily – comfortable, flattering, and not too bulky)

- Wool socks (Merino wool, soft and warm)

- Snow boots (North Face – Olivia loved these, and I loved my Ugg Adirondacks)

- Coat (Orolay, inexpensive, perfect weight and warmth, 6 pockets, fleece-lined hood)

- Fleece neck warmer (Turtle Fur – by far the softest and warmest)

- Wool beanie (Turtle Fur – warm and stylish but not itchy)

- Winter trapper hat (mysuntown -- made Olivia look like a Russian model and made me look ridiculous, but perfect for outdoor activities on windy, snowy days)

- Gloves (Carhartt – these did the trick for me, but any good ski gloves would work)

- European travel plug adapter with outlet and USB ports

One final tip

As Olivia and I flew home to sunny California (where we would put away our winter gear indefinitely), laughing about Santa Claus Village, marveling at our photos of the northern lights, I couldn’t imagine taking this trip with anyone other than Olivia. So, my final tip? Don’t put off something you’ve dreamed of doing because you don’t have the right person to do it with. Maybe a friend, a family member, or you are the right person, even if you go alone, to see and do everything beautiful and amazing in the world.