Lapland is a remote and sparsely populated region that includes northern Finland. Sitting above the Arctic Circle, there are days in the year when the sun does not set and days when the sun does not rise. We went in March so we could experience a Lappish winter while still having some light during the day for activities.
Itinerary
We spent one week in Lapland near three different towns:
Levi: Levin Iglut
Rovaniemi: Arctic Treehouse Hotel
Saariselkä: Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort
Transportation
There are a few airport options available in Lapland, but in order to get there you will likely need to transfer via Helsinki. We flew into Kittilä, which is near Levi and out of Ivalo airport, a half-hour drive from Saariselkä.
The best way to get around Lapland is by renting a car, although there are busses that will take you between towns. With the amount of snow and ice it is best to have some winter driving experience if going by car.
Activities
There are numerous winter activities to experience in Lapland. The usual activities include dogsledding, reindeer sleigh rides, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, and of course, northern lights hunting. March is a great time of year to catch the lights as the skies are typically more clear and the nights are still long. Also, it is around the time of the spring equinox which is usually when the lights are stronger. We were lucky enough to see the northern lights five out of the eight nights we were there.
