Charisma Suites

We visited Santorini for the first time eight years ago but the experience had not been what we had hoped for. The weather was unusually rainy and we caught a cold. To make matters worse, we could only stay at a cheap hotel at the base of the island when what Santorini is known for are the cave hotels carved into the cliffs. We peered at the beautiful white caves and blue swimming pools and vowed we would return and stay at one of them someday. 

So this time around, we carefully searched for the perfect stay. There are plenty of hotels to choose from, all unique and all scattered throughout the island. We finally decided on Charisma Suites in the town of Oia and it turned out to be a really good choice. The boutique hotel only has eight rooms so it felt very intimate and quiet. The room we stayed in was extremely spacious and had its own infinity pool.

Breakfast was served on our terrace at the time of our choosing so we could sit back and enjoy the view of the caldera. At night, we were served champagne and snacks to enjoy the sunset, of which Oia is famous for. Needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay and our experience on the Greek island had been redeemed. 

charismasuites.com

Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort

The last stop on our trip has likely the most popular and well-known glass igloos in Finland. The Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort is so large now that they have a West Village and an East Village that are a ten-minute drive from each other. We stayed at the newer West Village in a typical glass igloo. However, they also have log cabins and kelo-igloos; a hybrid of the cabin and glass igloo. There are even real snow igloos in the East Village. 

The large glass igloos have beds for up to four, a shower and toilet whereas the small ones only have room for two and a toilet. We stayed in #42, a large igloo in the last row with an unobstructed view of the forest.  We were lucky and saw the northern lights both nights that we were at Kakslauttanen. It was nice being able to watch the lights while in bed in our cozy igloo. 

Breakfast is included and you can choose half-board or full-board when making a reservation. Dinner is a set three-course menu and on the nights we were there, dishes included salmon soup, sautéed reindeer, and fried pike perch. 

There are plenty of activities to choose from and they all take place at the resort. We went on a two-hour husky safari one morning and really enjoyed it. The trails weave through snow-covered trees and you have a real sense of being in the wilderness. Halfway through we stopped at a kota, a traditional Sami teepee, where we had some hot drinks and snacks and warmed up by the fire. We switched being driver and passenger on the sledge and headed back to the husky farm. 

Not far from the resort is the Kiilopää Fell Centre. You can ski on the surrounding fells or visit the traditional smoke sauna. We chose the later and discovered the Finnish way of alternating between the sauna and a swim in the ice cold waters outside. The extreme temperatures apparently improve circulation and strengthen your immune system. We are not sure if that is what happened but we definitely felt invigorated after taking a quick dip in the freezing river. 

This is a very large resort and unfortunately you lose the feeling of being in the middle of a very remote destination. However, the location is great and the igloos have a lot of glass for viewing the northern lights. We are glad to have experienced it but if we ever come back we would choose a more intimate to place to stay.

kakslauttanen.fi