Top 6 Arctic Adventures in Swedish Lapland

Looking for inspiration for your winter break? If you like snow, you’ll love Lapland in northern Sweden. Fly into Stockholm, ride the overnight train up to Abisko or Kiruna and choose your arctic adventure. These activities— appropriate for couples and families alike— are located within an hour and fifteen minute radius of each other in the Arctic Circle. My top picks for Arctic Adventures in Swedish Lapland:

1. Witness the Aurora Borealis in person

Have you ever watched a dark night sky transform into bright, swirling, spell-binding art? Nature’s most moving light show plays October to March across northern Sweden an average of 159 clear nights a year.

Abisko is among the Top Ten Places in the World to see Northern Lights. Skies here remain clear even when surrounding areas are cloudy due to its location (smack in the middle of an auroral zone, and protected by mountain peaks in a Polar Desert that gets very little rain). Statistically, Abisko has more clear skies than anywhere else in Europe. The best location for viewing them is from the Aurora Sky Station in Abisko National Park. Ride the chair lift up to the top of the mountain (reserve tickets in advance) and wait for the magic to happen.

Aurora may appear as curtains, spirals, arcs, coronas, pillars, veils or rays. You never know what nature has in store!

We reserved chair lift tickets for Abisko’s Aurora Sky Station on March 21st which was its last night of operation for the winter. It happened to be the best viewing of the season. Talk about lucky. Staring in utter awe, we watched as vivid green forms swept across the sky, pulsating to imaginary rhythms in an otherworldly realm that felt like another dimension, a fantasy. Standing beneath them felt humbling. And unreal. At times they seemed so close it was almost frightening. Their frantic movements were fast, crazed and creative, like an uninhabited dancer performing her own brilliant but chaotic choreography.

‘Twas pure magic.

That particular night was indeed special. As we walked back to the lodge through the snow with our flashlights after midnight, the silent night came alive. Conditions of the aurora’s frequency emissions became perfectly aligned, allowing us the rare opportunity to also HEAR them.

Yes, hear them.

The aurora sounded like a Star Wars video game magnified in speed and volume. Spitting out all sorts of electrical currents with crackling hisses, pops and zaps from an alien planet.

Sooo strange…surreal… and intriguing. A wondrous finale to an exceptional evening!

Visiting Tips:

The cold and windy ride to the top of the Aurora Sky Station takes 30 minutes. In 2019, they’ve expanded to being open daily from 9pm-1am from late Nov to late March. Tickets (715 SEK) are limited and best reserved online. They also now offer a 4-course Nordic dinner option. Be sure to dress for freezing temps! Toes and fingers go numb fast. Inside the Station, there’s a fireplace, coffee and pastries for purchase, and a small museum about their ongoing research. According to scientists, 10:30pm is a prime time to see aurora, when the southern tip passes over Sweden. Locals claim your chances jump from 80% to 95% chance of seeing the Aurora Borealis in Abisko if you stay 3 nights. (We saw them both nights.)

Other Options to see Northern Lights:  View them outside the lodge for free or join a guided tour. VisitAbisko offers SUV, Snowmobile or Photo Tours from 695-1295 SEK pp.

Photo Tips:

Choose your camera settings prior to leaving your hotel. (It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement once the northern lights appear. Then is not the time to fiddle with your menu settings.) Turn off your camera’s steady shot (Sony users) since you’ll be using a tripod. Set your ISO to 400 (or higher). Set your shutter speed to 10-30 seconds as the longer exposure time can capture red and purple colors that may not visible with the naked eye. Set the aperture to f/2.8 or f/4. Focus on infinity. Don’t forget your tripod! And headlamp. And extra batteries (cold temps drain power).

Shooting tips: Include people or an object in the frame for interest. Vary your shutter speed to record different movements. The aurora move very fast, so if you want a sharp capture bump up your ISO and SS to 1/125.

At the Sky Station, be very careful walking on the icy mountain in the dark (wear a red light headlamp so it won’t wreck your night vision). A fellow photographer dropped his flash and watched it plummet down the mountainside. (Better the flash than him!) Resist the urge to warm up inside the heated hut as the temperature difference will cause your camera lens to fog up. It will be useless to capture the next aurora that passes through when you hear everybody suddenly oooohing and aaaahing. (I hid my camera/tripod outdoors when I needed to thaw indoors, but do so at your own risk.)

Abisko Lodging:  

The tiny village of Abisko has limited lodging. There are a couple options in town, but most stay outside of town at the large STF Abisko Turiststation that is within walking distance of the Aurora Sky Station and a 10 min walk from the train station. They have hostel dorm rooms, ensuite double rooms and rustic 2 BR cabins. A restaurant, reading room and sauna are on site. You can rent skiis and snowshoes too. Check the bulletin board for guided tours for other activities. We stayed here and took their guided snowshoe hike the next day, and saw the northern lights that 2nd night from our cabin. This time however, the sky was filled with soft pale green instead of strong shapes streaking with frenzied speed.

2. Go Snowshoeing

Snowshoeing is like hiking, except you wear special shoes for traipsing across the snow. Swedish Lapland has lots of options for snowshoeing, and many lodges rent gear. If staying at the STF Abisko Turiststation Lodge, you will be inside the Abisko National Park where there are plenty of places to wander. The famous Kungsleden ‘King’s Trail’ also passes through here, 200 kms north of the Arctic Circle. Diehard fans can snowshoe for days and stay in the mountain cabins scattered 10 to 20 kilometers apart. Trekking in the foothills of Mount Kebne or Kebnekaise (Sweden’s highest mountain) are also popular.

We joined a 3 hour guided snowshoe hike from the STF Abisko Turiststation where we were staying, and even had a picnic lunch in the pristine winter wilderness. We saw moose tracks but no moose. There was one tricky spot  going uphill that was so steep that everyone in our group fell except me. But overall, easy and fun for the whole family!

3. Go Reindeer Sledding with Sami

The history of the indigenous Sámi people goes back at least 6,000 years in Lapland (northern wilderness spreading across Sweden, Norway, Finland & Russia). Learn about their culture, meet their reindeer and then go reindeer sledding! Other tours include snowmobiling or ice fishing too. Tours depart from both Abisko or Kiruna, an hour’s train ride apart.

Sami Culture & Reindeer Tour is offered by two tour operators who take small groups to Rávttas, home to several Sami reindeer herder families. We fed reindeer (tame ones ate lichen from our hands) and learned how to throw the lasso sideways like a Sami herder. The animals were pretty skittish and none of us could catch one. Even our Sami guide, Haaka, had a hard time. Once he did, he harnessed a one-antlered reindeer to a wooden sled and we all took turns on a short ride around the snow, yelling “Hiyah!” to go faster.

Afterward, Haaaka led us inside his Sami lávvu (teepee) where he prepared a yummy lunch of reindeer meat with veggies and ligonberries on thick flatbread, which as absolutely delicious! The floor of the lavvu is a layer of sticks and branches that cover the cold ground topped with reindeer hides. We listened to Haaka tell stories and Sami legends as we relaxed on reindeer furs with coffee around the open fire before transferring back to our hotel. It was interesting to hear about the Sami’s hunter-gatherer lifestyle (men leave for a month to hunt moose while the women collect cloudberries in the marshes) and shaman practices. Our Sami guide had a great sense of humor and his eyes lit up when he told his stories. Two tour operators offer this same tour:

VisitAbisko departs Abisko at 9am and travel 45 km east to Rávttas on M, W, Sat Dec-Mar, 2019 (2295 SEK adult).

GIRON Travel departs from Kiruna at 10am and travel 20 km to Rávttas on M, W, Sat Dec-Mar, 2019 (1895 SEK adult, 950 child)  Want a longer reindeer sled ride? GIRON now offers an extended tour on Tuesdays & Thursdays throughout the winter. Check out their Giron Sami Experience.

For an extended adventure, Family Taube offers an Overnight Experience (1900 SEK) that includes snowmobiling, survival training, skiing or ice fishing with guides eager to share both Sami and Swedish cultures. Experience a rustic sauna, build a snow cave to sleep in or stay in a warm cabin in the wilderness. Departs from Kiruna.

4. Go Dogsledding

Swoosh through the snow on an exhilarating ride on the back of a sled as you mush a team of Huskies. Dog sledding is another exciting arctic adventure around Swedish Lapland from day trips to multi-day expeditions. Learn to harness the dogs and lead them through the snowy wilderness.

Dogs were excited and eager to go!

We had a blast zigzagging around trees in a forest before going uphill and letting the dogs fly over flat wide open lands. It was both a thrilling ride and a good workout– leaning for balance and keeping one leg poised in the air ready to step on the brakes when speed felt out of control or turning in tight spaces. Was tricky in places, but none of us fell! 😉

Explore Kiruna offers 2 dogsledding tours—a 4 hour lunch tour or a northern light evening tour (both 1600 SEK, or 1300 SEK for a guide driven dog sled). Run by a couple in Kiruna.

Kiruna Dogsled offers a lunch tour. Drive your own team of 4 sled dogs through a pine forest and over frozen lakes in the winter wonderland just outside Kiruna, close to the world famous Ice Hotel. Lunch is served inside a traditional Sami lavvu, where guides share stories about the area, wildlife and Sami people. Groups kept small (maximum 4 people). Transfer, light lunch, and winter clothing included (2000 SEK).

5. Go Snowmobiling

It’s easy to get off the beaten path by snowmobile. Faster than snowshoeing or dog sledding, they’re easy to navigate and don’t require physical ability or stamina. Ideal for couples or families who want to explore further into Lapland’s wilderness. Several tour operators offer day trips from Kiruna. All include snowmobile suits and clothing appropriate for the adventure. Sleds are pulled behind the snowmobiles for those wishing to ride instead of drive.

On our all day tour, we had father and son Sami guides who were friendly, funny and laid back. Perfect companions for the day! After we were fitted with snowmobile suits, gloves and goggles we fed their reindeer in a pen, then hopped on our snowcats for the day. We saw moose several times hiding in the forest as we made our way up Kebnekaise, Sweden’s largest mountain.

They brought us to their “LapDonalds” warming hut for coffee and snacks where they handed out animal bones/fur for us to identify.

Later they drilled holes in the frozen lake and tried a little ice-fishing. The snowmobiles were a hoot to drive (Dave’s favorite arctic adventure) through the gorgeous mountainous scenery. 

Kiruna Guidetur offers 11 different snowmobiling tours around the Swedish Lapland, from short excursions with a coffee break to evening dinner with northern light tours to overnight tours.

Kiruna Explore offers 3 hour tours where you drive your own snowmobile across a frozen lake, through a snowy forest and across Torne River. (1300 SEK pp with 2 pax, 1700 for 1 pax)

Family Taube offers a 1 day wilderness-tour (1400 SEK) This tour also adds a raft trip across the river in December and lunch at camp.

6. Sleep in the Ice Hotel

What better finale to your arctic adventure than a stay at Sweden’s famous Ice Hotel!  All the rooms, beds, furniture and chandeliers are made from ice that artists sculpted into works of art.

No two room designs are alike. Each of the 55 rooms will melt by spring. And new artists will be selected to create their masterpieces the following year. Take a tour and then explore on your own.

Attend a wedding in the Ice Chapel. Drink vodka or ligonberry juice from ice glasses in the Absolut Ice Bar. Join an optional reindeer sled ride. And sleep on an ice bed. Still seeking adventure as you head home? Then arrange your airport transfer by dog sled.

Sounds like a ‘cool’ experience, doesn’t it?

The Ice Hotel is located in the tiny village of Jukkasjärvi, close to Kiruna. The hotel can arrange car or dog sled transfers from the airport or train station. (Read lots more about our Ice Hotel stay here.) Curious about their prices, check here.

Planning Tips for your own arctic adventures:

LOCATION

Abisko is Sweden’s northernmost town. It’s soooo far up there— that further west, Narvik, Norway and the Lofoton Islands are its distant neighbors. This is the Land of the Midnight Sun. (Which means that winter daylight is short.) An hour’s drive or train ride SE of Abisko is the bigger town of Kiruna. And just a bit further, 8 miles west, is the Ice Hotel in tiny Jukkasjärvi village.

TRANSPORTATION

Fly direct from Stockholm to Kiruna

During winter, SAS and Norwegian Air have direct daily flights from Stockholm to Kiruna. There are several independent companies who offer transfer services, or even the hotels to Kiruna or the Ice Hotel themselves. Too far and expensive to transfer by taxi to Abisko. At the end of our trip, we flew from Kiruna to Stockholm.

Take the train from Stockholm to Abisko or Kiruna

Stockholm to Abisko takes 17 hours by SJ train. The train is efficient, clean, quiet and enjoyable. Current cost for one way 1st class tickets in a sleeping berth (winter 2019) is 695 SEK/kr or $77 dollars.

We loved traveling this way. We departed Stockholm at 6pm, enjoyed a mellow ride, dinner and cards before falling asleep in our private berth and awoke to a winter wonderland of white snow. Perfect beginning to our trip. The only little snag was when we got off the train at 11am  with our rolling luggage we had not idea where to go! Only 4 others got off the train with us, and they immediately put on their cross country skis and prepared to ski off once their backpacks were secured. Luckily they understood English, and pointed the direction we needed to walk to the STF Abisko Turiststation. Good to know ‘cuz there was nobody in the little red train station to ask.

Abisko Turista train station with mushing dogs in arctic Sweden

Apparently we mistook the lodge’s description of being “deposited on the doorstep” too literally. We trudged our luggage through the snow and crossed the icy highway and arrived at the lodge a good 15 minutes later. The stoic receptionist informed us with an indifferent shrug that they “don’t do that” when we inquired about arranging a transfer service for our return to the train station 3 days later. So knowing this, we hired a caretaker we met at the lodge to take my senior aged parents and all our luggage to the station. (There’s always a solution, right?)

The train from Abisko to Kiruna takes around 1 hour 15 minutes, and currently departs at 12:20 and 4:30pm. Cost is 75 SEK and 55 SEK respectively (only $6 bucks). This route is pretty popular (as you can see in the pic above), so reserve tickets in advance. Again, efficient, clean and perfect.

Car transfers can be pricey. We paid $100 for an 8 mile trip to transfer from Kiruna to the Ice Hotel for 5 people.

COSTS

Scandinavian countries are notoriously expensive. We found Sweden more affordable than Norway for everything from transportation, lodging and food ($12 for a small bottle of Coke? Yes, really). I should clarify the exception being Sweden’s Ice Hotel which was a big splurge.

Find out the current conversion from Swedish Krona to US dollars here. As of this writing 1 SEK/kr is equal to .11 cents.

Save or Splurge: When planning my trips, I try to mix it up. Splurge on the unique opportunities and save money on lodging/activities the other days. I think a splurge is warranted one night at the Ice Hotel.

But if you can’t fork out that kind of money, at least take the daily guided tour to see the fantasy ice rooms and wander around on your own until the guests check in at 6pm. And get a drink at the famous Ice Bar! You can save money by staying in Kiruna, like we did for a few nights, to take the snowmobiling, dogsledding and Sami tours. There’s even a public bus that travels from Kiruna to to the Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi. It’s a 30-minute ride and stops right outside the Icehotel for 43 SEK. Check available lodging options for Kiruna here.

[booking_product_helper shortname=”kiruna map lodging”] You can also save money by staying in the hostel rooms or rustic family cabins at the STF Abisko Turiststation, and save even more money if you become a member of the STF hosteling organization which pays for itself if you stay a couple nights. Take advantage of renting their skis or snowshoes and explore on your own, or take their inexpensive guided tours led by college-aged kids. Take advantage of their inexpensive lunch buffet and/or bring food to cook in the hostel kitchen or cabins (just come prepared, there’s no grocery store in Abisko).

PACK:

Many of the guided tours include warm winter clothing from snowmobile suits to heavy mittens and boots. But if you’re exploring on your own you will want to bring:

• Waterproof, warm boots. I love my Baffin boots  trimmed in comfy faux fur built to keep toes toasty in minus 40 degree weather!
• Fleece lined leggings to go under Arctix snowpants (my go-to for all winter activities have never let me down)
• Hooded down-filled parka (keeps the wind out)
• Waterproof insulated mittens to wear over glove liners (for photography) and warm knit/wool hat that covers your ears
• Fleece pullovers (midweight good for active excursions under a parka)
• Headlamp for walking in the dark but especially useful for night photography (use the red beam to avoid wrecking your night vision)

During our week in Swedish Lapland, the only times I felt cold were sleeping in the Ice Hotel (my mistake for having damp socks) and up on the windy mountaintop watching the northern lights at the Aurora Sky Station. My feet were warm, but my fingers numb from being exposed to wind when photographing (my glove liners were wearing thin). Dressing for the cold makes all the difference when embarking on these arctic adventures so don’t skimp!

Loved our time off the beaten path in northern Sweden. Each day was a fun adventure. Which one sounds the most appealing to you?