Do’s for Northern Lights Hunt & Scandinavian Cities Visit

· by · in Europe, Foreign places seen,smelled & tasted. ·

After my 15 days trip to the Scandinavia & spending 7 days in the area above the Artic Circle line, I did learn somethings about travelling there. So here’s a list of Do’s if you plan to go there on your own like we did

Planning tools:-
If you are planning with a group of friends and from different countries, use travefy.com. It is a web based travel planning tool that allows web links, discussions, polls, ideas & posting of expenses and who owes whom tracking. One can even populate the itinerary with the flight info and bookings automatically by emailing your confirmation to an assigned email provided.
Travefy also have a simple phone app so you can view the itinerary on the go when you do not have your laptop with you.
Totally cool tool to use for travel planning.

Flight Tickets:-

  1. Buy your long distance flight from Qatar Airways is just as good as Singapore Airlines but at half the cost. So – just go with Qatar, and sometimes they offer business class upgrade for some leg at S$600-800 which is still cheaper than SQ. (this is valid as of Apr  2016)
  2. Buy your domestic tickets & inter-country tickets for the Scandinavia cities before you travel
  3. Do your internet check-in for the domestic / inter-country tickets 22 hours before (else you end up in the middle seat of usually big size folks which can be pretty stiffling for asian sized folks like me)

Clothing for the cold:-

  1. Like many websites / blogs have recommended -wear in layers. I wore 4 layers (uniqlo thermal, long sleeve T, wool sweater & a warm windbreaker with hood jacket for the top half of your body; uniqlo thermal stocking, uniqlo heat tech thermal pants, inner woolen tights & a non cotton base/ water proof sweat pants for your lower half) everyday in the Artic. A good thermal wear is essential (highly recommended- Uniqlo’s thermals- light, thin, warm & at reasonable price).
  2. Shoes – if you made some arrangement / bookings with a local guide like us , they provide us free use of the snow shoes, gloves, hats, snow suits & even socks (if you want them). It is recommended to use their snow shoes as it keep the wetness out of your feet & keep your feet warm (take note that the shoes are heavy like safety boots).
  3. Snow suits – most if not all of the time – excursions that involve out in the cold (like dog sled, snow mobile & even the sky station) – snow suits are loan without charge for your use. So for me, it was 5 layers of clothing – hey, I rather be warm vs cold – and trust me, you really still do not sweat with 5 layers on). Just put them on & you will be grateful although one do look pretty blown up because of them. The suits helped in a cold of -20C by keeping out the cold wind & retaining the warm air from your body.

Place to stay for Northern Light Hunt:-

  1. Best place in Sweden for Northern Light sighting is definitely Abisko vs. Kiruna.
  2. While Abisko Touristation is usually with the most ‘hotels’ and cabins, I recommend to go slightly further up – Bjorkliden (appx. 10 km away from Abisko). It is a skiing resort where it is located next to the Lake Tornesark. The train that brings you from Kiruna station to Abisko will also go to Bjorkliden station, so no worries about getting there. Bjorkliden has beautiful views from the hills to the Lake Tornesark the moment you walked out of your cabins/hotel.
  3. Bjorkliden only have 2 choices for stay – the Kappas Inn or the Hotel Fjallet (both run by the same hotel ie Hotel Fjallet) – but they do have a convenience store to buy whatever you need – if one needs to cook in their cabins. They have specific opening times, do check with the reception for the details (usually after 6pm, everything is closed for the day)
  4. Kiruna is a 45,000 population town, not a lot of see except for the Kiruna Church & the views are kind of marred by the iron ore mines – which is their main industry.
  5. Artic Glass Igloo & Ice Hotel (Sinetta,Finland)  stay would be perfect if not that it is not the best place for Northern lights. You stay warm in the glass igloo while you watch the lights above from your nice warm bed (which is electronically adjustable to go up/down). We didn’t expect to see any lights from Sinetta as it is not famous for it – the place need to be free of light pollution & clear skies for easy sighting – and Sinetta does not have high probability for it – although if one is lucky – you can get to see. To note, the Artic Glass Ice Hotel that is located next to the Glass Igloos are free for visit if you are a guest. Their Ice Rooms are better designed & more elaborate than the Ice Hotel Jukkasjarvi, Sweden. The hotel grounds provides free sauna in their Igloos made for saunas at certain times & they have special dinners – which need to be pre-booked. Their Ice Bar opens from 9.30pm. It is a once in a lifetime experience so do not miss it if you are willing to pay for it.

Things to do around other than the Northern Light Hunt (which happens at night)

  1. Top of my list is the Abisko Dog Sled. A must do. A group of 10-14 dogs per sled will bring you into the Abisko National park. A wonderful experience of both the nature & interactions with the dogs.
  2. Skiing – if you have never ski, just sign up for the skiing lessons. And I recommend to take at least 1 week lessons to actually master skiing. It is not the same as in-line skating at all. (Bjorkliden – Hotel Fjallet/Kappas inn – is a skiing resort where there are ski lifts for 2-3 types of terrains, Kiruna has no such thing)
  3. Visit the Ice Hotel – Jukkasjarvi (about 20-30mins drive from Kiruna) – a good 2.5 hour visit of the place & picture taking. Interesting & good experience.
  4. Snowmobile at night – through the wilderness near Kiruna & onto a frozen lake Kaperasjarvi & experience having typical Swedish dinner (meatballs with sauce) in a teepee shaped cottage that has no electricity at -25c with just the fire in the middle of the cottage. The North Swedish all can make fire in the matter of a minute with Birch wood & shavings.
  5. At Kiruna, you can do a city walk & a visit to the Kiruna Church – as mentioned, Kiruna is rather small, the city is cute but not a lot to do or see. The only famous place to see is the Church. But one do can find more restaurants there vs Bjorkliden if you do not want to cook.

Northern Light Hunt

  1. Best place ever to watch the lights in action is definitely at the Abisko Sky Station. They only opens at night & need bookings.
  2. Get a local guide to bring you out to the national park to learn how to take picture of the Northern Light. They provide the full gear of the DSLR camera, tripod, head lamp & hot drinks in a teepee plus the much needed snow suits to keep one warm from the cold for you will be out there for 2.5 hours to catch the light.  Recommended guide operator : Lights over Lapland

Logistics Arrangements in Scandinavia

  1. In North Sweden, it is best that you arrange all the transports / logistics before you reach there either by a local guide (we booked some of the activities, train rides, local transport in Kiruna via Kirunaguidetur) OR with the hotel to arrange pick up. Kirunaguidetur provides good service & they are always on time. We have no hiccups whatsoever. So definitely recommended.
  2. In Helsinki – the airport taxi (up to 10 pax) is available at Euro 50-70 so it is the best option if you travel in more than 2 person in a group to go into the city. For your bus rides within the city – by a day trip card for Euro8 for unlimited travel. Buy them from ‘Kiosks’ shops (like 7 eleven stores)
  3. Rovaniemi (Santa Clause Village) to Sinetta (Artic Ice Igloo hotel) – the transport costs Euro15 per person for a 30min ride which is arranged by the hotel.
  4. Rovaniemi to the airport via bus costs Euro3.90 per trip for a 10mins ride.
  5. In Copenhagen – get the Copenhagen 24/48/72 hour pass that gives you access to most museums in Copenhagen (& North Sealand) & unlimited travel for the public transport for that number of hours that you purchased for.
  6. In Stockholm – Airport express costs SEK230/one way (Mon-Wed) & SEK300 for 2/one way (Thur-Sun) . If you travel in more than 2 – take the taxi – costs SEK470-620 (depending on which taxi you choose-price is displayed on the outer window of back passenger seat). For city travel – unfortunately, Stockholm pass has discontinued & the public transport day passes aren’t value for money if do you not plan to take them most of the time. Just buy them when you need them at the Presbyrian / other brand shops (small convenience stores) which is cheaper (SEK36 vs SEK 50 for zone A) than from the operator ticket counters themselves.

Hotels in the Cities

  1. Glo Kluuvi Helsinki – 4* hotel. Very nicely decorated & high security with multiple entry control points. Breakfast included & sumptuous. Kettle for hot water is charged at Euro5 per room. Location : Very good. Right in the middle of shopping street. 50 meters to the tram station. 100 meters to convenience store. 500-800 meters away from market square & cathedral.
  2. Wakeup Copenhagen Borgergade – 2* hotel – basic amenities (no kettle for hot water) & breakfast to be paid separately at Dkk 80. Location : super! Only 7 mins walk away from Stroget (shopping street) , 5mins away from Nyhavn & 4 mins walk away from one of Copenhagen’s oldest restaurant at Kongens Nyhavn street. Downside: no free baggage storage service. They have lockers that you can use at Dkk20.
  3. Radisson Blu Royal Viking – 4* hotel. Modern decorations, kettle & hair dryer included. Breakfast @ SEK150/pax. Location : at the far west side of Norrmalm – right next to the T-Central station (airport express, buses & metro). Walking distance to the Royal Palace in 20mins, to the shopping street in 15-20mins. This hotel is recommended if you are going solo or 2 person else, staying in the Norrmalm central area like Hotel Riddargartan is recommended as one will travel to/fro to the airport via taxi anyway. The walking distance to city & shopping from central Norrmalm is also shorter & small shops / restaurants around central Norrmalm are also plenty.

Food

  1. Scandinavian place high importance in human / labour rights & work life balance. Most shops are closed by 5pm or 6pm latest &  if sometimes 8pm. And restaurants’s kitchen sometimes closes as early as 8pm. That said – there are quite a few that open late like Fridays or Hard Rock Cafe. Do plan itinerary ahead to account for the dinner time by 7pm.
  2. Everything is expensive in Scandinavia compared to Asian standards. Sweden is the ‘cheapest’ among the 3 country we went. A meal costs between SEK100-200. Of course if you get from a local deli – it costs about SEK 60 (their coffee standard cost is SEK20 & sometimes SEK15).
  3. That said – recommended to take the breakfasts in places of stay as Scandinavian breakfasts are hearty yet healthy. Starts the day with a full breakfast can lasts you till 2-3pm so you have more time visiting the sights & you can enjoy a light meal of cake/waffles/sandwich before the dinner at 7pm.
  4. Best advice is research about the food / restaurants that you want to go from your hotel stay or the places you are going to visit. Check their menu on the internet (often with prices) & decide if you want to eat there.

 

Leave a comment