Arktikum, Rovaniemi

Advantages: Great Christmas Atmosphere
Disadvantages: Can be expensive if you are not careful

...Yes that's right, my partner and I decided to leave his kids at home and embark upon a four day trip to Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland. Flights from London Gatwick to Rovaniemi took around 3 hours and although a little uncomfortable whilst wearing your thermals I would heartily advise you to! Although you only have a short walk from your plane into the arrivals lounge it is very much like walking into a freezer - it was minus 14 when we arrived and only got colder! We stayed in Rovaniemi cottages, log cabins just outside the city at the bottom of a ski slope - stunning in the dusk when they are spraying the slopes with more snow, it looks like pink mist has descended on you! With our own sauna and wonderful welcome from the staff we felt very much at home. Can heartily recommend visiting a husky farm - I think... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Remoteness and reindeers;
Disadvantages: Remoteness, reindeers and mosquitos.

...Levi Just a word about the pictures! Sorry that they were not included in the first version of this review, and sorry that they had to be reduced in size and quality for the site. They were all taken on the Olympus reviewed elsewhere. 1 Location ********* If you are looking for Levi on the map of Finland, there is a fair chance you will not spot it. I have a Michelin 1: 125000 map, bought this year, and it does show Levi, but not as a town or city, just as a mountain slightly north of Kittala. So for those as ignorant of Finland as I was before this summer trip, let me set it in context for you. Helsinki, the capital is right down South in Finland. If you drive about 800kms north, you will arrive at the Arctic Circle, somewhere around Rovaniemi, depending on which route you take. It might be Kemijarvi if you go more easterly... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Open jaw tickets, good pricing policy, good route network.
Disadvantages: none

...- apart from one where the plane takes off and lands without incident, and tend if possible to sleep through flights - when on business if possible this has an added bonus of the fact that I am being paid to sleep, and if flying on a Sunday am being paid double time to sleep. However, given the attentive service on my 2h30m flight from Vienna to Helsinki, I didn't sleep on the way there - mind you the generosity regarding alcoholic drinks might have been a reason for this. As the national carrier of Finland - I believe it is still mainly state-owned - the airline has a large number of internal flights around Finland, as well as flights around Europe and longer haul flights. I intend to use them again next summer, when I plan another odyssey through Finland and Russia - the thought of taking the train between Rovaniemi and Helsinki does... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful