I first saw pictures of Lapland in an aeroplane magazine coming from a holiday with my boyfriend and thought "wow I'd love to go there". It isn't just for kids, as I found out its just as much for adults as it is the children.

My boyfriend and I booked it for December but we had to book early as places in Lapland get booked pretty quickly for Christmas. And I would recommend going before Christmas, it adds to the excitment more I think rather than going when you know Christmas is over. But its entirely up to yourself.

We booked through Crystal which is a Thompson company that specialise in skiing and snowy holidays. They are very helpful and trustoworthy in my opinion. We had been on a Thompson holiday before and they proved to be very helpful and their holiday reps were very good in booking trips and making sure everything went to plan.

So, my boyfriend and I went for a week in December and stayed in the Hotel Iso Syote. This is a very remote hotel. It must have taken about 2 hours from the airport to get there. However, the food was lovely and the staff were very friendly so I couldn't fault the hotel at all. There was a hotel only about 30 mins away from the airport and this seemed to be in a small town with more shops but the hotel we stayed at was really remote. We were miles away from shops etc but on the way to the hotel from the airport we were all given the opportunity to stop and buy groceries for the week. And during our time there there was a bus that drove to the grocery store if you needed to go.

THINGS TO DO IN LAPLAND:

Before we went we booked the trips from the Crystal website which worked out cheaper and it meant we didnt have to take extra money away to book any trips on the first day.
We booked to go on a day trip to the Santa village and Rauna zoo which was a combined trip. This was brilliant as the zoo had animals which you would only really see in cold countries, such as polar bears, reindeer and rare owls etc. The village was great, although it is advisable to go to see Santa as soon as you arrive because we were too late and the bus was leaving. The atmosphere in the Santa village is very magical and Christmassy but there are a lot of gift shops which was kind of annoying because it felt more like a shopping trip.

The second trip we went on was a snow mobile ride into the countryside in Lapland. This is very rural so we basically went through forests, over frozen lakes etc and stopped in an area to see the Northern Lights late at night but you will be very fortunate if you see them because we didn't, you only will if its a very clear but cold night. With the snow mobiles it is advisable that the stronger person sits up front and the weaker smaller person behind because there are times when the driver has to steer the snow mobile to either side to avoid the vehicle falling over on its side.

A similar trip we went on was, again on the snow mobiles but this time it was during the day and we travelled as a group to the husky dog farm. The trainers then let you go on sleighs carried by husky dogs which is a lot of fun and very safe as well.

And the final trip was the reindeer farm. The mini bus took us to the reindeer farm and the owner of the farm talked a bit about reindeer which was very interesting. The we each got onto a wooden sleigh which was then carried along a safe road by the reindeer.

Regarding all of the trips which included snow mobile rides and reindeer rides, the hotel (every hotel in Lapland does the same) loaned everybody special body suits to wear over our clothes. At first I thought there was no point but they came in so useful. They protect your normal clothes from getting dirty and also they're water-proof which is important because as the temperature is so cold it is important not to get wet or let your feet get wet.

There are more trips than these to do as well, if you are interested in skiiing there are brilliant ski slopes but in my opinion I think Lapland is a bit expensive to go to just to ski as you can ski in France which would be less expensive.

WHAT TO WEAR:

I read so much before I went about what to wear, although some of the things that I bought weren't necessary. For example, some websites suggested balaclavas which I thought was unnecessary when I got there unless you are skiing or walking about for long periods of time.
Things you will need are thermal tops and thermal leggings for your first layer. I bought mine from Primark and Marks and Spencers which were great so you don't need to spend loads. Thermals lock in heat and it is better to wear many layers rather than one thick layer.
The second layer could be a long sleeved top, preferably a thin one as you will then need a jumper on as your third layer.
I would recommend a good waterproof jacket or coat, maybe a ski type jacket or one of those really warm puffy jackets. As stylish as you might want to look, health comes first and its important to wear warm clothing as it can be as low as -30C in Lapland.
You will also need a good woolly hat because without my hat on the cold air was actually hurting my head after a while.The cold air isn't so bad on your cheeks as you probably won't be out walking about for long periods of time, but try not to let your head or forehead get freezing because this leads to a bad headache and maybe worse.
Of course a scarf and gloves are important too and you could even invest in a pair of glove liners for underneath your normal gloves but most of the time I didn't wear my thermal glove liners and my hands were fine. The same goes for thermal socks, I bought these but I didn't really need them as my shoes were good at keeping the heat in.
Which is my next important point. A good pair of shoes with a grip on the sole is important for walking about in the snow. Even if it is only walking from your cabin to the hotel you will need these to avoid slipping. I got mine from Primark so again you don't need to spend loads to get a good pair. High heels aren't recommended as you will sink into the snow and also you shouldn't go out with heels and no socks on as this is potentially dangerous and not fun at all I'm guessing.

I'd definitely recommend this holiday to anyone. It isn't just a holiday for children because we met many couples who were there on honeymoon, skiing trips etc and they didn't have children with them.

And finally, the scenery. As you can see from the photo there are some lovely sights to see in Lapland, mainly due to the amount of snow making it look so magical.

So I'd definitely recommend this to anyone!