Lapland - Riksgränsen, Sweden
Why Swedish Lapland?
When I was studying abroad in Sweden I wanted to see one thing during my exchange semester: the Northen Lights. Swedish Lapland is perfect for this. It is not that cloudy compared to Norway where clouds can get stuck between mountains and it is easy accessible.
Where did I stay?
I stayed at a small village called Riksgränsen. The village is small and nature is diverse. There is a huge frozen lake where we made bonfires at night. In addition, there are ski slopes. The Norwegian border is closeby, because of that, many Norwegians bring there snowmobile to the frozen lake and right them (it is illegal to right snowmobiles through nature in Norway). In Riksgränsen I slept in Hotell Riksgränsen, which was the best choice. The hotel is popular by skiing people and has a sauna, restaurant, bar and pub. The rooms are clean and space full, I would definitely recommend it. Around the corner of the hotel you will find a supermarket, a huge plus when going to Lapland.
Another good and popular village in Swedish Lapland is Kiruna. This village has multiple hotels and is connected to a railway which makes travelling by train possible.
How to get there?
There are a few options I would recommend. From Stockholm there is a night train to Kiruna that goes multiple times per week, this will be the cheapest option. Ofcourse depending on which seats you book. There is also an possibility to fly to Kiruna, these tickets tent to by higher. The flight are also unpredictable as weather might influence the flightsheme. You can also drive to Lapland, I would not recommend this as it will take more than 14 hours and you need experience to drive the last part safely. Personally, I scheduled my trip with friends and booked a night bus which took around 16 hours. In Kiruna, it is easy to rent a car. However, you may find out that this is not needed as certain activities offer the option to pick you up at your hotel.
What to do?
- Visit a reindeer farm:
A very unique and memorable experience! I got to feed some of the reindeers, a guide (Sami) explained everything very well in detail.
- Ride a sled with husky’s:
I would definitely recommend going to this tour crew. There are many around Kiruna, however, these people treated the dogs very well and are professionals. We could pet the husky’s and got some warm drinks after the tour.
- Cross country skiing:
This was really hard, but very fun! If the weather is sunny a must do!
- Snowshoe hiking:
Me and my friends did a tour after dinner. I personally liked this as you where in complete darkness, unfortunately there where clouds otherwise this is create to see the Northen Lights as you walk away from the village and it’s lights.
- Northen Lights tour:
I was very lucky to see the Northen Lights without a tour. My friends who went later to Lapland did book a tour. They were really happy with these tourguides, they got picked up by car and drove to the best location possible.
- Snowmobile tour:
Another recommendation from my friends ;).
- Day trip to Narvik (Norway):
We where very lucky to join an bus to this place. If you have a car available, I would recommend driving to this beautiful place and of course jump into the Fjord along the drive as I did! Worth everything!
- Icehotel:
On our way back to home we visited this incredible place. It’s quite expensive and crowded, but still worth it in my opinion. You will never experience this anywhere else.
General tips
When I went to Lapland in March it was around zero degrees. Because it was the end of the season I had a great time. It was not crowded and my face was not burning from the cold. I cooked mainly at our hotel, our room included a small kitchen. There are not many restaurants out of Kiruna, be aware kf that. Bring food such as bread and proteinbars with you, there may be a supermarket but on busy days it sells out of popular stuff. When you will visit Lapland in Januari it will be a lot colder, make sure that you are wearing layers. Buying extra clothes in the spot will be very expensive. Also, do not forget to bring your sunglasses. You will definitely use them as the sun has great power and reflects on the snow.
I wish that everyone, going to Lapland, will see the Northen Lights. It was incredible.
Have fun!
- Anne
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