Finland is next on our virtual tour of Europe. It's easy to fall in love with this beautiful country - it has so many fun things to do, the people are the world's happiest, and based on their sports and festivals, have a quirky sense of adventure. I'm typically a warm weather chaser, so I never expected that such a chilly destination would rise toward the top of my own travel wishlist, but Finland is really making a case for our attention. Thanks for coming along on our virtual visit - Hope you enjoy!
Mapwork by @Slalice_Draws
TRAVEL & ACCOMODATIONS
The accommodation options in Finland are among the best part of a visit - between glass-top igloos, ice hotels, and renovated light houses, we have some cool choices. While there are sights to see all over this amazing country, it is extremely tall and thin, and even on a virtual visit, it is not practical to see everything, so we are going to concentrate our visit on two areas: the capital city of Helsinki (toward the south) and the very most northern area, generally referred to as Lapland. There are a few 'must see' attractions between these two locations as well, so I will include them in case we feel inclined to take a day here or there off the beaten path.
From Berlin, Germany, it is possible currently to find direct, non-stop flights to Helsinki for under 150 Euros that last less than 2 hours.
First, in Helsinki, we will stay at the GLO Hotel Art, a modern, upscale hotel built in what was once a beautiful castle, in the heart of the city.
In Lapland, we will stay in the iconic Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort, which is where we will hope to glimpse the Northern Lights through our glass topped igloo!
It would be more than a 12 hour drive north from Helsinki to Lapland, which does not seem attractive, but there are other ways to make the journey. We will instead travel on the 'Santa Claus Express' Night Train, and after a good night's sleep in our private sleeping cabin, we will be ready to visit Santa, his reindeer, and all the snowy fun that Lapland has to offer! Our family has always dreamed of taking a trip in a sleeper train, so this would be exciting for us!
ITINERARY
HELSINKI
Our first stop in the Helsinki area will be at Suomenlinna Fortress, where we will plan to explore the fortress, have a picnic lunch, and check out some of the museums on and around the grounds.
Next, we will check out the hauntingly beautiful area of the Kruunuviori Abandoned Villas.
Finland is not especially known for its caves, but this particular one is very famous, so it will be our next stop.
After that, we will head to this really cool underground and modern museum in the heart of the city.
We will not want to miss a visit to this very unique church that came to be as the result of a design competition.
Especially if we happen to be in Helsinki on a warm, summery day, a walk along the popular Esplanadi ('Espa') is a must.
It will be fun to leave the city of Helsinki by a bit to visit this fun little imaginative amusement park in nature called MoominWorld, with its iconic blue MoominHouse.
Before we leave Helsinki, we will want to do some souvenir shopping at the famed Kauppahalli, or Old Market Hall, for some local treasures and foods.
LAPLAND
Aurora Borealis
After our ride from Helsinki to Lapland on the 'Santa Claus Express' Night Train, we will be ready for some fun! First, we will get settled into our new accommodations - a glass top igloo, where we will watch the Northern Lights.
Rudolph and his reindeer friends need some practice before pulling Santa's sleigh around the world at Christmas, so we will be happy to help with that by taking a ride ourselves!
Many of us have had the experience of visiting Santa at the mall or elsewhere closer to our own homes. On this trip, we can visit him near his! As you can see in this video, we can visit the main post office near his home, which you can imagine gets lots of letters each year, and we will have the opportunity to actually cross the Arctic Circle and can even get a passport stamp saying we did so!
It will be hard to top all that fun, but, believe it or not, there are still exciting things to do! Next, we will head to Lampivaara where we can join in and dig for amethyst in the mine. I understand we can even keep what we find, as long as it is not larger than our fist!
Our next visit will be to the nearby Siida Museum in Inari to learn about local, native culture from the indigenous Sámi people through this cultural center.
Did you know that 'Sauna' is a Finnish word? It's not just a word from the language, it is an important part of Finnish culture. There are more than 3 Million across the country (in fact, there are more Saunas in Finland than there are cars!), so we won't want to pass up the opportunity to enjoy this while we are there!
DAY TRIPS
If we have some extra time during our virtual visit and we are looking for something off the beaten path, we can check out these cool spots:
This snow and ice castle is rebuilt every year!
The Saimaa ringed seal is the rarest species of seal in the world, with the entire population living in the Saimaa lake system in Eastern Finland, having been cut off from the ocean after the previous ice age 8,000 years ago. We will definitely want to go see these seals!
Finally, Finland is known for its quirky sports and competitions. I will leave you with this video of the Heavy Metal Knitting World Championship.
Phew! Such a full and busy virtual trip! What did you enjoy the most? Let me know in the comments below.
Comments