Reindeers and the elusive northern lights in the Swedish Lapland

Kiruna, Sweden


One of the best places on earth to see the Northern lights is the Swedish Lapland. Does miles and miles of snowy forest, mid-night adventures on your snow mobile, husky sledding and spending nights in the ice hotel excite you? If yes, then read more on how you can enjoy the mystical Swedish winter wonderland.

A direct flight from London will bring you to the mining town of Kiruna. Located 145 kms right in the heart of the Arctic circle, it has bone chilling winters. But apart from it its winter wonderland status, what is interesting about it is that due to intense mining activity, the earth underneath is falling apart. Hence the city center is literally being moved 2 miles to the east. Talk about relocation!!

If you are in Kiruna, you have to make it a point to spend atleast 1 night (or more , if you don’t like your teeth that much) in the beautiful Ice Hotel. In this glittering ice palace, every room is unique with a specific theme and is made of ice, from the bed to the chandeliers to the art deco Elephant pieces to make you feel like princess Elsa.

There is a weird silence as if the ice absorbs every sound and all you are left with is hush giggles and awe inspiring ahhsss…

The temperature inside the room stays at a balmy -5 degrees Celsius so they provide you with an electric sleeping bag that keeps you toasty all through the night. Don’t take anything to the room (coz everything will freeze over night), have a pee and don’t wash your face so that the natural oils will keep your face well moisturized through the night.

There is a gorgeous Ice Bar with cool electronic beats and bartenders that whip up some funky cocktails in chiseled ice glasses.

Allow me to show your around…

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Bar, Sweden

Ice Bar, Sweden

Ice Bar, Sweden

Ice Bar, Sweden

 

After you have settled in the ice hotel, you can hop on your snow mobile and drive through the wilderness in search of the elusive northern lights. After riding through darkness for about two hours with no Aurora Borealis in sight, we saw the magnificent ‘moon rise’. The sky turns in to a fiery orange and crimson to make way for the gorgeous white beauty.

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Moon Ride, Kiruna, Sweden

Moon Ride, Kiruna, Sweden

Moon Ride, Kiruna, Sweden

Moon Ride, Kiruna, Sweden

Moon Rise, Kiruna, Sweden

Moon Rise, Kiruna, Sweden

 

All that riding can make you hungry, so we head towards these snow capped huts glowing with firelight. You warm yourself with hot lingonberry juice. Dinner follows with potato soup, delicious reindeer stew and lingonberry panna cotta (these Swedes will put Lingonberry in everything LOL)

 

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Lingonberry Panna cotta, Sweden

Lingonberry Panna cotta, Sweden

 

With our stomach full, we hop on to our bikes to search for the lights again but the with a cloudy sky the chance were next to nil. We head back to the hotel, straight to the Ice bar to drown our sorrows.

 

After a long sleepy night on ice, head over to meet some reindeers. They are mostly up in the mountains but the younger and elders ones are taken care in facilities nearby. You can feed them and stroke them. Some are very shy but lichen is the best ice breaker 😉

 

Reindeer feeding, Sweden

Reindeer feeding, Sweden

Reindeer feeding, Sweden

Reindeer feeding, Sweden

Reindeer feeding, Sweden

Reindeer feeding, Sweden

 

Near by is a Sami village that exhibits the culture and way of life of the indigenous people of the north. Walk around to learn about the Lávvu (teepee), traditional outfits and how reindeers play a crucial part of the fabric of life for many Sami people.

If you are hungry, head over to the café to relish some reindeer burger and to warm your toes.

On the way back to the hotel, you can marvel at the frozen landscape along the way.

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Lávvu, Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Swedish traditional dress

Swedish traditional dress

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Reindeer Burger, Sweden

Reindeer Burger, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

 

No Lapland trip is complete without a husky ride. These dogs are the most gentle animals packed with so much energy. The sound of howling through the wind will fill your heart with anticipation as you eagerly wait for your ride to arrive.

For the best view, take the front seat on the wooden sleds lined with cushiony reindeer skins. Hold tight and mush mush we go… As opposed to the restless barking and howling, the dogs go silent when they run, as if enjoying the insane high…they live for the race!

Dodge through picturesque snowy forests and vast landscapes that looks like a spectacular Christmas card straight out of Narnia

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

 

Once in the middle of the woods, stop for some warm coffee and cake and soak in the silence of the woods. Before you know, the hounds are impatient and ready to run! Once back, they roll in to the snow to cool off and are ready for another race. Running is their drug and to make sure they have the energy, the owners take utmost care of them.

 

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

Husky Sledding, Kiruna, Sweden

 

Walk along the frozen river , give a shot at ice fishing or just fling snowballs at each other. You can also try some ice sculpture carving.

 

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Kiruna, Sweden

Ice fishing in Sweden

Ice fishing in Sweden

Ice Fishing, Sweden

Ice Fishing, Sweden

Ice Sculpting, Sweden

Ice Sculpting, Sweden

 

Stroll through the town and head over to the Homestead restaurant for dinner. A log building, it is so cozy that I wanted to take a nap there. You can relish some delicious steaks and  lingonberry pudding.. After a delicious dinner, we head back to our cozy cabin waiting for the northern lights to bless us. Unfortunately, due to the cloud cover, their visibility was very low.

Homestead restaurant, Kiruna, Sweden

Homestead restaurant, Kiruna, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

 

Ice Hotel, Sweden

Ice Hotel, Sweden

 

To try one last time to view the lights, we went to the Abisko National park , the best place to view Northern lights in the world. However, due to a storm there was no chance of us seeing the lights. The flight attendants do warn you that the catching the lights is very difficult due to the cloud cover and weather. Nevertheless, we will be back next time full of optimism to view the natural beauty in its full glory.

So what do you think? Are you up for a Swedish Lapland adventure?

December 7, 2017