Cross-country skiing holiday in Finland's eastern wilderness








No single supplement (shared room with same sex traveller/s). Ski equipment rental 60 . Minimum age: 14 years.
Description of Cross-country skiing holiday in Finland's eastern wilderness
This week-long fully guided, cross country skiing holiday in Finland takes you up to the wild far reaches of NE Finland.
Following sections of an established cross country trail at times, and trails carved out especially for us by snowmobile at others, we stay in comfortable and welcoming private guesthouses along the way. That enables us to get up in the morning and straight out into pristine snow covered forest, across stunning frozen lakes and through crispy white wetland.
We hardly meet any other skier on these trails, although we will keep an eye out for animals that enjoy these habitats, seeking out wolverine and elk tracks as we go. With luck, you will also have a chance to see the Aurora Borealis but, even if the lights dont appear, the night skies here are still a wonderful addition to the winter wilderness experience.
On average we ski for five to seven hours every day, so some cross country skiing experience is required with a good level of fitness to make the most of this holiday. We travel with a small group, maximum twelve people during the months of February and March to allow for top cross country skiing conditions.
We also run trips for very experienced skiers, with more kilometers per day out on the trails. Please just ask for more information on this trip.
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Reviews
21 Reviews of Cross-country skiing holiday in Finland's eastern wilderness
Reviewed on 20 Mar 2022 by Margaret Zurawski
This was a truly memorable experience which was well organised and executed. Read full reviewReviewed on 09 Mar 2020 by Christopher Bird
A good break with a great bunch of people and led by an excellent guide who had a wealth of information and worked really hard to keep us comfortable Read full reviewReviewed on 01 Mar 2020 by Douglas Scott
Very very good....All the Nordic skiing in beautiful scenery. Great fellow travellers and a lovely guide. Read full reviewReviewed on 08 Apr 2018 by Catherine Evan-Jones
Lunches around campfire, homemade pizza made by our guide in the wilderness cabin, discovering animal tracks in the snow, fabulous porridge and traditional Easter pudding "Mammi" and other Easter treats arranged by our guide Kimmo. Read full reviewReviewed on 03 Apr 2018 by Demetrio Castignola
I can't decide which was my most memorable moment. I could say the ski along the border, the lunch breaks around the fire as well. For me the travel was very nice. Amazing food and excellent location all long the trip, very nice people (guides and others), breathe-taking landscapes. Read full reviewReviewed on 25 Mar 2018 by Gerald Rosenberg
There were several memorable moments including: -a day skiing on fresh snow through snow-covered pine trees on gently rolling terrain-jumping into a hole cut into the ice of a frozen lake after a sauna-daily saunas-a display of the Northern Lights. Read full reviewReviewed on 24 Mar 2018 by Gerard Paviet
The highlight was the quietness when skiing in this wild environment and having a warm lunch waiting for us. Read full reviewReviewed on 13 Mar 2018 by Lu Sutton
The bliss of gliding along in pure, winter wilderness far from the madding crowd of downhill slopes or groomed trails. The abundance of wildlife tracks and changing scenery and with an additional bonus of an interesting group of 8 different nationalities made for a stimulating day every day. Read full reviewReviewed on 21 Mar 2018 by Elaine Powley
Just being in that unique landscape of magical winter beauty, snow, frozen lakes and the trees in their winter clothes. Peace, tranquillity, time and space to absorb the wilderness while gently traversing on skiis. And then the Northern Lights were switched on... Read full reviewReviewed on 27 Feb 2018 by Cristina Galvin
Staying at Helena's homestay where she greeted us so warmly, served us sumptuous feasts for dinner & breakfast & told us stories, at turns poignant and powerful, from life on the Russian border during & after the war. It was riveting to listen to her & a real eye-opener, prompting me to look up more about the history of the area and the people living on both sides of the frontier. Read full reviewReviewed on 27 Feb 2017 by Paul Cundy
I really enjoyed the total immersion in the beautiful Finnish wilderness and the ability to enjoy it's peace on your own, at your own pace, whilst also knowing you had a great team to catch up with. The locations and cabins were just stunning. Top notch. A genuine adventure and great fun. Read full reviewReviewed on 06 Mar 2017 by Mike Rendell
The most exciting moment was after several days of grey skies we were sitting down to our evening meal at the unserviced Kovavaara lodge when the sky cleared and we caught a display of the Northern Lights unaffected by any artificial lights. We had a nice balance of different nationalities which added to the enjoyment. Read full reviewReviewed on 26 Feb 2017 by Karen Wood
The most memorable was finding fresh foot prints in the snow made by a passing wolverine! A great way to explore this remote part of Finland. Read full reviewReviewed on 03 Apr 2016 by Evi Zouganeli
Just fantastic all the way. Great forests, lakes, paths, nature; delicious food; relaxing sauna; great people; great company. Read full reviewReviewed on 29 Mar 2016 by Helen Stocks
Really enjoyable holiday. All the people we met were friendly, hospitable and easy-going. Read full reviewReviewed on 11 Mar 2015 by Anna Jeffrey
Staying in a log house without electricity or running water, surrounded by a snowy, silent landscape & enjoying a sauna after a day skiing across frozen lakes, over bogs and through forests. Read full reviewReviewed on 02 Apr 2014 by Alan Reimer
The most memorable part of the holiday was the professional organisation & friendly & welcoming people at the places we stayed at. Read full reviewReviewed on 27 Mar 2014 by Elizabeth Babos
The most memorable part was each day -- Skiing (47 KM on the longest day) under sunny, blue skies with beautiful scenery, fun people and a supportive, helpful guide, eating lunch by the fire, seeing the Russian border and animal tracks, then having a well deserved sauna and delicious meal. Read full reviewReviewed on 04 Apr 2012 by Edith van Genuchten
As if in a 3-D Christmas postcard that goes on for miles and miles and miles. Read full reviewResponsible Travel
Planet
Travelling from place to place on skies is very eco-friendly. The carbon dioxide emission arising from passenger and service transport for each client during the skiing tour is four kilograms per day. For comparison, this amounts to what is caused by a thirty-kilometre tour in a normal passenger car.The volume of waste is minimised by avoiding the use of unnecessary packaging material. The use of disposable plates and cups is also avoided. During the tour, all paper and cardboard packaging waste is burned. Easily decomposing garbage, such as coffee grounds and used tea bags, are composted or disposed of by means of "distributed composting". All other waste is taken back from the tour or trip. Back at the base, the waste is classified and recycled as far as possible.
A well-balanced connection with nature is the foundation of all our operations. Thus considering the environment constitutes an essential part of our business philosophy and is also of utmost importance to the success of the whole operation. The basic business idea of our company is to offer the tourist a range of products which are in concordance with Finnish nature. The products are specially designed to fuse into a harmonious whole with nature, special attention being paid to the immediate environment in which the activities take place.
We encourage our clients to show consideration for the environment: the visitors are offered a chance to take part in activities contributing to sustainable development. The adequacy of environmental activities is regularly assessed by means of collecting customer feedback and studying key parameters.
People
On this trip you will visit the local companies and will enjoy their services. For example on day 4 you will arrive to Arola where you will be welcomed by Helena and Eero, the couple who are running this authentic place. You can here the stories from the war time and how they changed the farming into small tourism business some years ago. Helena΄s cooking, where everything is local, fish from the river, elk from the forest, vegetables from the garden, berries from the forest, brings the local food culture live.By participating the trip you help Helena and Eero and their children and grandchildren to live their lives in this remote area.
Our company does not own any hotel, restaurant or buses for transportation. We buy all these services from the local operators. Also the guides of our tours are locals for as much as possible. So the money which we get from the clients goes for 70% for the local companies in the area and the guides.
In our purchases, we are committed to preferring durable, locally produced, high-quality products. Disposable products are avoided as far as possible. Ecologically sound products are acquired whenever possible. When selecting co-operation partners, preference is given to those having an environmental policy. In addition, subcontractors are informed of the firm's purchases policy.
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