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Situated 230km North of the Arctic Circle, Harriniva combines Scandinavian style accommodation, the warmest of welcomes and a great range of activities designed to take you into the very heart of Lapland’s winter wilderness.
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"I had the most amazing time and ticked off all the experiences I went there looking for - it was a real trip of a lifetime! I'd like to thank all at Activities Abroad for making the booking procedure so straight forward, personal and friendly." Heather Noble, December 2010
Suitable for
Groups, couples and singles.
Duration: 6 or 7 nights
Day 1: Flights, arrival and introduction
You will be greeted at Kittila Airport and transferred to Harriniva where there will be a meeting with your guide followed by a welcome dinner.
Day 2: Reindeer farm and safari
Today you will visit a reindeer farm where you will meet the herders and learn about the importance of reindeer in Lapland. You’ll learn how to lasso a reindeer and practice your driving skills during a 2 hour safari through the snowy forest.
Day 3: Snowmobile safari
Snowmobiles are an indispensable mode of transport here in Lapland. Your guides will give you full instruction before your exhilarating safari speeding through the winter scenery of Fell Lapland. You will travel around 60km and will break en route at an ancient forest and learn about the conservation projects that are helping to protect this magnificent wilderness.
Day 4: Free day or optional activities
Today is free to partake in optional activities (payable locally) such as cross country skiing, ice fishing or perhaps you may choose to visit to Lainio Snow Village.
Day 5 and 6: Overnight husky safari
The highlight of any winter holiday in Lapland is the chance to drive your own team of huskies. During this two day safari through the wilderness you will get up close to nature and work in harmony with your team. You will meet the dogs and receive instruction on their care and how to handle the sled before departure and you will cover around 25km en route to a wilderness cabin where you can relax in a sauna before dinner and bed.
If you are woken in the morning by what sounds like a pack of wolves surrounding the cabin, fear not, it’s just your huskies anxious to be back on the trail. This second leg of your adventure covers approximately 25 to 30km before you arrive back at Harriniva for dinner and a sauna.
Day 7: Free day or departure (6 nights duration)
For those people travelling on dates which are 6 nights in duration it is time to say goodbye to Finland. For those staying 7 nights you can fill your free day with a range of additional activities (payable locally) or perhaps stay at Lainio Snow Village.
Day 8: Departure, transfer and flights (7 nights duration)
Available
Limited places
On request
Pricing Notes
Lainio Snow Village
Opening dates: Thursday 8 December 2011 until Sunday 8 April 2012.
Price includes: Overnight stay, transfers, dinner in the ice restaurant and cold weather clothing.
Getting there
Flights
Flights vary depending on departure date and are based on direct charter flights from Gatwick to Kittila except:
* 7 nights duration with scheduled flights from Heathrow to Kittila (via Helsinki).
**6 nights duration with scheduled flights from Heathrow to Kittila (via Helsinki).
Manchester and Bristol departures available subject to availabilty (supplements will apply).
Please note: Christmas, New Year and February half term dates are 6 nights due to unavailability of direct flights. We have to use more expensive scheduled flights via Helsinki which are unavailable for 7 night options.
Tourism in Finnish Lapland has become the main income source of employment and income replacing traditional industries such as forestry.
Development from a period of extractive industry to an industrial society has come about quickly. In 1950 the largest part of Lapland’s inhabitants lived in rural areas and more than half the workforce worked in forestry and agriculture. Today 65 % of the workforce is in the service industry, 22 % in processing and 10 % in primary production.
This huge growth in tourism and service provision has been developed in conjunction with a long-term sustainable tourism plan with one of the primary objectives being to maintain nature in its natural state while guaranteeing the traditional way of life.
Much of this has been achieved along with membership of EU development programmes, aimed at diversifying sources of livelihood, effective usage of resources and to increase export.
Approximately a quarter of Lapland’s 100 000 strong workforce was unemployed in 1997. Promoting entrepreneurship, ongoing re-education of the workforce and development of the educational system to suit the needs of enterprises is continuing. The target is to diversify the sources of livelihood, increase the value of refinement production and develop new enterprises particularly in the area of tourism. National measures as well as EU-programme measures support this objective.
We embrace this philosophy, employing local activity providers and using only locally owned hotels. In this manner we help to maintain jobs in an area where unemployment was, until recently, very high. Additionally, the use of local suppliers ensures that the tourism spend filters through to local economies via the tourism multiplier effect.