A Couple of Miles from Lapland

One of the most over-used phrases in the travel industry is “trip of a lifetime”. I hate it because it implies that you’ll never be able to go there again, which in most examples is simply not true. But there is one place that could genuinely be described in such a way, and that’s Lapland.

It’s one of those places that is most enchanting when the children are at a certain age and still believe in magic, and of course Mr Claus. But with three day trips starting at an eye watering £719 per person and day trips weighing in at well over £300pp, it’s not the most affordable destination in the world.

So when I noticed that Crystal Ski were offering seven night ski holidays to Ruka, Finland, for less than £400pp I was in such a rush to book that I didn’t realise that technically Ruka is actually a couple of miles south of Lapland – but then what’s a mile or so between friends?

From the moment we stepped off the plane Harrison was in heaven. It’s hard to imagine getting from A to B being more fun than it is in Ruka and the airport transfer was no exception. Skiing holidays often have notoriously long transfers, which can feel like absolute purgatory when you have small children. But Ruka is located just 25 minutes from Kussamo airport and the drive through snow covered pine forests was an experience in itself- so much so that the words ‘winter wonderland’ somehow feel inadequate.

The bus dropped us off right in front of Ski Inn’s Aurinkorinne Apartments and we trudged through the snow to find a log cabin with kitchen, two bedrooms and our own sauna in the bathroom! I was also pleased to discover that our room faced due north and was within a hundred meters or so of a ski lift below us. And since we brought a sledge we actually managed to hit the slopes within an hour after getting off the plane!

And so we spent the whole of our first day sledging on the slopes right outside our apartment – with just a trip to town for lunch interrupting the fun. This was actually a first for Harrison, who normally insists on exploring every nook and cranny of our accommodation before we are allowed to leave it, but the allure of the snow covered hills outside was too much for him to resist.

Having a self catering apartment is always a bonus for young families and it’s pretty much essential in the arctic, where prices are undeniably more than say Portugal or Greece. That said the food in Ruka’s restaurants was a lot less expensive than anywhere else that I’ve travelled in Norway or Sweden and no more expensive than any other western European ski resort for that matter.

Lift passes too were competitively priced at £147 for six days, though we only booked a one day pass as we wanted to spend plenty of time on other activities.

Over the course of the next few days we tried things we’d never be able to do anywhere else like ice fishing on a frozen lake, which was a pretty cool experience – literally and metaphorically. Harrison was mesmerised as our guide drilled through the ice to put our line in and didn’t seem particularly bothered when we failed to catch a fish! It wasn’t even as cold as you would imagine, given the -15°C degree temperatures, because specialist clothing was provided to wear over our own snowsuits. That said, my wife Alena took one year old Ella to the soft play in town rather than bringing her to the frozen lake, which was probably for the best all things considered.

With Ella’s age in mind, and Harrison’s for that matter, we thought it prudent to book shorter outdoor trips rather than longer dog or reindeer safaris. So on our third day we headed to Lammintupa – a farm/restaurant in stunning Narnia-esque scenery that caters primarily to families. It was very cheap by north European standards and we paid just €50 for the four of us to go dog sledding, which was literally the most exciting ride we’ve ever had on any form of transport anywhere. Whether it was the sub zero temperatures or the sheer exhilaration of dashing through the snow covered forest I’m not sure but none of us could get the grins from our faces afterwards. Be prepared though – I wasn’t – because one of you will actually be driving the sled!

Afterward we paid €20 for a short reindeer ride, which seemed tame after the dogs and Harrison preferred feeding them buckets of moss to the ride itself. I think the reindeer did too.

After a traditional lunch we found a sledding hill and a small snowmobile for children costing €20 for 20 minutes, which Harrison rode on with his mummy while Ella laughed at him going in circles. We even got to interact with the husky pups, which was a magical, and free, experience. The guide at Lammintupa told us that they were also planning to add a Santa Claus experience in time for winter 2016 as well.

It was at this point I realised something unusual about Ruka, unlike certain other places in Lapland it hadn’t quite sold its soul to Santa (yet). Indeed the Santa tour was last on the list at the tourist information in town. And more strangely still, Harrison hadn’t even asked about seeing him. Perhaps it’s because he was having so much fun on his sledge or with the dogs, but more likely it’s because the resort doesn’t force feed him to you.

After such a busy and exciting day we were glad to get back to the apartment and wind down. But if anything the day was going to get more exciting still. Just before midnight we received a Twitter alert from our Crystal Ski representative informing guests to either go outside, or look out of their windows if their apartments were facing north.

I woke Alena up, grabbed my phone and we watched the northern lights through the bedroom window. We’ve been lucky enough to see the lights before, but to watch them from bed takes some beating, especially when you have young children as it’s not practical to be out in the frozen night on a tour with them.

We stuck to sledging for the next few days but on the last day Alena and I took it in turns to ski throughout the day. The day pass was particularly good value because it was a Friday and the slopes were open until 11pm.

We never did go to see Santa in the end, it was enough for Harrison knowing that we were in the country where Santa lives, and he never once asked whereabouts he was. Besides Harrison is far to astute for his own good and I’m certain he’d ask questions about Santa’s accent being so very different from last time, when we saw him in Yorkshire!