DAY 1: Fly to Finnish Lapland
Leave from London Heathrow on a scheduled flight to Oulu (via Helsinki) located on the edge of the Arctic Circle. On arrival, transfer 2 hours into the wilderness by private coach to Iso-Syöte, a snow-clad fjell on the edge of the Syöte National Park.
Collect your thermal clothing and check in to your cottage, which has been specially decorated for your arrival (we have also arranged for a small welcome pack of tea, coffee, hot chocolate, sugar and 1l of milk for your use). Head to the hotel restaurant for a buffet supper and remember to keep an eye out for the northern lights through the panoramic windows. Each child has a toboggan, so there may be time to hit the special toboggan slope next to the hotel before bed.
DAY 2: Father Christmas, Snow Fun & Reindeer Encounter
After breakfast, your guide will give you instruction and a safety briefing on how to drive a snowmobile. After which, adults will drive in pairs, taking it in turns to steer through the surrounding landscape. The children are wrapped up beneath reindeer skin rugs and pulled on a special sleigh behind the Lapp guide. Wind down the fjell across frozen mires and lakes to a clearing in the forest alongside which stands a Kota with a welcoming open wood fire.
Alongside the Kota are some of Father Christmas's reindeer helpers, and a magical ride on his sleigh awaits. A welcoming lunch is served in the Kota and the afternoon filled with snow fun games set up in the surrounding wilderness. There is the simple art of kick-sledding and snow shoeing to master, as well as mini–snowmobile rides for the children. There is even an ice-hockey pitch to test the family competitive skills.
During this time each family will make a secret pilgrimage along a candle-lit track to a cabin – barely visible in the woods. A knock on the door reveals Father Christmas in his secret hideaway. The rest is hush-hush until you meet him, but it is safe to say it will be a magical encounter. Return to Iso-Syöte by snowmobile; take a sauna or splash in the hotel pool before a traditional buffet supper in the panoramic restaurant.
DAY 3: Huskies and a Shaman’s Magic
Today’s snowmobile safari takes you to a nearby husky farm. On arrival meet and make friends with a pack of excitedly barking huskies. After the customary cuddling, mush your way (adults drive in pairs, children are drawn by the guides) along a trail marked out on a pure white blanket of snow, with only the sound of the sleigh’s runners to break the silence of the winter air.
Celebrate your driving skills over a mug of warming coffee and catch the sound of drum beat breaking through the frosted air. This announces the arrival of the Shaman who formally greets you with a demonstration of his centuries old mystical powers, the details of which are a carefully coveted secret. Lunch is served at the husky farm, before you snowmobile back to the hotel, where you help hunt for a Christmas tree to decorate and bake some traditional cookies. The Arctic Spa sauna, swimming pool and outdoor jacuzzis are also free for you to use. Tonight a traditional festive buffet dinner is served and you are joined by a very special visitor.
DAY 4: Return to the UK
Check-out and transfer by private group coach to the airport in time for your return flight home. For the not-so early birds a packed breakfast is provided for the journey.
Local weather conditions can mean that the itinerary and order of excursions may change. Any decision to do this is to ensure your continued enjoyment and safety at the resort.
