Hyvaa paivaa! Welcome to Helsinki!
Finland’s cosmpolitan capital is renowned for its thriving arts scene and innovative design, with picturesque city streets ambling along to the water’s edge.
Your journey begins at your central hotel, where you will check in before an afternoon free to explore. In the evening, join your fellow travellers and meet your tour leader at 6pm before heading to a local restaurant for a delicious welcome dinner.
After a refreshing breakfast, set off on foot for a guided tour of Helsinki. From Vanhakaupunki – the city’s charming old town – to the countless antique shops and galleries of the Design District, your morning will help you get a feel for Finland's far southern culture hub.
Stop by the unique church of Temppeliaukio, carved from solid rock, then visit Uspenski Cathedral for a look at Eastern Orthodox architecture. Step inside the Oodi Library, regarded as one of the most beautiful public libraries in the world, then finish with a walk through Esplanadi to Kauppatori market square, where you can browse the many food stalls.
Your evening is yours to spend freely, whether you choose to explore further or retire early for a night in.
Take this morning at your own pace, discovering more of Helsinki’s hidden charms.
In the afternoon, transfer to Helsinki Central Station and board your upper level sleeper carriage for a comfortable overnight trip, with ensuite bathroom, on your railway ride to the northern city of Rovaniemi.
Arrive in Rovaniemi early this morning and transfer to your hotel for check-in. From here, you’re free to wander the idyllic streets, join your tour leader for a walk through the village or even meet Santa Claus himself.
This evening, take your half-hour transfer to Arctic SnowHotel for a guided tour of its incredible frosty furnishings and ice-made accommodations, carved differently each year. Once you’ve worked up an appetite, sit down for an unforgettable dinner at the hotel’s Ice Restaurant. Seated at your ice table, you’ll have the opportunity to taste hot Lappish delicacies, from a creamy forest mushroom soup to roast elk with carrot puree, and the house specialty dessert: raspberry-vanilla bavarois, theatrically presented on an ice platter.
Depart this morning for Luosto, where you’ll check in at Santa’s Hotel Aurora and spend your afternoon at leisure.
Tonight, join a thrilling northern lights workshop and experience the wintry wonderland on a guided walk through the arctic wilderness, listening as your guide details the science and storytelling traditions that surround this natural phenomenon. Back in your room, the natural lightshow might just give an encore performance.
Today, mark your crossing into the Arctic Circle with a special ceremony at a secluded hut in the forest. Then return to the hotel where you'll be able to transfer to a glass-domed igloo for the night – a unique space in which you'll able to appreciate the isolated beauty of this dramatic ‘fell’, or mountain.
Spend your afternoon as you please, or choose to join an optional ice fishing experience or a snowshoe excursion into breathtaking Pyha-Luosto National Park.
Optional activities:
- Two-hour ice fishing experience (from A$195 per person).
- 2.5-hour snowshoe excursion (from A$185 per person).
Prepare to embrace the wild today as you transfer to Inari, regarded as the capital of Finland's indigenous Sámi culture, and check in at your stay set among the wilderness.
The rest of your day is spent freely, whether you choose to tread the white blanket of your winter surrounds, or settle in and rug up for scenic views and the ultimate cosy day. Over the next three nights, indulge in elevated dining experiences at your incredible hotel and taste the warming flavours of the north.
Over the next two days, balance the unforgiving climate with unforgettable experiences. Make the most of Lapland’s harsh beauty with your hotel’s myriad included activities. Perhaps you’ll take a snowmobile safari across the dazzling white expanse, or visit a reindeer farm for the chance to learn more about these elegant animals, as well as the life of Sámi people in the north. Those seeking a different way to travel the landscape can join a husky safari and learn the ropes of dog-sledding.
In the evenings, take the trip to a carefully chosen camp in search of the elusive aurora borealis, or else hop aboard a snowmobile for a more fast-paced search beneath the starry sky. Back at your hotel, warm up with an Arctic sauna experience and watch the Juutua River flow dreamily by from a luxurious hot tub. With the Arctic world at your feet, you'll have time to enjoy all of these spectacular adventures.
Gather your energy over a hearty breakfast, then cross the border into Norway on a scenic bus journey, making your way to Kirkenes. Here, you’ll take to the frozen fjords for a chance to catch, cook and dine on Norway’s famous arctic king crab. Pulled fresh from the fjord, you’ll get all the flavour of fine-dining straight from the depths of the north. Help to saw a hole in the ice, then later learn how to prepare this delicacy under the tutelage of a master. Take a snowmobile sled to a lakeside farmhouse, where a crackling log fire and the promise of your spectacular meal awaits.
Later, arrive at a hand-built snow hotel and check in for another cosy evening in the far north – you'll be staying in your choice of either a room made of snow and part of the main hotel, or in a luxury cedar cabin designed in the style of a traditional fishing hut.
Tonight, keep the cold at bay with a dinner of traditional dishes using locally sourced ingredients. Before retiring for the evening, perhaps say hello to the resident reindeer, and be sure to keep your eye on the sky for another chance at glimpsing the northern lights.
After a filling breakfast, it’s time to transfer to Kirkenes Port and bid farewell to your tour leader as you board your Havila Voyages cruise, embarking on a voyage south along the famous Norwegian fjord postal route. With all meals covered, and the guarantee of awe-inspiring scenery, this cruise is your ticket to fantastic fjordlands.
Your voyage takes you west and south today, docking at Vardo – Norway’s easternmost port – where an ice bath awaits the brave (weather permitting, surcharges apply). If you’d prefer to stay warm, perhaps enjoy an onboard presentation about shorebirds of the Nordic coast. Cruise the Varanger Peninsula on your way towards Berlevag – a fishing town famed for its men’s choir.
During the night, dock at Mehamn for the chance to join a snowmobile trip through the snowy, starlit valleys.
Back aboard your hardy vessel, you’ll spend the day stopping in at various ports along the scenic coast, spending your time admiring the wondrous north drifting by. At Hammerfest, choose to visit the world’s northernmost gas terminal (surcharges apply), where you’ll see the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Meridian Column, built over 170 years ago to commemorate the first precise geographic measurement of the globe.
Continue south and stop by the old trading post of Skjervoy. Tonight, dock at Tromso for an enchanting midnight concert at the Arctic Cathedral.
Today, pass through the channel of Risoyrenna, specially constructed to provide an inside route for the Hurtigruten. Stop by tiny settlements to deliver grocies and post as you travel on to the spectacular Lofoten archipelago, characterised by steep mountains, abundant nature and quaint fishing villages peppered along the coast.
Sailing south through the narrow Raftsund strait, you’ll have the opportunity to detour for a visit to the jaw-dropping slopes of the Trollfjord (weather permitting, surcharges apply). Past the immense Lofoten Wall, you’ll set an overnight course for the mainland.
Crossing once more over the Arctic Circle as you head south, you are welcomed on deck to celebrate with an Arctic tradition – a spoonful of cod liver oil.
Sail along the Helgeland Coast, gliding through hundreds of granite-walled islets covered in farmland. Watch for eye-catching Torghatten and its curious ice age-carved hole, cutting a clean passage through the middle of the mountain, stretching 160-metres long.
Sail on past the striking heads of the Seven Sisters, where you’ll discover the mythic tale of these royal trolls turned to stone. Later, arrive in Bronnoysund for the evening.
This morning, you’ll have time to explore Trondheim, a university town with breathtaking gothic architecture.
Back aboard your vessel, you’ll head out to the astounding Trondheimsfjord, which reaches a depth of over 600 metres. In Kristiansund, the fishing and maritime industries have blossomed, while the Atlantic Road makes it a must-see destination for travellers. Crossing over eight bridges that sweep across the numerous islands in dynamic curves, this stretch of road feels as though it's part scenic drive, part art installation.
Back aboard your Havila Voyage, you can watch the Romsdal Alps pass by as you cross to Molde. For those seeking one last unique dining experience, you may decide to join an optional excursion to the Bergtatt marble mine (surcharges apply), where you’ll sail across an eerie subterranean lake for a truly unique meal in the ‘Grand Hall’.
During the night, your vessel will carry you to Alesund, Torvik and Maloy, weaving by the Nordfjord and the colossal Jostedalsbreen glacier – the largest in continental Europe. Follow Norway’s longest fjord, Sognefjord, and admire the scenery of the archipelago before finally docking in Bergen.
Your tour concludes upon disembarkation, but the memory of a great northern winter are sure to keep you warm for the journey home.