Husky sledding; ghostly northern lights; the Arctic Light Hotel’s Nordic hospitality
THE MEET-SANTA FAMILY TRIP
ROVANIEMI, Finnish Lapland BY LES DUNN
CHRISTMAS CREDS When you land at Rovaniemi Airport and see the winter wonderland display they’ve created in the middle of the luggage carousel, you’ll get the idea that around these parts, Christmas isn’t done by halves. Sleigh rides, husky sledding, snowmobiling along a frozen riverbed (the trip’s highlight for the adults at least) – oh, and the small matter of meeting Santa Claus. Plus, you come home with a certificate for crossing the Arctic Circle. You might get to see the northern lights, too (they’re generally visible a couple of nights a week from the town), although you’ll need a clear night and a bit of luck, so don’t rely on it.
THE FOOD Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland, isn’t a cutesy sort of place (my wife called it “Reading with snow”), but all that snow covers up its Reading-ness beautifully. Plus, unlike the silent wilderness, it’s well equipped with bars and restaurants.
In the traditional Nili restaurant in the centre of town (nili.fi/en/ home) you have a one-stop-shop for classic local foods: fish from Lappish lakes, berry sauces, wild mushrooms and plentiful game. Some of the standouts on Nili’s hearty menu include alder-smoked salmon from the Arctic, as well as reindeer rillettes, cured herring with cumin seeds and Lappish potatoes with onion butter. We feasted joyously here, although when it came to the cooked-allnight ‘tender bear roast’ we had to draw a line – not least because it was €57… For pudding, try the Lappish squeaky cheese (a fresh cow’s milk cheese) served with cinnamon cream and cloudberries.
Berries are big news in Nili: you can also posh things up with a trio of meringue, ice cream and a tart, all made with blueberries. Craft beer is in good supply in Finland, too – try Nili’s selection from the town’s Lapin Panimo brewery.
During a ‘Sami experience’ at the reindeer farm we visited, a traditionally dressed local introduced us not just to a spiritual fire experience but also to hot berry juice (both are to be recommended) and later a revelatory potato soup (I didn’t think that was possible).
If I tell you that the experience is a bit commercial at Santa village, where you get to meet the man himself for an expensive (but, let’s face it, essential) photograph, you probably won’t be surprised. However, in the Kotahovi restaurant (laplandrestaurant.fi), built in the style of a traditional Lappish wooden hut called a kota, with chunky wood furniture and antler chandeliers, they do a mean Lappish salad with smoked salmon and lingonberries. Also in the village is a branch of cool Finnish designer homeware store Iittala – perfect if you’re in the market for some new G&T glasses.