Wanderlust - 04.2020

⊳

FINLAND

116 wanderlust.co.uk April 2020

1

Bear watching

Whether you opt to spend

the night in a simple shed-like

hide, go for a group excursion

at dusk (then return to your

hotel) or stay in a new luxury

hide (complete with underloor

heating and hot showers),

seeing bears at close quarters

in the wild is an experience

that can never, adequately, be

put into words.

2

Kayak camping

with huskies

It doesn’t need to be winter to

head out with these bouncy,

excitable pooches. In summer

you can journey into the wild

taiga in Finland’s Lakeland on

a kayak, then give your four-

legged friends a ride to a remote

peninsula before camping with

them snuggled up beside you.

It’s then a harness walk back to

base. wildtaiga.i

3

Relaxing in a

wood-ired sauna

With the number of saunas

outnumbering the people

in Finland, no visit to this

Scandinavian enclave would

be complete without a visit to

one of the ubiquitous human

smoke houses. In Helsinki it’s

worth heading to Löyly (which

translates to the evaporating

steam that rises from hot stones

once water is applied), where

you can follow a sauna session

with a dip in the Baltic Sea.

4

Feeding reindeer

from your

bedroom window

It’s hard to believe that in less

than an hour from landing in the

Finnish capital of Helsinki you

can be bedding down in your

own private hut while reindeer

lick the window, begging for

food. During the day the Nuuksio

Reindeer Park can get a bit

crowded, but by night it’s

just you and your horned

friends for company.

5

Teetering on

Russia’s border

It’s easy to forget just how close

Finland is to the former USSR,

but while in bear country you

are literally within spitting –

and certainly within walking

• distance to the Russian
  border. Crossing it demands
  pre-planning and expensive
  visas, but standing on the edge
  looking through the trees to this
  secretive and seductive country
  costs nothing at all.

Finnish Lakeland highlights

Map illustration by Scott Jessop

equipment, GPS, four nights’
accommodation, 24/7 support
and luggage storage) costs from
£699pp (excluding lights).

Accommodation
In Helsinki, the Marski by
Scandic hotel (scandichotels.
com) is handily located in the city
centre close to other attractions.
Prices from €120 (£100) night.
Other options are Hawkhill
Villas (hawkhill.i/en), prices from
£350pp for a four-day stay –
minimum allowed, and the Iglu
Hut at Nuuksio Reindeer Park
(nussksioreindeerpark.i/en)
from €360pn.
In Lakeland, the Wild Brown
Bear Centre (bearcentre.i) oers
brand new luxury hides complete
with large picture windows,
underloor heating, a kitchenette,
lushing toilet and microphones
so you can listen to the outside
sounds, for €495pp (£420) per
night. In Paltamo, doubles at the
Arctic Giant Birdhouse Hotel
(arcticgiant.i/en) with a lake view
cost €171 (£145) per night.

Food & drink
In Helsinki, ish is available
everywhere. Expect herring
and lots of it – served with new
potatoes and also pickled on
rye bread or blini. If you’re after
something sweet, try a pulla

Planning guides

Finland Travel Guide

Archive article

 Midnight sun – issue 147

 Husky sledding – issue 142

 Photographing the northern

lights – issue 130

Visit http://www.wanderlust.co.uk/205

More online

(cinnamon bun) with afternoon

tea. Foraging is practised by many.

Newbies should explore with an

expert – be sure to take a supply of

salmiakki (salted liquorice).

Further reading &

information

Finland (Lonely Planet, 2018)

visit“inland.com

myhelsinki.“i/en

visitespoo.“i/en

TRY THIS

Drink warm berry

juice or, post

sauna, a refreshing

beer such as the

local Ko or

Lapin Kulta.