The best things we did in Lapland

I’m definitely a summer person. I definitely prefer warm over cold, and my colleagues even refer to me when they talk about the heat in our office. Oops! However, when I got the chance to travel to Norwegian Lapland in winter I couldn’t say no. Even though I knew it would be cold. One conclusion: it was worth it.

Even though we only stayed for four days (including the traveling), we did so many things. Some turned out to be waaay better than expected, some not that much. But the trip was super fun, and even though we didn’t stay that long, we could enjoy everything without rushing. Here are the things I enjoyed most of our trip, and which still put a smile on my face when I think back about them. 😀

View over Tromsø during the sunset

On our first day in Lapland we took a cable car so we could get a nice view over Tromsø, which you could see in my latest month in pictures. Or well, that was what we thought. However, we came at exactly the right time, resulting in a magnificent view over Tromsø and seeing the sun set behind its mountains. If you ever take the cable car, try taking it right before sunset. You won’t be disappointed!

Chasing the northern lights

One of the things I definitely wanted to see in Lapland were the northern lights. Again, we were incredibly lucky because there was A LOT of activity, and the boyf and me just spent 3 hours outside watching the aurora borealis (and taking pictures of them). Seriously, I literally got goosebumps just standing there.

Since I was so well prepared for the cold, I was wearing enough layers to stay outside without getting cold. Except when I was standing up to my knees in the snow, because that was the only way to not hear the bunch of Asian tourists that also came on the excursion, and my feet got a bit cold. I was actually really surprised that I could stand it this well. 😀

We were super lucky though; people who went on the same excursion the next day barely saw any nothern lights. If you want to see the northern lights during a trip, best schedule this on the first evening, so if you don’t see it during that first evening, you still have a back-up evening.

Take a husky sleigh ride

This excursion was WAY better than I expected. I thought we would ride for like 15 minutes, but it turned out we could ride a full hour with the huskies! We were divided in groups of 8, 2 persons per sleigh, with a supervisor leading the way. It was so cool we could also ride the dogs, or better: temper them a bit with the help of the brakes. We also had to help them on the hills, by pushing the sleigh along, so it turned out to be an unexpected excercise as well. An exercise with an amazing view as well!

As you can see, it was quite a cold ride. Those warm clothes I brought didn’t only serve for staying warm while chasing the northern lights, but also while riding with huskies at -20°C!

Eating in Tromsø

A trip is not complete without eating well. We for example went to Fiskekompaniet, a seafood restaurant near the water. And seriously, that food was a-mazing! I had Norwegian kind crab as appetizer. I’m always a bit hesistant to order crab, because it can get sooo messy, but the king crab we got was already cut in pieces. #score Definitely the best crab I’ve EVER eaten! (I wish I could have a good picture of the food, but there’s a reason I’m not a food blogger: my food pictures suck and I only think about taking a picture halfway my meal 😉 )

Overall, I absolutely LOVED our trip to Norwegian Lapland. My fear for the cold was not necessary at all, and we were so incredibly lucky with the northern lights. Definitely a trip to remember!

Now I’ve gotten a taste of Scandinavia and it turned out my fear of the cold was not that necessary; which scandinavian city or country should I visit next? 😀

xo Noor