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Traveling in Finland with kids

This winter wonderland, home to Father Christmas, friendly huskies and igloo-worthy snowfall, would be a dream destination for many children. Traveling in Finland with kids is a wonderful experience for families of any age, with snowshoeing and canoeing on the cards for older children, and snowmen, sledging and reindeer-nuzzling delightful activities for littler ones.

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Traveling in Finland with kids

Step through the wardrobe and into Narnia – wintertime Finland is every child's snowy fantasy.

The Finns are extremely welcoming to children, and provided you keep them warm and well fed they should be content to hang out with huskies and reindeers, build snowmen of every shape and size, and toboggan down fells until you are too exhausted to haul them back up again. And don’t forget if you're traveling in Finland with kids, in parts of Lapland, it’s actually Christmas every day. Older children will enjoy snow shoeing, cross country skiing, canoeing and rafting. Thousands of islands, virtually endless lakeshores and beaches offer room to stretch out and relax during the lengthy summer days. There are many activities which the whole family can enjoy together, and ways for curious minds to learn – about reindeer herding, traditional lifestyles, wilderness ecosystems and astronomy. Finland is well worth wrapping up for.

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Activities for families

Visit Rudolph and his friends

Learn about Lapland’s unique nature and its culture with a visit to a reindeer farm. These gentle creatures do more than just pull Santa’s sleigh – they are pivotal to life in northern Finland, and the herders are always keen to share stories of their daily lives and reindeer husbandry, before taking you on sleigh rides wrapped in warm blankets.

Meet Father Christmas

Finnish Lapland is the official home of Father Christmas – and you can meet the busy man himself in his “office” all year round. Letters addressed to Santa arrive here from around the world, and kids can help the elves with their tasks, ride on a reindeer-pulled sleigh and send their own postcards from the world’s most famous post office.

Take to the water

10 percent of Finland is made up of water – and its lakes, rivers and rapids are fantastic fun for canoeing and kayaking. Older children and teenagers will enjoy the independence this activity brings – as well as the chance to explore the northern wilderness from a new angle, with its unusual wildlife, log cabins and welcoming local communities.

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Toll free 1-866-821-6866

Calling us from outside the US?

rosy@responsibletravel.com

Tips for families

Aki Käräjäoja, founder of our supplier Routa Travel, shares his tips on traveling in Finland with kids: “It’s better not to have a very strict timetable and to understand that you are doing things differently than at home because it’s not always easy to plan. Parents often have high expectations but it’s better to be open-minded and see how the kids are and how cold it is. So we can make tours shorter, and instead of a full day sledding, we can go indoors and take a few of the huskies. Thinking flexibly is good – if, after 2km, it’s cold and the kids aren’t happy then you have to work around that.”

Urpo Heikkinen, from our supplier Upitrek offers advice for visiting Finland with kids:
“Families need to pick activities carefully. Kids can do softer treks but if they get tired you may need to take a short cut so that no-one gets left in the forest! They can see reindeer and sometimes elk on the walks, but bear watching is a problem as in the hides you sometimes have to be silent for hours. It depends on the nature of the children and how active they are. Sometimes it works, but it’s not for everyone.”

More about Finland

Finland weather & best time to visit

The best time to visit Finland depends on what you're wishing to do as the winter season from December through to April is ideal for dog sledding and winter sports (Feb and Mar best time to go for daylight) whereas the arrival of the spring in May sees the sun making a welcoming return prior to the long hot summer days from June to August.

Finland travel guide

Our Finland travel guide unwraps the home of Father Christmas - and reveals that there is so much more to this Arctic nation than reindeer, sledges and forest snowscapes.

Finland map & highlights

Finland's highlights sparkle like fairly lights across Lapland's snowscapes, the thick Taiga forest and its thousands of lakes.

Things to do in Finland

It's no accident that Finland is one of our most popular destinations for an activity vacation.

Northern Lights in Finland

If you’re looking to put a bit of colour into the darker depths of winter there’s no better place to start than Finland and if you’re also looking for more info on the best time to go then read as you keep watching the skies.

Finland winter activity vacations

The Wild Taiga in winter is about as close to Narnia as you can get without wandering into a wardrobe.

Finland Husky safaris

There’s no more exhilarating and rewarding way to discover the snowy Finnish wilderness than on a husky safari, with a team of dogs pulling you through pure white landscapes and across frozen lakes.

Bear watching in Finland

You don’t need to travel to Alaska to see gigantic brown bears; the Wild Taiga region of Finland is home to a population of these fascinating creatures and a supporting cast of other animals, too, from wolves and wolverine to elk and reindeer.

Summer vacations in Finland

If you think that Lapland is just about snow and Santa then think again as summer vacations in Finland help to create a far more accessible and affordable outdoor experience.

Sami culture in Finland

If you’re heading to Lapland we implore you to find out more about the indigenous Sámi people who’ve made this northernmost region of Finland their ancestral home.

Finland travel tips

Our Finland vacation companies each have their own areas of expertise.

Finland responisble tourism issues

It's hard to go wrong when traveling in Finland, as the country is so beautifully set up for responsible travel.

All our Finland guides

Find all our Finland guides in one place, from Husky safaris to the Northern Lights and everything in between.

More relevant guides

Written by Vicki Brown

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Photo credits: [Page banner: Tero Laakso] [Intro: Visit Lakeland] [Visit Rudolph and his friends: TREKANDCO] [Meet Father Christmas: Visit Lakeland] [Take to the water: Visit Lakeland] [Aki Käräjäoja advice: Visit Lakeland]

Traveling in Finland with kids