Traditional Northern Lights New Year in Lapland

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1 For Expert Advice Call for Swedish and Norwegian Lapland for Iceland and Greenland A unique occasion deserves a unique experience. Traditional Northern Lights New Year in Lapland Break available: 30th Dec nd Jan 2019 Duration: 3 Night Break One of our personal favourites and a break that sells out every year. This break is perfect for the first time visitor to the region who wishes to visit at New Year and experience the best the region has to offer. Action packed and fun with experiences done in small groups with the culmination being a dinner on New Year's Eve (hopefully beneath the Northern Lights!). Highlights Sami New Year Celebration. Drive your own Sled Dog Team in pristine arctic scenery. Wilderness Snowmobile Adventure. Visit the original ICEHOTEL. Unique Aurora BBQ and Northern Lights Photo Hunt Day by Day Itinerary Day 1-30 December Fly to Kiruna. Transfer to Hotel or Exclusive Lodge. Aurora Chase page 1/6

2 Fly from London Gatwick or Stockholm to Kiruna. On arrival you will be met and transferred to your choice of hotel, either the Hotel Arctic Eden or the exclusive 7 room Mattarahkka Northern Lights Lodge where you will have a briefing on your New Year Northern Lights holiday and be kitted out with your arctic clothing. This evening gather for a BBQ on the aurora deck outside Mattarahkka Lodge, looking towards Abisko. The position of the lodge provides great views to the northern horizon making it a good place to look for the Northern Lights. The guides will be tracking local aurora activity using the latest forecast and web cam information and will have a minivan on hand to take you out in pursuit of the best sightings. This will often be in the direction of Abisko National Park. There will be a few cameras set for aurora photography for you use but bring your own too and hopefully capture the Northern Lights! Our mission is to get you to see the aurora if they are present and we may manage your itinerary locally to ensure we give you the best chances. Meals included: Dinner A la Carte Optional Extras Upgrade to a Suite at Hotel Arctic Eden The Hotel Arctic Eden is the perfect base for an active trip to the Arctic. If you would like to upgrade to one of the 5 suites in the hotel you are in for a treat. All the suites are spacious and have an LCD TV, DVD-player with a wide video library. Wireless Internet works in all of the rooms and you are given a complimentary welcome fruit basket. The fully tiled bathrooms are equipped with under floor heating, whirlpool baths, walk in showers with inbuilt music systems and saunas. Every guest has their own comfortable bathrobe with slippers to match. Little extras to make a special occasion perfect! Price Per Person: 60 per night Day 2-31 December Snowmobiling wilderness Trails. Visit the ICEHOTEL. Sami New Year Celebration page 2/6

3 After breakfast Mikko, your snowmobile guide, will meet and transer you to Máttárahkká Northern Lights Lodge ( if you are not staying there) for your adventure along one of his private snowmobile trails. The beauty of being based at Máttárahkká is that you can snowmobile straight from the front door! Explore forests and frozen lakes where the chances of seeing reindeer and moose in their natural habitat are good. Continue your excursion up to Mount Eatnamvárri a real vantage point from where you have spectacular views in front of you. Miles and miles of untouched wilderness stretch out before you on one side of the mountain and on the other side, Kiruna nestles between the Loussavaara and Kirunavaara mountains. On arrival back at Máttárahkká Northern Lights Lodge enjoy a cooked lunch prior to a visit to the original world famous ICEHOTEL where you can spend a couple of hours touring the hotel, seeing the incredible Art Suites, The Ice Church or having a drink in the Ice bar. There is also an excellent shop if you wish to do a bit of souvenir hunting. This evening, celebrate the New Year Sami Style at Máttaráhkká Sami Lodge, where on arrival you will be served warm beverages before gathering around the open fire for storytelling and a few winter games. Afterwards settle in the lounge and enjoy a pre dinner drink before your 3-course traditional Sami dinner. At around 11pm travel to the vantage point near the ski slope where locals from Kiruna gather to toast in the New Year and watch the firework displays over the town. If you are lucky the northern lights will be blazing above! At midnight have a champagne toast prior to returning to Máttárahkká lodge. Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Day 3-01 January Husky Safari. Optional Northern Lights Hot Tub Evening Enjoy a full hot and cold buffet breakfast in the hotel / lodge prior to collection for your day time husky safari. Ylva Sievertsson is one of a select group of accomplished lady husky guides, who runs a lovely kennel in one of our favourite valleys near Kiruna. She has a very unique relationship with her dogs and it is always a priviledge to spend time with her. Your journey from the lodge to the kennel follows a scenic road that leads to Kebnekaise, Sweden s highest mountain. During the car ride there are great opportunities to see moose, as this is their wintering ground. Once you arrive at the kennels get acquainted with the dogs and receive detailed instructions about how to drive a team. Harness the dogs and feel their excitement as you attach the sled. Head out into the frozen river valley where you will have opportunities to take turns in driving the team whilst making stops to take photos. The location is outside the major tourist areas and we can promise that you will enjoy pristine arctic nature alone. You will be about for around 2 hours before heading back to base for a warming lunch in the traditional Kota adjacent to the family home. To make it more exclusive we only take a maximum of 8 guests at the time. This evening enjoy a leisurely dinner or alternatively chose the Hot tub and Sauna evening at the lodge. This special addition includes an hour private use of the rooftop aurora hot tub and the use of the sauna. Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner A la Carte Optional Extras Dinner, Hot Tub and Northern Lights page 3/6

4 A wonderfully relaxing evening hopefully seeing the Northern Lights at Mattarahkka Sami Lodge. After an excellent 3-course Lappish dinner spend time in the roof-top hot tub from where you can relax and enjoy the star filled night sky and with a little luck even see the Northern Lights dancing above you. Although the temperature outside is below zero, you will be really warm in the hot tub. If the degree Celsius water isn t enough enjoy a warm sauna in the special relaxation zone. You get a 1 hour private use of the hot tub. Price per person: 95 includes: sauna, hot tub, towel, robe and slippers Day 4-02 January Leisurely start and flight home After the New Year celebrations enjoy a leisurely start to the day and breakfast before a late morning transfer to the airport for your flight home at the end of your traditional Sami New Year and northern lights new year holiday in Swedish Lapland. Where You'll Stay Máttaráhkká Northern Lights Lodge This small intimate lodge used to be a Sami handicraft centre until the owners had the idea to turn it into an exclusive retreat. With only 7 bedrooms and an open plan lounge and dining room, the emphasis is on relaxing in a cosy environment. The rooms have a downstairs en-suite room with a staircase leading to a loft sitting room. The lodge has a fabulous sauna and a very unusual northern lights hot tub on the roof where you can star gaze or hunt for the Aurora. (This carries an extra charge). Other benefits of a stay here mean that if you are doing husky and snowmobile adventures they are both on your doorstep! Evenings are focused on good food, relaxation and the Northern Lights so if you are looking for a 'home away from home' experience then look no further. page 4/6

5 Hotel Arctic Eden Rooms are light and airy, typically Nordic with wooden floors and minimalist décor. All 32 rooms are en-suite and well appointed. The 5 suites are excellent, with bathrooms containing Whirlpool baths, massage showers with inbuilt music systems and personal saunas. The hotel has 2 restaurants one serving authentic local cuisine to a very high standard and the other offering Thai cuisine cooked to order. There is also an indoor swimming pool and sauna for those wishing to relax after a day exploring the wilderness. Barbro, the manager, has a detailed eye for ensuring that her clients are happy and is extremely helpful in ensuring that you are kept informed of points relating to your itinerary. Testimonials I just want to add to that by saying the service from A la carte exceeded all of my expectations, you went above and beyond to deliver a fantastic holiday. We would definitely use you again and will point everyone planning a weekend trip in your direction!" Cassandra "Well, we've been back from Kiruna for just over a week, and are still telling everyone all about our fabulous holiday and 'Weekend a la carte'! We had absolutely the best time, it was such a different experience. The Arctic Eden hotel was great, especially as we were upgraded to suites! Eric was a terrific." host, in fact all the staff couldn't do enough for us" Beverley Price: 1,695 ( From Gatwick) What's Included? page 5/6

6 Flights (from the UK) with one hold bag per person 3 nights Accommodation with breakfast Traditional Sami New Year Celebration Unique BBQ and Aurora Chase Snowmobile Day Adventure in pristine wilderness with great views Drive Your Own Sled Dog Team in secluded Moose valley Visit Original Ice Hotel and new IceHotel 365. All Meals Transfers Arctic Clothing Loan Departure Airport Gatwick Stockholm For clients wishing to travel from the USA, Australia and Asia we can advise of best options If you have booked your own flights we can organise ground plans only 2017 Weekend a la Carte For Expert Advice Call for Lapland for Iceland page 6/6