Aurora Winter Do-It-All Week (Finland)

So many activities to enjoy - which will be your favourite?

During your week in the pristine winter landscapes of the Kylmäluoma Hiking Area in eastern Finland, you really do have the opportunity to "Do-It-All". The itinerary features:

• Cross Country Skiing: A day of cross country skiing in the surrounding forests, with instruction given and no previous experience required.
• Snowshoeing: An overnight snowshoe tour to wilderness cabin, where you will stay a simple cabin with no electricity or running water. Your main luggage will be transferred, so you only need to hike with a daypack.
• Igloo Building: Building your own igloo with the option to sleep in your creation for the night (or retire to your cabin if you prefer)!

Sauna is available each night with the opportunity for ice swimming, perhaps beneath the Northern Lights! Photo: UT.

• Dog Sledding: A day of dog sledding, driving your own dogsled (shared one per two persons, changing role of driver/passenger as appropriate) with team of 4-6 huskies.
• Sauna: The opportunity for traditional Finnish sauna each night, with an ice-hole available for the brave to take a dip in between warming sessions in the sauna!

Sleeping in an igloo you've built yourself? Winter adventures do not come any more authentic than that! Photo: UT.

There is also one "Optional Activity Day", where you can make use of the equipment provided for self-guided activities and/or book some additional adventures:

• Self-guided cross country skiing, snowshoeing or ice fishing: All available free of charge. Use the snowshoes or cross country skis for self-guided tours in the surrounding area, and borrow ice fishing equipment to experience the zen-like calm of this very popular winter pastime.

Ice fishing is a fun, relaxing and meditative way to appreciate the winter world around you. Photo: UT.

• Snowmobiling: Take a 3-hour tour departing directly from base camp. Persons driving snowmobile must hold full driving licence.
• Fatbiking: Fatbikes are a wonderful way to get around in wintertime - these stable bikes with their large, soft tires are perfect for cycling on snowy rural roads and forest trails. Half-day and full-day hire available.
• Skishoeing: Skishoes are a cross between snowshoes and cross country skies - much wider and shorter than skis, and ideal for exploring. Half-day and full-day hire is available.

Meeting the huskies to drive your own dogsled for a day will surely be one of the highlights of the week. Photo: UT.

Cabins offer an ideal base for your week

Accommodaion for six of the seven nights of the tour is in simple but comfortable cabins at basecamp. Standard arrangements are based on two persons per cabin, with solo travellers having the option to book on a shared or single-occupancy basis. Guests travelling as 3-4 persons can choose to share one cabin at reduced prices or may of course request 2-person/single occupancy options as appropriate for additional space.

Simple but comfortable cabins are your base for six nights of the tour. Photo: UT.

Breakfast, dinner and some lunches are taken in the basecamp restaurant, which also serves as a communal area for socialising. For other days, lunch will be picnic lunch around open fire during the activities.

One night is spent in simple wilderness cabin - a real experience! - with no electricity or running water and with dry, outside wilderness toilet.

No winter experience in Finland would be complete without sauna, which is central to Finnish culture, and you can enjoy sauna on each night of the tour (except arrival day) with the added dimension of an optional dip through hole in the ice.

The emphasis for the week is on enjoying the beauty and tranquility of Finland in wintertime. Photo: UT.

Whether you choose to visit in the deep midwinter during Christmas or New Year, when the sun lies low on the horizon and the sky is aglow with stunning colours, or in the spring winter of March, with long hours of daylight and the taste of the spring to come in the air, Aurora "Do-It-All" Week will leave you with a lifetime of memories. And once you've found your favourite activity, come back next winter for one of our extended single-activity adventures!

Please note that the order of activities during the week may be subject to change depending on weather conditions and other factors.

Day 1: Arrival

Transfers will meet flights as follows:

• Tours 21.12-28.12.25, 28.12.25-04.01.26, 11.01-18.01.26: Transfer will meet Finnair flight AY487 from Helsinki arriving Kuusamo 21.20.
• Tours 21.12-28.12.25 and 28.12.25-04.01.26: In addition to standard included transfers as above, there will be an extra pick-up from Kuusamo airport at 13.00. This transfer meets TUI flights from London Gatwick, Birmingham and Manchester (the latest being the Manchester flight arriving 13.00). For this transfer, an airport transfer supplement applies. Please see under "Prices > Optional extras" for details.
• Tour 08.02-15.02.26: Transfer will meet Finnair flight AY491 from Helsinki arriving Kuusamo 19.25.
• All other dates: Details TBC when flight schedules are released.

Guests arriving by public transport from Helsinki to Kuusamo or overnighting locally in Kuusamo must travel to Kuusamo airport for pick-up in connection with times as above. Pick-up from the bus station or accommodation in Kuusamo is unfortunately not possible.

Transfer time to accommodation at Kylmäluoma is approx. 45 mins.

On arrival at the accommodation, you will check into your cabins and have dinner together (or light snack for late evening arrivals).

Day 2: Discover Cross Country Skiing

Breakfast followed by an introduction for the week and information about the programme ahead. You then begin a day of cross country skiing, the perfect way to enjoy the Finnish winter landscape.

Your guide will show the basic techniques for cross country skiing before you take a short tour through beautiful pine forest and across frozen lakes. It is common to see reindeer in the area around the cabins and you may well spot some during your tour, as well as tracks and signs of other animals.

In the evening, enjoy a central aspect of Finnish culture - the sauna! Once you've heated up, the brave can take a dip through a hole in the ice. This is a wonderful, exhilarating sensation once you're warm from the sauna. Breathe slowly and enjoy the experience for a few seconds, return to the sauna to warm up again and come back for another go!

Days 3-4: Overnight Snowshoe Tour to Wilderness Cabin

After breakfast, you begin a mini adventure, with an overnight snowshoe tour to wilderness hut. Snowshoes are straightforward and fun to use, and the trail takes you through beautiful forest, stopping for lunch around open fire on the way. Your main luggage will be transferred, so you only need to carry a daypack with you when snowshoeing.

In the afternoon you reach the wilderness cabin where you will spend the night. The cabin has no electricity or running water, but is heated by wood-burning stove and offers a wonderfully cosy atmosphere for the evening. Of course, there's a sauna available to soothe your muscles!

The next day, your snowshoe tour continues along some of the characteristic ridges of the area and across frozen lakes. The area is rich in wildlife - while you are unlikely to see the animals themselves, tracks and signs of moose, lynx and Arctic hare are common.

You have lunch around open fire before making it way to the cabins in the afternoon for dinner and sauna.

Day 5: Build Your Own Igloo

Ever wanted to build your own igloo? Of course you have! Using snow shovels and spades, you will construct large piles of snow which are then hollowed out to make sleeping quarters.

You'll have been doing some work today, so the evening sauna may be particularly welcome!

For the adventurous, you are welcome to sleep in your igloo tonight - warm winter sleeping bags will be provided to keep you warm and cosy whatever the weather is doing outside - or you can opt for the relative comfort of the cabins if you prefer!

Day 6: Optional Activity Day

There are many options for today, some free of charge and some available at additional cost. Activities are booked and paid for locally where required:

• Self-guided cross country skiing, snowshoeing or ice fishing: All available free of charge. Use the snowshoes or cross country skis for self-guided tours in the surrounding area, and borrow ice fishing equipment to experience the zen-like calm of this very popular winter pastime.
• Snowmobiling: Take a 3-hour tour departing directly from base camp. Persons driving snowmobile must hold full driving licence.
• Fatbiking: Fatbikes are a wonderful way to travel in wintertime - these stable bikes with their large, soft tires are perfect for cycling on snowy rural roads and forest trails. Half-day and full-day hire available.
• Skishoes: Skishoes are a cross between snowshoes and cross country skies - much wider and shorter than skis, and ideal for exploring. Half-day and full-day hire is available.

End your day with dinner and sauna.

Day 7: Drive Your Own Dogsled

This last activity of the week may well turn out to be your favourite. After breakfast, you will be transferred (approx. 1 hour) to the kennels for an introduction from the musher and some instruction in how to handle your dogsled and work with the huskies.

Then you set off, driving your own husky team with 4-6 dogs (sharing sled one per two persons with driver/passenger changing roles as appropriate), stopping to enjoy lunch outdoors during the tour.

Tour duration approx. 4-5 hours including lunchg, covering typically 20-30km.

You then return to the basecamp for final dinner and sauna together and a chance to reflect on your week enjoying the beautiful Finnish winter.

Day 8: Departure

Transfers will meet flights as follows:

• Tours 21.12-28.12.25, 28.12.25-04.01.26, 11.01-18.01.26: Transfer will meet Finnair flight AY482 to Helsinki departing Kuusamo 08.55.
• Tour 08.02-15.02.26: Transfer will meet Finnair flight AY491 to Helsinki departing Kuusamo 11.30.
• All other dates: Details TBC when flight schedules are released.

Guests overnighting locally in Kuusamo after the tour can have transfer to Kuusamo town centre (must be advised well in advance).

Guests departing Kuusamo by public transport should plan for departure time earliest 1.5 hours before flight departure as above.

*Single supplement is optional and applies only for solo travellers who wish to guaranteed single occupancy. For solo travellers, please specify on booking whether you wish to book on single occupancy or shared basis. When sharing, solo travellers will share cabin with one other same-gender participant in the group.

Included

• Accommodation:
  • 6 nights in simple cabins at base camp. The cabins are suitable for 1-4 persons and have sleeping alcoves with 4 x bunk beds, small living room and kitchenette area. The cabins are heated by electricity and have bathroom with WC/shower. Kitchen facilities include fridge, microwave, coffee machine, kettle, electric cooker and TV (though note that all meals are included and taken communally with the group). Bedding and towels are included. There is a main building with restaurant where meals are served and which also serves as a socialising area. This closes after dinner at 21.00, but then there is a larger apartment available where the group can also socialise.
    • When booking as 2 persons on twin-sharing basis, guests will have 1 cabin as 2 persons.
    • Solo travellers will share cabin with other same-gender participant as standard, or if booking on single occupancy basis will have own cabin.
    • When booking together as 3 or 4 persons at the special reduced prices for those options, guests will have 1 cabin as 3 or 4 persons (unless requesting twin-sharing, solo occupancy, etc, when the relevant prices for those options will apply).
  • 1 night in shared sleeping rooms at wilderness cabin during overnight snowshoe tour. The cabin has 4 sleeping rooms each with 4 x bunk beds and is heated with wood-burning stove. The group will always share sleeping rooms for this night - no solo occupancy or twin-sharing is possible at the wilderness cabin. No electricity or running water. Dry outside wilderness toilet. Sauna available in separate building.
  • Sauna is available each night (except arrival day) at both the base camp and wilderness cabin, with opportunity for ice swimming.

Example cabins at base camp (Days 1-2, 4-8). Photos: UT.

Restaurant and communal area at base camp (Days 1-2, 4-8). Photos: UT.

Wilderness cabin for overnight snowshoe tour (Day 3). Photos: UT.

• Meals: All meals are included from dinner on Day 1 (or evening snack where arrival time is late) to breakfast on Day 8. Dinner for nights at base camp are served in the communal building. Lunches during overnight snowshoe tour (normally Days 3 and 4) and some other activities will be picnic lunches outdoors. Please advise any dietary requirements well in advance.
• Equipment: All equipment for activities included in the itinerary (cross country skis, snowshoes, dogsled equipment). Ice fishing equipment is available to borrow free of charge for the "extra activity day" (Day 6). Snowshoes and skis can also be used free of charge for this day.
• Specialist winter outer clothing: Warm winter overalls, boots and mittens.

• Transfers: Transfers between Kuusamo airport and the base camp on arrival/departure day in connection with fixed flight times as per itinerary; local transfers for dogsled activity.
• Luggage Transfers: Between camp and wilderness cabin for overnight snowshoe tour Day 3-Day 4.

Not Included

• Travel: We do not arrange flights or domestic travel, but are happy to advise on suitable connections and assist you with any aspect of planning your journey. See under "Getting There" for general travel information.
• Alcoholic drinks.
• Optional equipment and activities for Day 6: Skishoes (Altai skis) and fatbikes are available to hire for self-guided tours. Snowmobile tours (guided) are also possible.

Required

Health requirements/experience:

Mininum age 14 years. You should have a general good level of health and fitness and enjoy outdoor activities.

No previous experience is required for any of the activities. The overnight snowshoe tour will typically be the most demanding activity of the week. Other activities such as dog sledding (you will need to assist your dogsled team, especially in soft, deep snow), cross country skiing and igloo building can also be physically demanding, but the emphasis for the week is on enjoyment and the opportunity to take part in a wide variety of winter activities.

For night at wilderness cabin, you should be used to living in close proximity with others.

What makes this "Easy-Medium"?

The experience is based at simple but comfortable accomodation. During day activities, you will be outdoors in winter conditions for extended periods, but the day activities have a generally accessible level of challenge. The overnight snowshoe tour has a higher level of physical challenge, but luggage transfers are included to the wilderness cabin and so it is necessary to hike only with day pack.

NB: Perception of difficulty is very subjective. What is hard to one person may be easy for another and vice versa, depending on factors including level of fitness, age and previous experience. Weather conditions/temperatures can also dramatically affect the actual level of challenge encountered.

Equipment/clothes needed:

For information on any equipment and/or clothing included as standard for this experience, please see under "What's Included".

A detailed recommended packing list for personal items to bring will be sent with your booking documentation.

NB: We advise you not to buy equipment or clothes for your trip or to incur other non-refundable expenses such as flights until you have received confirmation of your booking from us in writing. Note of course that the most appropriate clothing to use as well as the level of challenge experienced during any outdoor activity may vary significantly depending on factors such as the time of year and the particular weather/temperature conditions during your trip.

Preparing for your trip:

For further reading, we also have a number of general information articles to get you ready for your trip, covering a wide variety of topics from what to do on a city break before/after your tour, advice on packing, eyewear for winter and considerations for female travellers.

Minimum number:

No minimum required. Tours are guaranteed to run from the first booking.

Combine This With

This experience makes an ideal combination with the following:

• Discover Husky Sledding in the Wilderness (5 days/4 nights, located just a few km from the base camp): The local hosts for this experience will also be your hosts for the dog sledding activity during the tour on Day 7.

Groups

Max. group size 12 persons. This experience is ideal for private groups, including school and youth groups - please contact us to discuss your requirements.

Eco Info

This provider has a written ecotourism policy and has achieved Travellife Partner certification.