What to see in the Arctic: Finland and Norway

Let's go on our winter trip - exploring the Arctic. Frosts, snow and blizzards are not all that can be found in this region. There are many more interesting places in these open spaces. Let's start with Finnish Lapland - the birthplace of Santa Claus.

The village of the main winter wizard is located eight kilometers from the regional capital - Rovaniemi. And here's what's definitely worth seeing there.

Santa Claus Head Office and Post Office

It is here that millions of boys and girls send their letters every year, and Santa Claus determines whether children's dreams are worth fulfilling. By the way, you can also send a postcard to your relatives from here - you will get an unusual souvenir from Lapland itself.

Arctic Circle Crossing Marker

The Arctic Circle begins near Santa's Post Office. You just need to take one step and you will find yourself in the Far North.

Elven farming

At the elven farm, tourists will find tame deer, alpacas, sheep, goats, rabbits, donkeys and various birds. You can ride ponies, alpacas and, of course, deer.

Northern lights

The best time to hunt for the northern lights is after 11:30 pm in autumn and late winter. Seeing him is truly lucky.

Roosevelt Cottage

From this place the Santa Claus Village began. In 1950, Eleanor Roosevelt, former first lady and wife of US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, visited Rovaniemi. In memory of this visit, an unusual house was built. You can read even more about this unique place here .

Let's go further - to Kilpisjärvi

This is a small village in the very north of Finland with a population of only 100 people. The harsh climate - up to minus 35 in winter - is compensated by amazing landscapes. Nearby are mini-waterfalls, hills, ice grottoes and much more.

If Finnish Lapland doesn't seem arctic enough, go even further. Norwegian Tromsø is one of the northernmost cities in the world: the North Pole is only 2,260 kilometers away. It is located 400 kilometers beyond the Arctic Circle.

Storgata

This is the main pedestrian street of the city, full of souvenir shops, cafes and simply cozy gingerbread houses.

Tromso Bridge

A one-kilometer bridge connects the mainland and island parts of the city. And this is officially the northernmost bridge in Europe. It offers magnificent views of the harbor and fjords.

Arctic Cathedral

It affects both outside and inside. The shape of the building resembles a glacier, and the number 3 is encrypted in the stained glass windows. It is repeated in all biblical stories.

Mount Fløya

The best views of the city open from this mountain. The choice is yours: go up on foot or by ski lift.

Polaria Aquarium

This is the northernmost aquarium in the world. There were some allusions to the glacier here too. The interior design also matches the appearance. The inhabitants of the aquarium are mainly northern animals.

Tromsø folkebibliotek

Or the people's library. It continues the list of interesting buildings and looks like smooth sea waves.

Charlottenlund Park and KSAT Geophysical Observatory

Everyone recommends going to Charlottenlund Park to look for the northern lights. In addition to this natural wonder, you can also find an unusual corner with space equipment. This is the KSAT station of the local university's geophysical observatory.

Ersfjordbotn and Kalfjord

These places offer the most picturesque views of the fjords of Finland during the day, and the Northern Lights at night. The main thing is not to confuse! We will tell you more about this city in another article .