Our expertise in Swedish Lapland enables us to create journeys that combine the very best this magnificent region has to offer and give our clients access to unique experiences.
The Best of Lapland Swedish Iconic Locations
If you are looking to go to Swedish Lapland once in your life we have two themed Best of Lapland journeys. This one focuses on iconic destinations in winter whereas the other provides an autumn programme visiting hidden gems!
These are the ‘Rolls Royce’ of Swedish Lapland Breaks. Quite simply they combine what we think are the best things to see and do with the best places that we know.
This break combines the Tree Hotel, the fabulous creation of Kent & Britta Lindvall with the original and best Icehotel. Enjoy a couple of nights at the fabulous Arctic Gourmet Cabins enjoying some fine cuisine before finally spending two nights in the Aurora Capital of Europe, Abisko, where the northern lights are witnessed more often than anywhere else in Sweden.
Overview
Highlights
- 1 night at the Original Icehotel in an individually designed Art Suite
- 2 nights in Sweden’s latest icon – the Tree Hotel
- 1 night at Arctic Gourmet Wilderness Cabins
- 2 nights in Abisko – widely regarded as the best place on earth for consistent sightings of the northern lights.
- Daytime snowmobile adventure in the forest areas around the Tree Hotel
- Drive your own husky team safari
- Sampling some of the finest cuisine in Northern Sweden with your own private chef.
- Aurora Photo Adventure from Abisko
- Snowmobiling in Abisko National Park
What’s included
- 2 nights at the Tree Hotel on a half board basis
- 1 night at the Icehotel in an Art Suite on a breakfast basis
- 2 nights at Arctic Gourment Cabin in cabin on a full board basis
- 2 nights at Abisko Mountain Lodge in a Standard Room on a full board basis
- Snowmobile safari with lunch from the Tree Hotel
- Husky sledding with lunch from the Icehotel
- Train journey from Boden to Kiruna crossing the Arctic Circle
- The Ultimate Aurora Photo Adventure in Abisko
- Panoramic Snowmobile Adventure in Abisko National Park
- Transfers
- Arctic outer winter clothing
A note on flights
While flights are not included in the holiday price, our team will happily provide a quote and arrange them for you. Simply ask one of our Travel Experts for details of the available options.
Day by Day Itinerary
Fly to Lulea in Swedish Lapland, where you will be met and transferred to the iconic Tree Hotel located in the small hamlet of Harads and conceived and run by our long time partners and friends Kent and Britta Lindvall.
The Tree Hotel comprises eight unique themed Tree Rooms, created by six separate architects. These are the Mirrorcube, Bird’s Nest, Cabin, Blue Cone, Dragonfly, 7th Room, UFO and new since winter 2022 – the Biosphere. (Note: certain rooms like the Cabin, Dragonfly, Biosphere and 7th Room carry a cost supplement but can represent good value for groups or families of 4).
You have the rest of the afternoon at leisure and then dinner is served in the authentic restaurant a short walk from the tree cabins.
Meals Included: Dinner
Breakfast at the Tree Hotel.
There are some pristine forest areas surrounding the Tree Hotel and you will venture out to explore these with a guide. With two people per snowmobile (we can arrange single snowmobiles for a supplement) this 2.5 hour adventure includes a Swedish fika stop.
Enjoy lunch at the TreeHotel where you can relax prior to dinner. There is a sauna that can be booked and paid for locally. If you are celebrating a special occasion why not look to book the fabulous Dinner on Ice. See optional extras below
You also have the option of switching rooms. Popular combinations at the Cabin and Mirror cube or the UFO or Birds Nest and the Blue Cone or Mirror Cube!
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
After breakfast, transfer to the station to catch the train that will take you to Kiruna in Swedish Lapland. This 4-hour journey crosses the Arctic Circle and gives you a great chance to see one of the last expanses of wilderness in Europe.
Upon arrival you will get a transfer to the Icehotel for check-in to your Art Suite.
Evening at leisure – we will make a restaurant reservation for you in one of the Icehotel’s two restaurants. These are both a la carte and are paid for locally.
Meals Included: Breakfast
In the morning you can have a leisurely breakfast and explore a bit more of your surroundings, before taking part in a dog sledding activity which includes lunch plus the experience of getting to mush your own team of dogs. Then in the afternoon you will be transferred to the Arctic Gourmet wilderness cabins where you will be greeted by the owners, Johan and Marlin. Johan is a trained chef and his pride and joy is the ‘Chef’s table’ adjacent to the two cabins. This is the smallest restaurant in Sweden with just 2 tables with views over the river valley and a fitted kitchen where Johan will cook and serve your Gourmet evening meal!
You can sit outside afterwards around the campfire and soak up the silence of the Arctic night or jump in the outdoor hot tub and relax with the prospect of a Northern Lights display flashing above you.
Overnight in your private Cabin.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Today you can get to explore your surroundings at the Arctic Gourmet Cabin. You can kickstart your day with sauna, and finish it with on too! There are options of activities you can do from the property that the team will be happy to discuss with you. Enjoy a relaxing evening with a four-course dinner prepared just for you – and maybe you’ll get a showing of the Aurora too!
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Mid-afternoon journey to Abisko Mountain Lodge (around 1 hour) where on arrival you will be briefed and provided with your Arctic clothing.
Mina and Dick Johansson, your hosts at Mountain Lodge run a really warm and friendly lodge, with a restaurant serving excellent meals using local ingredients.
This evening enjoy the traditional Lappish Meal at the Lodge which includes Reindeer, Arctic Char and Cloudberries – 3 of the unique ingredients to the area. The only thing that can interrupt your evening is the Aurora Call. Abisko Mountain Lodge is in a fantastic location for Northern Lights viewing so if they are out you may be tempted to step out the door and gaze skywards!
In the morning you will enjoy some time to explore some of your surroundings at Abisko Mountain Lodge, then after lunch you will head out on a panoramic snowmobile adventure to explore further afield. In the late afternoon have a sauna before an early dinner, then in the evening you will be provided with one final opportunity to see and photograph the Aurora Borealis in the wilderness of Abisko National Park. Abisko is situated in a low precipitation zone and has the lowest levels of rain and snow in Lapland. What this means is lots of perfect nights for aurora watching! You will head out on The Ulimate Aurora Photo Adventure.
Transfer back to Kiruna Airport from Abisko as your epic aurora adventure comes to an end. It doesn’t have to completely finish here though – there are options to extend your stay with visits to the capital city or other countries – let our aurora experts know if you want to extend your stay.
Where You'll Stay
The Treehotel
Dreamt up on a fishing trip in Kamchatka, Russia, but part of a living Boreal forest in Swedish Lapland, this is a hotel with a difference!
The Treehotel comprises 7 unique themed Tree Rooms, created by 7 separate architects. These are the Mirrorcube, Bird’s Nest, Cabin, Blue Cone, dragon fly, UFO and 7th Room!
In addition there is a sauna and relaxation area and nearby is the Brittas Pensionat where meals are served.
The rooms are set between 4-6 meters from the ground in pine trees and rooms are accessed by either a ramp or sturdy stairs. They can house between 2 and 4 people and the larger rooms, The Dragonfly and the 7th Room, have separate bedrooms.
Every Tree Room has its own living and sleeping area and is equipped with a state of the art eco-friendly incineration toilet and water efficient hand basin, which means there is no artificial plumbing.
The emphasis is on running the hotel consistent with values of low impact on the surrounding forest and every aspect of the operation compliments this aim.
The Original ICEHOTEL - Swedish Lapland
The Original ICEHOTEL is situated in Jukassjarvi Swedish Lapland and is a feat of engineering and artistic creation. We recommend staying in an Art Suite to appreciate the full ICEHOTEL experience and our itineraries feature these rooms as standard. They cost a little more but add hugely to your appreciation of this Once in a Lifetime experience.
The ICEHOTEL consists of 2 structures – the temporary hotel is rebuilt each year from blocks of ice harvested from the Torne river which runs adjacent to the IceHotel. These blocks are stored for the summer in a huge warehouse and as the late Autumn temperature in Jukkasjärvi drops below zero ice artists arrive from all over the world to build this magnificent creation. They build the 4 levels of rooms, the ice chapel and the ice bar. Their art is created with imagination and hard work, only to melt away under the unforgiving rays of the spring sun.
The new ICEHOTEL 365 is a permanent ICEHOTEL and a feat of engineering which offers visitors the chance of staying the whole year round. It houses both Art suites and the Deluxe Art Suites (which we offer as an upgrade) with their luxury en suite bathrooms. It is also home to the celebrated ICEBAR.
You have your own private locker room where you can change and leave your bags whilst having access to the adjacent service block where there are saunas, toilets and showers.
Wake up to a hot Lingonberry juice served in your room prior to the very substantial ICEHOTEL breakfast served in the main restaurant.
For Dinner the ICEHOTEL has 2 restaurants, one serving gourmet food, whilst the more informal Homestead restaurant serves hearty traditional food.
Abisko Mountain Lodge
Right in the small hamlet of Abisko, world renowned for the Northern Lights, lies a small welcoming Lodge run by our good friends Mina and Dick Johansson. Dick is one of the most qualified mountain guides in Sweden and looks after all the adventure whilst Mina can be described as a Skier, Creative CEO and ray of sunshine who lights up the Lodge.
Abisko Mountain Lodge offers genuine accommodation in an old-fashioned mountain hotel setting. The service is personal and the cuisine is centred on raw ingredients. It is accredited by the Sapmi Slow Food movement, an award which took 4 years to achieve. Chefs are dedicated slow-food addicts and produce wonderful nightly meals!
The 16 standard rooms in the low red ‘Swedish style house’ are all en-suite. Although basic they are warm and cosy. There are no televisions in the rooms as time is spent meeting guests around the bar or in the wonderful lounge area.
Additionally there are 4 new superior rooms added in early 2015. These four rooms are in a separate annexe and are used exclusively by Aurora nights.
Order a coffee or a glass of wine at the bar, read a magazine or spin a yarn about your arctic adventures and the magnificent aurora displays you have seen.
For those wanting to soothe the muscles there is a sauna.
Arctic Gourmet Wilderness Cabins
This is the inspiration of husband and wife team Johan and Malin who have developed a totally unique concept. They have 2 cosy wilderness cabins adjacent to the smallest restaurant in Sweden – where Johan acts as a private chef to our guests.
Arctic Gourmet Wilderness Cabins are new builds and combine wilderness with creature comforts not normally associated with a wilderness experience.
Situated in a picturesque valley they are perfectly placed for guests to combine both a northern lights and arctic adventure. For those of you that appreciate good food, meals prepared and served in the smallest restaurant in Sweden are a delight.
There are two cosy double bedded cabins with large glass windows facing north towards the northern lights horizon. Modern styling includes satellite TV!
There is an adjacent toilet and shower block and an outdoor hot tub which guests are invited to use.
After dinner sit around the outdoor fire, gaze at the stars and hopefully the aurora, enjoy a hot drink or a whisky and appreciate how special it is to own a piece of Lapland for moment in time!
Being away from it all in your own private space with the auroras roaring overhead is simply breath-taking and the perfect special occasion retreat!
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See what our clients say
Brilliant short break. Hotel Ranga was lovely, excellent food. Managed to see the Northern Lights as well! Iceland on the whole was quite expensive but a lovely place to visit, the people were very friendly.
Superb holiday to Iceland, well organised, advice regarding trips informative and far exceeded our expectations (Glaciers and ice Cave) run by South Coast. Hotel Ranga is a lovely hotel, perfect to see Northern Lights (which we did see on our 3rd night), very comfortable, food excellent, staff helpful and informative. SouthCoast Adventure tour company were excellent, guides knowledgeable, and clearly very experienced.
Thoroughly enjoyed the trip. The Abisko Mountain Lodge was fantastic, every member of staff was friendly welcoming and charming. Accommodation, upgraded room was excellent. The food in the lodge definitely deserves the high reviews. Good breakfast, great hime made lunch soups and extremely tasty evening dinners.
The included trips were great. The only let down was the camera night, couldn’t see the lights no one fault, but we were walked through thigh high snow to be left on a frozen lake for the duration of the trip. There was no warning of the difficult walk and we had a 91 year old with us and I have hip problems! That said the guide was great, as were the ones on the skimobile and husky rides. We went up to the sky station in a snow storm with high winds, added to the experience!
Would go back in a heart beat.
We had little communication with Weekend a la carte, no need as all communications were clear and contained all the information we needed. Very informative emails
Would use again if going back
We had the most fabulous time and everything worked like clockwork. The guides were extremely knowledgeable and extremely competent. The food was excellent and the experiences, especially Husky Homes, were brilliant. We saw the aurora lights at the mountain top in Abisko where the photography tour will be an enduring memory of a wonderful time. I would very much recommend Weekend a la Carte as a proficient tour operator.
We did the aurora nights break and had a great time overall. Everything related to flights, hire car, and hotels ran smoothly. There were a few issues largely relating to the weather and driving conditions (we travelled in mid March), but what we did manage to do was amazing.
The blue lagoon was easy to access from the airport and was a brilliant experience. We booked the standard package and it came with a free drink and face mask. Facilities were clean and organised with free toiletries in the shower rooms, which helps if you’ve gone there straight from the airport.
The drive to Hotel Ranga afterwards was long but fine (check out the road on google streetview to know what to expect). The hotel and staff were great. We were limited to one option as vegetarians on the bar and a la carte menus, but the food was lovely and if you are a meat eater you will see options of unusual dishes like puffin and reindeer.
Our northern lights super jeep trip was cancelled on both nights due to a poor forecast, but we were lucky enough to get an aurora wake up call from Hotel Ranga the first night. We couldn’t use the hottubs as there are only a few and they were always taken in the limited time we spent at the hotel, so don’t go expecting to get lots of time in one and you won’t be disappointed. View them as an add on if you can time it right. We were travelling with an 11 year old, so we didn’t stay up really late. If you are a couple you probably have a better chance of getting one later on.
The glacier/volcano super jeep trip was outstanding. Our driver, Íbí was excellent. She went above and beyond and gave us such an awesome experience. We were also super lucky with the weather the first two days and had great views across Iceland.
The ice cave tour was also incredible and the guides running it were excellent. The group size was much bigger than expected (especially after the more exclusive volcano super jeep tour), but it was broken down into smaller groups that were managed well, with plenty of time factored in for photographs. There were several unexplained delays getting to the cave during the tour that meant we weren’t able to ‘mini tour’ the rest of the South Coast afterwards, so if you plan to do the ice cave don’t overplan for the afternoon as you may not have much time. Not a huge disappointment for us as we got to experience the cave, but I imagine someone who planned a full itinerary afterwards might be frustrated by the estamiated timings not always being right and subject to change with the weather (which was wicked that day).
Driving around Reykjavik was a horrible experience as we arrived around rush hour and weren’t prepared for all the traffic, having only experienced quiet roads along the south coast. It was difficult finding a parking space, so be prepared to drive around a little when you arrive. If you haven’t driven on the right before and are not a confident driver this could leave you feeling stressed. Again, check out the roads into Reykjavik on Google maps to get a sense of what awaits if you aren’t used to self-driving.
We didn’t get to tour the golden circle because of road conditions/ice/road closures, so we spent the day in Reykjavik instead. This turned out okay for us as we did some of the attractions (Lava Centre and Fly Over Iceland – both hughly recommended), but it ended up being an extra expense and we missed out on the golden attractions. Again, not a big issue if you are aware this could happen. The weather is so changeable that having a plan B is a good approach.
Weekend a la Carte sent us a text warning us about the bad weather conditions, which we’d already seen on the Safe Iceland app, but we were grateful for anyway. It was good to know they were looking out for us!
All in all, a remarkable trip, with some unique experiences. If you book this in the knowledge that nature will have her own way, and you may not see everything you want (especially in winter), you will have a great time. Ranga is definitely the best place to maximise your chances of seeing the lights.
Fantastic service, with every detail taken care of and communicated to your agencies and hotels. Would definitely recommend and will be using again.
Overall very good. Staff excellent and helpful. Accomodation basic but was what we expected. Tour guides very good (nature walks, snow mobiles, dog sleighs). Sky station disappointing as we never got to go up due to the weather and this seem to be a recurring feature.The alternative walk at night and meal was a let down as a result.Overall would recommend to others.
Hotel Ranga was perfect, with amazing food. It is in the middle of nowhere, very quiet and with the weather being bad there wasn’t the possibility of leaving the hotel in the evening so mightn’t suit all for that reason. Super Jeep tour we thoroughly enjoyed with 2 lovely guides.
Hotel Borg was in the perfect location. For us, one night in Reykjavik would be ample.
Blue Lagoon was a wonderful experience only heightened by the appearance of the northern lights on our walk home from dinner. All in all we had the best holiday and we plan to return to Iceland hopefully sooner rather than later.