All About Lapland

There are some places in Lapland that are truly special, and Utsjoki is one of them! It is a small Sami community, situated literally at the edge of the world, right at the border with Sweden. We were invited to visit and film the northern lights by a local company – Aurora Holidays. Their cottages are situated at the shore of beautiful Teno River, and this is one of the truly best places to see northern lights in the whole world. During our visit, we also had a talk with Tiina Salonen who owns Aurora Holidays with her Sami husband. We had a really interesting discussion, sitting at their brand new wooden restaurant building. The video interview was broadcasted live on All About Lapland Facebook & Youtube channels.

Rayann Elzein is a French photographer who fell in love with Lapland and northern lights! He has been photographing aurora borealis for years in northern Lapland, and we now hear his story!

Finland announced that it relaxes travel restrictions for entering the country, but also implements new rules, and "test and enter" model. There are quite few intricate details, like the "72-hour rule", which are explained below. We did a whole hour-long audio version of the podcast, and you can listen to it above. The video version of the podcast can be found below the text. It was aired live on 11.9.2020 on our Facebook page, and includes a vast Q&A session with our followers. New entry rules to Finland, effective 19.9.2020   Phase 1 From September 20th to November 22rd you are allowed to travel to Finland from countries with less 25 positive tests per 100.00 in the past 2 weeks. The list is updated weekly. As of September 11th, the list includes these countries: Germany, Sweden, Poland, Bulgaria, Norway, Slovakia, Lithuania, Estonia, Iceland, Cyprus, Latvia, Liechtenstein.   Phase 2 From November 23rd you will also be able to travel to Finland for leisure from anywhere within EU + UK (+ possibly non-EU countries) even if you're country has more than 25 positive tests per 100.000 if you can show a negative test which is no older that 72 hours. You can stay in Finland up to 72 hours without quarantine and enjoy your holiday in any way you like. However, if you would like to stay longer that 72 hours, you have to do a 2nd test locally and self-quarantine until you get the result of the test. The "72 hour rule" and 2nd testing is heavily criticized by Lapland's tourism industry, and hopefully, they will apply enough pressure on the government to change it. However, tourist destinations are also setting up their local testing facilities in case the rule will stay in place. It is still unclear if you have to quarantine for the first 3 days or not. One interpretation is that you can take a test on your 4th day and do a shorter quarantine until you get the result. The 2nd interpretation of the 72-hour rule by Finnish health ministry states that if you want to stay longer than 72 hours, you need to do the 2nd test immediately, and to quarantine for the first 3 days (or until you get the result). The 2nd interpretation sounds very complicated in practice, and hopefully, they will go with the 1st one. We will keep you informed once we know ourselves!   One thing to note, is that Finland did not specify how the monitoring of the quarantine, or 2nd testing will be carried out, if at all.   If your country has less than 25 positive tests per 100.000 can travel to Finland without time limit, tests or quarantine, before or after November 23rd 2020.   Watch the video of the podcast discussing new entry rules to Finland and Q&A  

Can you get stuck in Lapland? This is exactly what happened to musician Victor Alarcon aka Vic Ja4 who came to Rovaniemi to record a music video, but got stranded here due to travel restrictions in March 2020. In the 8th episode of our podcast we'll get to know Victor's story – filming the northern lights in –27'C, riding the huskies, visiting Ylläs, getting help from locals, learning Finnish, and more! Listen to the audio or watch the podcast below! You can find Victor's music at: https://www.vicja4.com/ 1st song Aurora Boreal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO7nHsW3tFo 2nd song Llamada Perdida: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRGtZOe6mXE

What are the best Ski Resorts in Lapland, and who are they for? In the 7th episode of our podcast we are going to travel to the most popular ski resorts in Lapland, including Ruka, Levi, Pyhä, Ylläs, Salla, Saariselkä and Ounasvaara in Rovaniemi. Listen to the podcast above, or watch the video:  

Autumn is a wonderful season to visit in Lapland! In the 6th episode of our podcast we will find out why! What kind of activities are available, and what are the best places to visit? Listen to the podcast audio, or see the video here:

In the 5th episode of our podcast we are going to explore traditional Lappish cuisine, and get to know its ingredients: reindeer, game, bear meat, fish, berries & mushrooms. Lappish nature is quite harsh, so the ingredients are simple, but very tasty, and complement well each other.  I will also share my own recipe of preparing the classic Lappish dish – the sauteed reindeer! In the end of the podcast we will also talk about the desserts, and Lappish squeaky "bread cheese", blueberry and cloudberry. We will also get to know the best restaraunts that serve traditional and modern Lappish food – Restaurant Nili in Rovaniemi, Lapland Restaurant Kotahovi at the Santa Village, Restaurants Nabo & Rakas, Aurora Estate Restaurant in Ylläs, and Saamen Kammi in Levi. Listen to the podcast and subscribe! Or watch the video podcast:

How to see the northern lights? In the 4th episode of our weekly podcast, I will share my tips on when and where you can see the northern lights in Finnish Lapland. Check my dedicated site for more aurora stuff, as well as information about my aurora tours: www.aurorahunting.fi Watch the video version of the podcast recorded live with our Facebook audience:

Lapland on a budget. Is that even possible? For the 3rd Episode of our podcast we are going to take a virtual trip to Ylläs and meet with the first guest on our podcast, Tinja Tamminen. She is the owner of 7 Fells Hostel, a backpacker, and Lapland Budget Travel Expert.

Where to travel in Lapland? In the 2nd episode of our Podcast we will get to know the most interesting places to visit in Finnish Lapland! From Rovaniemi & Kemi to Pyhä-Luosto, Kemi, Ylläs, Levi, Ivalo, Kilpisjärvi and more!

In this very first episode of All About Lapland Podcast we will discuss which seasons are the best to travel to Finnish Lapland. Actually, in Lapland, there are 8 seasons instead of 4, I will explain why!