Mudpie Fridays >> Finland >> Picking a Reindeer Safari in Lapland

Picking a Reindeer Safari in Lapland

One thing I really wanted to do when I pulled together, our Lapland Bucket List of outdoor activities was to go on a traditional reindeer sleigh ride. Having been fortunate enough to visit a reindeer farm when we visited Levi and fallen in love with them. I knew that I would really enjoy a reindeer ride in one of the most beautiful places we have ever visited. A reindeer safari in Lapland’s snow-covered forests while visiting Rovaniemi.

However, when weighing up the options and the different types of reindeer rides and sleigh rides available to us. I was a bit overwhelmed with all the potential options inside the arctic circle. In the end, we chose a reindeer safari that lasted around 3km. When compared to some of the other options we decided this was the best thing for us. However, if you are putting together your own trip to Lapland and you may want to consider these points when it comes to deciding which reindeer ride is best for you.

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Things you should think about when determining the right reindeer ride for you.

There are a lot of things to consider when deciding which reindeer ride is right for you. After all if you are anything like us then its a one in a lifetime trip and you want it to be perfect. Nothing is cheap in Lapland so we did a lot of research into everything. When looking for reindeer in Rovaniemi we considered th following.

Book in advance

If you are travelling during peak season then you really must book in advance. Tours of all kinds sell out quickly. We were booking our activities in early September when we were travelling at the end of December. And some tours were already selling out. Many offer good cancellation policies so it is worth checking these before booking if you think your plans may change.

If you do not book in advance then you may be interested to hear about the launch of uber sleigh in Finland. In December 2022 when we visited you could dial up a reindeer using the uber app. Which will be the world’s first-ever on-demand sleigh rides. Operating on a first-served basis.

The distance of your reindeer safari in Lapland

There are several different options when it comes to the type of reindeer sleigh ride you can go on. Most of the options revolve around the distance of the ride and where the ride takes place. When identifying what is right for you, you need to consider how much time you have and your budget. Generally the longer the ride, the more expensive it is. However unlike husky rides that go a lot quicker reindeer are much slower. Therefore a shorter ride may be more appropriate.

If you are looking for more of a taster session you may want to head to Santa Claus village the official hometown of Santa Claus. As they offer some short ride. When we visited the price for a Santa Claus Village reindeer ride was 18€ for an adult and children 14€ for a 400m circuit in the village. Or 1000m forest ride costs adults 29€ and children 23€.

By visiting Santa Claus Village you can combine your Santa’s reindeer sleigh ride with other things that appeal to the kids. Such as Snowman World. If you are looking for a longer experience because it is a bucket list item. Then I would suggest you need to look at an independent reindeer safari.

Consider the time of day for your reindeer safari Lapland

Other than the distance, the other thing you may want to consider is the time of day that you take your trip. Many people forget that there are very few hours of sunlight in Lapland during the winter months. In fact we were there over the winter solstice and had less than two hours of daylight on the 22nd of December.

Generally, we were finding that for the organised tours, reindeer safaris were at 10 am or 12 pm. Although some went onto 2 pm. If you get a bright day then 10 am in the winter should also give you the pinky skies as sunrise tends to be around 10 am. Midday may give you a sunset depending on the weather. If you opt for a 2 pm ride will most likely take partly place in the dark, depending on the length of the ride. Which may impact the quality of your pictures and the temperature. For this reason, it is unusual to find reindeer rides offered later in the day.

Kids ages

A shorter experience may be appropriate for younger children who would get bored or cold when on the sledge. Harry was six when we went on our ride and he absolutely loved it initially but got bored about halfway through. Charlie at 10 was similar. For them, a shorter ride would have been better. Although not for me as I loved every minute of it.

Depending on the children’s ages and how many of you are travelling and you do need to be prepared that there is a good chance the sleigh will only take 2 to 3 people. This could mean that older children will have a sleigh to themselves. We did not see any experiences during our research or visit which had larger sleighs that sat more people.

Wrap up warm

Unlike when we went on the husky safari, we found the reindeer sleigh ride, particularly cold. Even though the sleigh had reindeer hides to sit on and warm blankets over the top, I think it is because you are sitting still and not moving that the cold really gets to you. Therefore if you’re doing an organised tour and thermal suits are available this could definitely be a consideration.

Likewise ensure you have hats, scarves snoods and gloves with you. As once you are on the sleigh you’re on the sleigh can’t get off. You may want to consider getting some hand warmers in foot warmers. As we found it cold on this excursion. It was the only time we were cold during our six-day visit.

Mix and match

I talked above about visiting Santa Claus Village and making use of the other things there in conjunction with your reindeer trip. But an alternative would be to consider a tour where you combined another activity such as seeing the big man for little magic and Christmas dreams. Especially when travelling with children. I can see in hindsight how that would’ve been better for the children. As it creates a variety instead of staring at the back of a reindeer’s bottom.

Alternatively, if you have older children then you may want to consider a reindeer tour in Rovaniemi with seeing the Northern Lights or aurora borealis. Or perhaps with different winter sports.

Transfers

You may also want to consider transfers. Some of the reindeer safari Lapland tours we found included these in the price others did not. Many will only pick up from centrally located hotels. We were outside of the city centre staying in Santasport Apartment Resort which meant that we had to negotiate in advance for pick up. Make sure you do this at booking and don’t assume that it is included.

Time of year

Understandably, reindeer sleigh rides cannot operate when there is no snow. We found this out when we visited Levi in November. Rovaniemi should get snow from December through until April. If you’re travelling outside of these months you can still see the reindeer at a reindeer farm visit in Rovaniemi and be able to feed them. If going on a physical sleigh ride is important to you then you do need to think about this when planning the dates you’re travelling.

Our experience

We decided to do a reindeer sleigh ride while staying at Apukka Resort. It consisted of a sleigh ride for three kilometres and information about the reindeer from local reindeer herders. As well as warming up next to a log fire with hot drinks and sweet treats. And the boys also got the chance to feed the reindeer at the end of the experience.

We had two sleighs as there were four of us with one adult and one child in each. The reindeer were tied together by a rope with the sleigh in between. Our ride went through the stunning landscape and snowy forests of Lapland. We had our experience at 10 am which meant it was light. It was very beautiful with the sun rising along the forest path with lots of snowy bows. I would definitely recommend this time of day for this sort of thing.

The reindeer behind us that was pulling my husband’s and Harry’s sleigh decided that he would like to be friends with us. Which meant that he walked next to us for almost the entire route. This unsettled Charlie a little bit as he had big antlers which were quite close to him.

It was a very beautiful experience and I really enjoyed it but was probably a little bit too long for the children. When we got back, we warmed up and heard all about the reindeer before feeding them lichen. The boys decided this was the highlight of the experience, so if you need to choose between a husky ride or a sleigh ride, I would probably choose a husky safari for children. Although as an adult, I found it a wonderful experience.

If we are ever fortunate enough to visit Lapland again I think we would probably opt for a slightly shorter ride over the longer one. But I don’t think you can visit Lapland without seeing the reindeer. They really are amazing creatures and it was a brilliant unforgettable experiences.

Booking and pricing for reindeer safari Lapland

For two adults and two children, the Apukka Reindeer safari Rovaniemi cost 428€. This is 135€ euros for an adult and 79€ for a child. But it does include everything we needed including a transfer to Apukka from the centre of Rovaniemi. Booking cannot be more straightforward you just do it on the website. It gives you a calendar that shows the available dates and times and numbers. You can find out more on their website.