Hello,
Has anyone heard of this place? If so, how would you rate it? I'm going for five days in October and was wondering about it. Also, if there are other recommendations for lodging in Finland I would appreciate them. :) Thank you.
Rose
Posted by
Medford, OR, USA
5837 posts
I looked it up on Google Maps. We stayed at the Kiilopää/Fell Centre just east of Kakslauttanen Igloo East Village, Kakslauttanen, 99830 Saariselkä, Finland. We visited for a ski tour that ended Easter weekend so the resort areas were fully utilized. It was spring skiing with warm weather and old snow.
We flew Finnair into Ivalo to the north then bussed to Kiilopää, Saariselkä. Tour operator housed us in hostel type settings, but the food was good.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g667560-d2299594-Reviews-Fell_Centre_Kiilopaa-Saariselka_Lapland.html
October may be early for good snow. You should get 8 to 10 hours of daylight depending on when in October.
Climate statistics: http://www.yr.no/place/Finland/Laponia/Saariselk%C3%A4~638271/statistics.html
October -1.7°C mean 1.2°C average high -4.8°C average low 8 avg days of precipitation
Useful Finnish Weather/Climate website: http://en.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi/climate
Their near term (1 to 2 day) forecast were spot on. The "Climate in Finland" section of the web page allows you to input dates (in half month increments) for typical max/min temp and snow depth.
Posted by
Medford, OR, USA
5837 posts
The Urho Kekkonen National Park boarders the Fell Centre Kiilopaa. We encountered a somewhat large reindeer hear when we skied into the National Park. http://www.luontoon.fi/urhokekkosenkansallispuisto
http://wikitravel.org/en/Saariselk%C3%A4
Saariselkä [1] is a largish winter sports center high up in Finnish
Lapland, some 250 km north of the Arctic Circle and nearly 1000
kilometers away from the southern capital Helsinki.Nestled in a valley, Saariselkä is a compact strip of a village with
one gas station, one main supermarket, one liquor store and a slew of
hotels, shops and restaurants, but it's quite manageable on foot and
located only 30 km away from the town of Ivalo and its airport. The
fells of Kaunispää and Iisakkipää, both equipped with ski lifts, are
the primary centers for winter sports.
Hotel & Igloo Village Kakslauttanen appears to be ranked as a mid-range accommodation.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Edgar,
Many thanks for your information. While I love skiing, I am hoping to see the Northern Lights. I'll probably do some short day trips but the lights is what I really want to see so I don't mind if it doesn't snow. :) I truly appreciate the information. I feel better about my trip now. I'll keep looking for lodging.
Rose
Posted by
Medford, OR, USA
5837 posts
We were in Voukatti, Finland for 10 days this past February. Voukatti is not as far north as Lapland. We had cloud cover for 9 of the 10 days.
Here is a northern lights resources:
http://en.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi/northern-lights
Where do Northern Lights mostly occur?
The occurrence of auroras depends on the latitude of the observer. The
Northern Lights form an oval band around the magnetic poles of the
Earth. At a distance about 2500 km from these poles, the probability
for seeing auroras is almost 100 %.The northern parts of Fennoscandia belongs to the maximum auroral
zone. In the coast of Ice Sea in North-Norway you will see auroras
almost every evening when the sky is clear enough. When moving
southwards, the frequency of auroras decreases. In Sodankylä every
second night is an auroral night, in Helsinki every 20th. These are
statistical rules giving the average extent of auroras. When the
Earth's magnetic field is very disturbed, the auroras can spread all
over Europe for a couple of hours.The best time to see auroras is between 9 p.m. - 1 a.m. local time.
The best months are February - March and September - October. During
summer months you cannot see aurora due to light nights.