101. 5 Things to Know About Visiting Finland and Norway on Our 2026 Group Trip Above the Arctic Circle

A once-in-a-lifetime trip is happening in 2026 and you're invited! Experience the magical world above the Arctic Circle in Finland and Norway by cuddling with reindeer, enjoying a snowmobile ride under the Northern Lights, and so much more! Tune in to hear all of the details about this trip, including accommodations, adventures, and what type of person will enjoy these adventures. But, hurry...there are only 7 rooms left! 

Get More Information About the Trip: https://makinmemoriestravel.myflodesk.com/february2026grouptrip

Also mentioned:
Episode 92. Laplands Luxury Travel: Northern Lights, Arctic Circle, and Siberian Huskies!

Connect with Michele on IG: @jetsettingwithmichele or on Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/MMTinsiders

Contact Michele to plan your next vacation: www.makinmemoriestravel.co/contact

This episode was produced by The Podcast Teacher: www.ThePodcastTeacher.com. 

Transcript

Hello, jetsetters. Welcome back to another episode of jetsetting with me. And today, you really are going to get to jetset with me, as we are going back to the Lapland. But this time, I'm gonna answer the five most burning questions that all of you have about the exclusive Central Lapland adventure that I am hosting in February of twenty twenty six. I am hosting in February of twenty twenty six. I am so excited to take you back there with me. So as I did in episode 92 where I recapped my trip for you, and I highly recommend that you go back and listen to that first so that then you're super excited to come back and listen to this one. I defined what the Arctic Circle is actually.

And when I say we're going above it, it's a geographically defined area. It is 66 and thirty four degrees north to mark the southernmost latitude when, during winter, in the Northern Hemisphere, the sun does not rise above that degree. It doesn't rise above the horizon, for lack of a better word, and then during the summer, it doesn't set. But this is definitely a winter wonderland adventure that we are going, and I have done every single thing on this itinerary, hashtag I know because I go. So the first stop, we're gonna fly into Helsinki, and then we're gonna on the first day, we're gonna take a boat over to Tallinn, which went there about eight years ago on our Baltics cruise. It's in Estonia. We went to the spy museum because it used to be part of the Soviet Union, and it has the absolute best chocolate and best coffee I have ever had. I mean and we even looked all over the Internet to see if we could order it to to have it shipped home.

I mean, I am so excited to get to go back here because I honestly never thought I would get to go anywhere in the Baltics again since the invasion of Ukraine, and, also, I am super excited that we're going back there. And then that's over a ferry, so I also didn't realize how close Estonia is to Helsinki. So then we get to spend a time taking a tour in Helsinki. And, again, I have to say, you may have heard me say that Helsinki is, like, one of my most favorite places in the world. Can literally walk up to the palace. They have no gun crimes. I mean, I fell in love with Finland based on my day in Helsinki. Mister setting with me, who you heard last week, did you guys love that episode or what? He bought me some gorgeous jewelry just at a street fair.

Helsinki is just an amazing place, and it it just the Finnish people are so wonderful, and they just welcome you with open arms. Now from there, after our tour of Helsinki, we actually take a flight, an internal flight in Finland, which is included in the price. Yes. Takami, it's a very small airport. And from there, we get on a shuttle, and we go to Haporanda, which is right on the border between Finland and Sweden. And literally within, like, a walk of a block, you can change time zones because one of them does daylight savings, and one of them doesn't, or one of them is an hour ahead of the other. It's hilarious. So you chain and you change currency because one of them is in the EU and one's not.

So what did our guide say? You change languages, you change currency, and you change time in basically the space of, like, thirty seconds. It's really cool. And that's where we go do the polar explorer. So if you follow me on Instagram or even Facebook, if we're friends there, You saw me do that polar explorer where I floated in the Arctic ice. It was so beyond my comfort zone and so something I cannot wait to do again. I I'm leading this group with another travel adviser. And as soon as we started planning, I was like, that's the one thing that I must be included. We must do the polar icebreaker explorer.

It's the coolest thing. I mean, it's just amazing, and I cannot wait for all of you to get that experience. And after that, after floating in the Arctic, we get a traditional it'll actually be in Norway, not Finland because it's on the Norway side, but a sauna experience. And you learn the history of why saunas are so important to that culture. It's super cool. You get to, like, go in the hot, and then you have kind of a, like, a cold shower, and then you go back in the heat. It's very invigorating, and it's what one of the reasons that the Nordics are so healthy. So they share that experience with us.

Super pumped for that. And, hopefully, some surprises will take place at that place as well. Hint. Hint. Go back and listen to episode number 92. The next day, we actually go out and do a snowmobile at dusk so that you can see the snowmobile. One person drives and one person rides. Kids are drive down the sled behind, and then you reverse.

And, yes, there is somebody who leads and somebody behind so that if there's any issues, which we did not have any, by the way, there is always someone there. And, hopefully, because it's at night, you snowmobile out from the resort area. You get to see the northern lights. This is the best opportunity, although, of course, you can see them anywhere. We actually saw them in Hoparanda right out of our window of our hotel. And then, also, we do the husky safari. So you saw me and heard me talk about the huskies and how I fell. I am not going to fall this time.

No falling on the huskies. We do a reindeer farm where you will get to cuddle up close with the reindeer. If you don't believe me, look at the graphic for this podcast. You will get to get up close and personal and feed them. It's very exciting. And for those days, after we leave Haparanda, we're going to the Risentori National Park. That's in Finland, and we're staying at a resort there. I'm gonna tell you about that in a minute.

But one of the activities is that you can track in this national park. It is quite, quite beautiful. But for those who don't wanna track in the national park, you can do a hot air balloon. You can ice fish or, you know, you can go back to the sauna or sleep under the dome of your it's not an igloo. It's kind of a lodge, but it's got, like, glass covered ceilings, and it just enjoy the surroundings. But for those who wanna try and really push themselves, I guess I'm talking to myself there about pushing myself, you can trek through the national park. Later that day, we're gonna go to the Pentec Hill ceramic factory. For those of you who heard about my trip to Morocco, One of the highlights of that was going to a ceramic factory and seeing them actually work on the handmade ceramics.

So we will do that, but at the Pentec Hill, which you can Google Pentec Hill, it's very their look is obviously very different than the Moroccan ceramics. It's very classic style, very Nordic, So I'm really excited to see it. She's actually a famous interior designer as well. Okay. Let's talk a little bit about the hotels that we'll be staying at because I know that's the first question on my mind is where are we staying? So in Helsinki, we're staying at the Hotel Saint George. It is very classic. It only has a 48 rooms. I want you to keep in mind when I keep saying these resorts are very limited because the trip that we are taking, there is such limited availability.

You have to decide, yes. I'm gonna go for it. So the Hotel Saint George, it is a full service hotel, so it does have a spa. Oh, no time for that. But a holistic care, they challenge the idea of luxury with taking care of your mind, heart, and body. Again, a very Finnish Nordic philosophy about taking care of the whole mind, heart, and body to take care of all of you. And then in Hoperanda, we are staying at the same place that we stayed on the trip earlier this year. It's the historical Hoperanda Stad's Hotel.

And when I say it is historical, it used to be a speakeasy, a casino. Unfortunately or fortunately, you get to see the history of some of the German generals that would be at that hotel during the war. They were occupied by the Germans, and it's just a really fascinating, beautiful historical hotel. It has very, very few rooms that have been redone, and we have demanded that we stay in the rooms that have been renovated so that they're just a little bit more spacious. The bathrooms have a little bit more room. It is not a luxury hotel. It is a historical hotel, And I will say the food is phenomenal. We got to meet their director of food and beverage, who is so young.

I could be her mom, but she is like whippersnapper. She just understands hospitality and food and beverage, and you will be wined and dined at the historical Hoperanda Stad's Hotel. I actually even though it is not luxury, I can't wait to share it in the history with all of you. And we were very, very lucky. The owner came and did a tour with us, and so I hope that she would be open to doing that too, and we could eat in the special place that we got to eat. It was one of those very unique experiences that you can only get when you do a tour like the one that we got to do. And then finally, we do go to a very luxurious, very new. It will literally be brand new.

It is not opening until October of this year, and we have all 10 of their rooms booked, all 10 of them, for the Lodge at Lights of Lapland Resort. So we are gonna have that whole hotel to ourselves with incredible views and all these wonderful activities that I talked about, and we stay there for three nights. So I'm so excited because one of the things I said in my previous episode was that I didn't feel like we got to stay in the the igloos with the glass tops long enough. You know? It was we were only there for basically ten hours, you know, plus sleeping time, and I really wanted to spend more time. So I'm really excited that we're doing this, and it's, like I said, a brand new resort. And it's owned by the people, Delta of Scandinavia, who are putting together this group and who I traveled with earlier. So I am just so confident that the service is gonna be next level, especially because we're gonna be, like, one of the very first groups who has ever rented the whole thing. So super excited for that.

So let me talk to you about who this trip is for. So this trip is definitely for the adventure, definitely for anyone who wants to who has dreamed of seeing the northern lights or that's on your to do or bucket list. Anyone who wants to be pushed out of their comfort zone and then live on the strength of that memory, that was me. It just sounded amazing, but I had never done anything like that. I live in the South. I was terrified I was gonna be freezing. But remember, there is no bad weather, only the wrong clothing. And, also, this trip is for people who wanna do this bucket list with two group leaders who have, quote, been there, done that.

Allison, who is my fellow travel adviser from New Orleans, and I are going to care for you every single step of the way. We're gonna take your photos. We're gonna give you the pep talk as you fall backward into the Arctic water. And when you come back up, we're gonna say, look at what you did. You did it. We're gonna make sure you are well fed, have Wi Fi access, and all the right clothing, and even what to wear when you land in Kemi when we fly there from Helsinki. And, again, if you haven't listened to episode 92, that will make sense to you once you do. So just to sum up who this trip is for, if you crave adventure, unique experiences, you love winter, you appreciate or, you know, maybe you don't love winter like me, but you have an appreciation for authentic cultural immersion and you like the luxury touches, then this trip is for you.

You're good with activities like snowmobiling, huskies, sledding, and petting, and loving on, and seeing the northern lights, which does mean being up later than usual for me and some of us and dressing warmly so you can go outside in the dark and see them. No lie. It is a moderately active itinerary, but you can be a solo traveler. You can be a family. The lodge rooms can sleep up to four. And like I said, we have the whole lodge, so we're really limited on that space. Or, of course, my favorite thing to do, grab a group of friends, travel together if you're seeking that unforgettable getaway. And now for the hard logistics.

The dates of the trip are February 15 to 02/23/2026. There are a fast acting bonus, but only for the first two people who sign up. It's 10% off of the rate. And why only the first two people? Well, we only have 10 rooms total or 10 lodges at the Laplands Light Lodge, and we have already sold three of them. So, basically, seven, and if you base it on double occupancy, seven rooms, 14 people, although we can do one person or three could fit in there comfortably. Technically, you can squeeze four, but that would have to be a very small child as the fourth. There is no booking fee like my normal booking fee. And guess what? Registration is available now.

The link is in the show description. I know. I didn't tell you how much it is. And that is because this is such an amazing trip, and I want you to hear all of that. And then when I tell you that it is very, very hard to go to Europe right now without counting airfare for anything less than $7,000 a week. Trust me. I know. I'm trying to get a group to Ireland and Scotland for that amount of money, and it is just I can't.

I'm having a really hard time. This is $6,180, that is USD, plus airfare. That is based on double occupancy, so there is a single supplement, though, and there's even a discount if you put three people in one room. So I can't believe that we get eight days in the Winter Wonderland and all of these amazing accommodations, including the Lodge of Lights, which is going to be brand new. All of these activities, a full tour guide for less than $7,000. It is just incredible. And, if you are ready to say yes to this experience, remember, there are only seven rooms left. Then now is the time to look in the show notes, click on that link, and put down your deposit.

Now that I have iced you out and gotten you all excited, I will be back next week to talk about where to go to warm up. Until then, happy travels.