Now, this post may be triggering for myself…having to remind myself the details of why this trip didn’t go as perfectly as expected. It feels quite upsetting as it’s partly due to my fault of building this idyllic trip in my head…however it’s important to know to the real truth of what to expect instead of being humbly disappointed in person, after spending a lot of money.
Let’s get into it…some context, this TRIP has been on my bucket list for YEAAAARS…maybe 10 years. So imagine, the build up in my mind. As soon as I saw the promotional video and pictures from Kakslauttanen, I knew I had to go at some point in time. I always imagined it would be on my honeymoon or with my romantic partner.
So when my engagement came crashing down to an end, and my 30th Birthday coming up… I booked this trip without a shadow of doubt. What a way to symbolise showing self love to myself and make my own dreams come true. Why wait until you’re with a romantic partner to do all your passionate life goals?
I purposely didn’t look at reviews because I wanted to be laser focused into making it happen and not allow anything to deter me…including the price point. (Plus I wanted to be surprised in person and not let the pictures, information to spoil the experience…lol)
I always wanted to see the Northern Lights and as it was in my 30 Things to do before 30 list, it was a no brainer.
I had done some research, just to make sure when was the best time to see the Northern Lights which most articles said Jan – March. (however you can see them from November – April).
Next, it was on to planning and organising myself. From scouring the internet, looking for the best offers through travel agencies to Kakslauttanen main website.
I noticed they charged significantly bit more (depending on the time) if we booked onto their offers…plus we didn’t really want to do or have some of the activities. So I spent time calculating and creating my own itinerary.
I carefully picked out what were my dream bucket list activities…including the iconic KELO GLASS IGLOO…
This is where I start to fall short in terms of my own mistakes.
So our flight was scheduled to arrive in Finland for 5pm. However we had an hour delay and we intentionally didn’t book a private shuttle through the resort as it was charging $44 per person. Listen, don’t get at me if it sounds like I’m being a cheapskate and micro counting every single pound. Because I was, and when you’re about to splash out on an pricey trip…then you try to save where possible. Especially where I was traveling with my parents and bringing them along with me.
It took around 30 minutes to get to the resort by Taxi and we paid 100 euros for us 3. Working out to be £85. Compared to the shuttle bus service with the resort totalling to 132 euros (£112.81 – total saving of £27!!)
As excited as we was, finally to be on our way, getting closer and closer to the resort…I was unnerved by what the taxi driver had to say “I haven’t seen the Northern Lights in over a month”….WHAT DO YOU MEAN!?!? This is not what I want to hear at the start of my trip. But we press on, praying for a miracle and surely it’ll be our magical luck that we will see it. Right?!?!
We arrive at the resort and it was like stepping out of a christmas movie…Surrounded by snow everywhere and to see a cute cabin log reception for us to enter.
The check in process was pretty straight forward, the receptionist was fairly nice – provided us with the map of the resort and we made it just in time for dinner.
I must say, don’t have high expectations of the food…it is averagely okay. Nothing to be wow’ed over.
However, it was time to make our own way to our Kelo Glass, late at night. It was an interesting path to say the least…the receptionist left out the part that it wasn’t a very clear path to getting to our accommodation, especially in the dark. Luckily we were dressed the part so we were warm (link to what you need) however they placed us all the way to end of the resort. And for me, it was absolutely fine…I love walking around, exploring and getting my steps in but for my mum, it was unbearable. She can’t walk for long and not only that, there were many hills and steps to get to our accommodation.
So we spent so long trying to figure it out, how to get to our rooms (no clear signs, just numbers on the front of cabins). The receptionist mentioned it would be a 10 minute walk but in our case, it felt a lot longer…
*Tip: Ask for the shuttle service to drive you there if you are in the same predicament. We didn’t know we had the option until I complained later on the 2nd day…
By the time, we got in – it was 10pm and we missed out most of our 1st night of spending time in the Kelo Glass igloo.
However at the time, we were overjoyed and taken by the beauty of the room. My mum was pretty persistent in wanting to change rooms to be closer to the reception area but they said to try in the morning.
*What I would do differently, if you’re arriving later than the check in time at 3pm – book the first night in a normal or cheaper room to avoid disappointment or frustration of paying for a Kelo Glass Igloo room that did not properly get enjoyed.
Day 2:
The only activity we had planned was the Aurora hunting with the reindeers…but i always get the itch of wanting to get out and make the most of the resort by being able to explore.
So the plan was to get a restful sleep, have breakfast at 10am and then come back to the room to get ready and go out again. And where, my mum had difficulty walking around – I wanted to be efficient with the plan so we would be out for most of the day until we finished the aurora ride…
BIG MISTAKE.
- There wasn’t really much to do…don’t get me wrong. It was ABSOLUTELY stunning walking around. And if it wasn’t for the path not being clear, and our cabin weren’t so far from reception, and mum not being able to walk as much…We would of been able to do the exploration within 1 or 2 hours MAX.
- However, by the time we finished going to the shops and tower (which was just the view from above) and got to reception…My parents needed to chill and were too exhausted to walk back to the cabin and back again for dinner. So we decided to stay there until we ate and then had to go for our activity…
At this point, the frustration and anger was starting to brew…it hit me that the whole purpose of booking the Kelo glass cabin was to make the most of it, being inside, to enjoy our space. And we had to stay most of the time at the reception area, just because of where they had placed us at the end of the resort.
I went to reception to complain and see what can be done as they said they couldn’t change our rooms, and at this point, we still had an extra day but we were changing rooms into a small glass igloo…(I complain as if it’s end of the world, i know it isn’t. But when you’re paying for something, you expect a certain level of service and use.)
They were resistant to wanting to make any changes, and accommodate to the fact we were in this predicament of feeling frustration. Due to the location of where our room was based and the lack of seeing the northern lights due to the heavy clouds (which I knew it wasn’t to be helped.) Even though I had emailed them prior to booking, asking about the likelihood of seeing the lights, they confirmed that we should be able to see them as its the peak time.) Just for some more context, when I did eventually have a little scroll at reviews. After I had booked the trip, most people said on Trip Advisor that they either managed to see the lights 3 nights out of 6 during their stay or at least once…so I thought the chances would be high…
I asked if they were willing to upgrade our room for the final day, free of charge. But they weren’t and said to check with the manager, the next day ONCE we checked out of our room.
7pm – Yes. As you can imagine, the highlight of the trip to see the Northern Lights whilst on the magical activity of riding with the reindeers was an absolute anti climax. Upset. Frustrated. Mostly due to my own expectations…was ironic. All this wanting it to be absolutely perfect and out of this world, once in a lifetime experience…and we were riding in the dark. Not an aurora light in sight.
I was livid. However as we were a family of 3, I was sat next to another lady from the States who was sharing her experience. And it gave me hindsight and perspective that things could always be worse and actually she was having issues with her stay in East Village. And it made me feel better that it wasn’t just me complaining or feeling these emotions. I know it’s not the end of the world. And it makes me sound so entitled… But when you dream of something for years, have a vision in mind, envision yourself and how you would feel, see and expect…just to come crashing down. And to make matters worse, I had spent all my savings to go on this trip, just to make myself feel better after the last few months and to kickstart my 30th year by doing something spectacular. So a lot was quite literally “riding” on this…lol Life can be so ironic sometimes. But so humbling too. Which was needed.
Back down to mother earth, I had to just appreciate what was already going on and being right next to the reindeers was so magnificent and incredible alone, that I completely forgot why I was actually there. To see the northern lights.
Day 3:
So we made the most of our room the night before…sat in the sauna, relaxed. Soaked in the beautiful atmosphere…and I made sure i got up early so I could enjoy looking out of the glass igloo, self reflect and write in my journal…
Time to check out and check into our second room…so I did this on purposely, mostly to cut down the price of staying in the Kelo Glass igloo but also, I wanted to stay in the igloo room, and to have more unique moments of this experience. It’s not everyday you sleep in an igloo is it?
Before that…to my surprise, just minutes before starting the activity, I find out the husky ride that we booked for a total of 4 hours including lunch has been changed to an 2 hour activity instead. At this point, my head was starting to spin out…I didn’t want my emotions to get the better of me so I let it go as I had been soooo looking forward to hanging out with the doggos…this was my ultimate dream bucket list to ride with them!
AND WHAT AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE!!! NOW, THIS WAS TRULY THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE TRIP. Slightly biased as I LOVE dogs…but after all that was going on and didn’t go to plan, it was so nice to just let go, be in the moment and take in the natural beauty of our surroundings whilst going on the craziest ride!
If my trip ended right then and there, I would have been content. Absolute bliss. We got to explore and see more of the doggos and be able to pet them. They were so frickin’ cute and playful!!
However, as it was a shorter activity as unexpected…we got back to reception for midday…and still had the whole day AHEAD OF US. At this point, I was annoyed with my own booking. It would have been so nice to spend the last day in the Kelo cabin to unwind and relax and if I wasn’t so eager and had known we would have all this extra time, I would of left the exploration of the resort to the last day…
So back I went to reception, to see what can be done because if I knew the husky ride activity would be reduced to 2 hours, I would have booked to stay at Kakslauteen for 2 nights, instead of spreading it across 3 nights…
They weren’t as accommodating, and not willing to do anything however as they had informed us about the change 10 minutes prior to the activity starting (due to the weather being warmer than usual and all my complaining lol). The manager said they can provide us lunch free of charge (which I highly don’t recommend paying for it if you opt for adding lunch to your trip) and watch the show at the planetarium…which really wasn’t what we were looking for.
Then, I remembered one of the instructors recommended that we fill our extra time with doing cross country skiing, so I thought it was worth a shot and asked if we could do that instead…and they were happy for us to do so.
It was a cool experience as we’ve never done any sort of skiing before…so it was a nice, easy taster to have before! The sun was out and it was a beautiful day to be out and about. It’s not like your usual skiing, going down the slopes but to walk around on a somewhat flat surface, out in nature. It was glorious. And exactly what was needed to fill up the rest of the day. My dad was struggling a bit so we only did it for an hour and decided to go back to our igloo and rest before dinner as we were pretty exhausted from the trip overall…And plus the theme of the trip…”we wanted to make the most of it” being in our room. lol…
Perfection. The sky was bright. We were hopeful to see the Northern Lights…if it was any day, it would be tonight…and then we heard the alarm go off to spot the lights.
It was barely a glimmer of it. But it was something…an outline. So yes, it’s not to say we didn’t see it AT all. Like the headline of this blog suggests…but also, it’s being kind to say that we did.
It put a smile on mums face and that’s all that matters. Before booking this trip, my mum had no idea about the Northern Lights…and I think that’s what added to the pressure of this trip going perfectly as I had encouraged my parents to join me on this trip. And, I so wanted to go as it was shown in the videos…But where, they had little expectations of what to experience on this trip away, they had a blast.
(Here’s the picture that my mum took which showed up quite well in the photo compared to the naked eye…) after writing this post and self reflecting to the conversations I had prior to the trip and our experiences whilst on the trip…my mum kept saying how she had spoken with someone and said to her that not everyone gets to see the Northern Lights, it has to be your time. But we thought if we had booked the trip, it means it would be…At first, I kind of dismissed her thinking in my head as woo-woo.
However, isn’t it also funny that we were both in the same room, witnessing the Northern lights, at the same time. Yet, she saw more of the Northern Lights (even if it was more distinctively clear in photos) than I did.
So, thats the main take away of this: GO WITH AS LITTLE EXPECTATIONS AS POSSIBLE…because there could a high possibility you won’t see any Northern Lights…or you could have the most magical time, just like what you expected to be.
Go for the experience of doing something absolutely unique in many ways (by adding on the activities to your trip), and experience some of the Finish culture. And if you do see the Northern Lights, that is just the cherry on the top.
However for the price point, and staying in such a popular resort, you would expect more luxuries and better service. But you could tell, they were busy and probably just as tired as we were feeling…
A LAST LITTLE RECAP OF WHAT I WOULD DIFFERENTLY:
- – If you’re arriving later than the check in time at 3pm and looking to save costs on the rooms – book the first night in a normal or cheaper room to avoid disappointment or frustration of paying for Kelo Glass room that you don’t get to properly enjoy, as you’ll be too tired and going straight to bed.
- – If there are a few of you going together, consider paying for a private taxi. Plenty of them when you come out of the airport from arrivals. Works out cheaper. (Saved £27 as a group)
- – If you are not able to walk for long or with older family members, ask for a room to be closer to reception. Try to be there for check in time to get better options.
- – AND if you are quite far from reception, ask for the resort’s shuttle service to be picked up and dropped off…I don’t know if the option is available to everyone but in our case they did offer it to us.
- – The lady I spoke with during the reindeer ride, mentioned that her stay at East Village wasn’t as nice as where we were staying in West Village. As a solo traveller, they expected her to take her luggage up the hill alone and she was fuming. So, if they do ask that of you and you don’t want too, ask for the option for them to take it up for you. Apparently, it’s a lot more quieter in East Village and isn’t much to do there as it’s mostly all happening at West Village…so definitely something to take into consideration when booking your stay.
- – Dependant on what you’re looking to do or happy to spend…I would say 3 nights is the perfect sweet spot and gives you enough chance of seeing the Northern Lights…again, there are people who stay longer.
However, if I had known I wouldn’t see the Lights, and only doing 2 activities (which ended up being shorten) based on our current budget – I would have opted for 2 nights and made sure I booked on the earlier flight to make the most of the first day/night. And left the activities for the second. With that being said and considering how stressed I felt, I am glad I had 3 days and truly had the chance on the last day to actually be present to enjoy it and have enough time to just relax in the accommodation. So it worked out great in the end…
I feel like the pressure starts to mount more when you are on a budget and dependant on the trip to go perfectly within your time frame, based on how long you can be there. And it doesn’t help that the Northern lights is totally out of your control…So it’s important to know what to expect and make a clear decision if that’s for you or not…
Would I recommend the Kakslauteen resort?
- – Yes and No.
- It’s definitely a once in a lifetime experience. And a very unique stay. It was lovely to have such a different experience to what I would typically do or go on holiday.
- – It was something out of a Christmas movie…I have no idea what it would be like during that time but I can imagine it would be incredible and imagine how festive it would feel! They do have a Santa Village…so it would be very cool for the kids.
- The staff were really nice in general and the instructors were very helpful. (FYI, if you are debating whether you need to buy Ski gear beforehand…they provide everything when you book an activity! So really, we didnt need to buy a lot of things..)
(Link to stuff I bought and what weather was like…)
- – I think for the price we were paying per night, I would of liked a more luxury experience…the amenities seemed more on the basic side. However, I guess you’re paying for the unique experience and people are usually staying for a shorter time. Compared long weeks in the sun…
- – Food isn’t that great…but it wasn’t awful either.
Extra tips:
- – Be grateful for the experience. Regardless of how it goes. And whether you see the Northern Lights…
- – Have fun! And just let go…and don’t worry if others you bring with are having a good time because they will be! Regardless. I was so anxious because of this reason…
- – Go at your pace – you got enough time to do everything!
ENJOYYYYY!