Finland, and especially Lapland, attracts a lot of tourists at Christmas time, both from Finland and abroad. And this is no wonder, the white snow shining brightly, the blazing northern lights, husky safaris, and the chance to meet the real Santa Claus will certainly entice anyone to direct their Christmas holiday trip to the rugged landscapes of Lapland. Due to the large number of tourists, Lapland’s Holiday Resorts are built to be very tourist-friendly, and the offer is basically based on winter tourism.

However, Finland and Lapland have so much to offer besides snowy skiing slopes and reindeer, but unfortunately not many are aware of these wonderful gems. Also, the accumulation of all tourism in only one destination, in one season or even in the worst case only in one specific week is not completely problem-free. The following is a list of 10 reasons why you should travel to Lapland or other parts of Finland other than during Christmas.

1. Everyone else is already there

You are certainly not alone with your idea of a wonderful white Christmas in the northern landscapes. If you want your experience to be a little more unique, Christmas is not the best possible time to travel to Finland.

2. Long queues and traffic jams

Especially in Lapland, but of course also in other parts of Finland, you may have to wait in long queues at tourist attractions or ski slopes. In the worst case, for example, in Levi, people have had to queue for almost an hour just to get to the ski lift in the high season of tourism.

3. Hotels and restaurants are full

Especially if you haven’t made a reservation in advance, you can be in quite a bit of trouble finding a free table in a restaurant or a room in a hotel.

4. Prices are much higher

For the same price or even cheaper, you can get a better hotel at another time.

5. You will see Santa Claus at other times too

He will still be there, even if it’s not Christmas. Where would he go from his own home?

6. More exclusive service

Even though service industries hire a lot of seasonal workers during high season, traffic jams still burden their work efficiency. Although every employee does their best, during peak times you cannot hope to receive the best possible or individual service.

7. Bright slopes in spring

Especially if you have in mind to come on a skiing holiday, Christmas is not necessarily the best possible time for it. In northernmost Lapland, the sun doesn’t rise at all at that time, so the hills are always dark. The slopes are in use well into the spring, so at that time you can ski on brighter slopes, especially with children, this is a much more pleasant experience.

8. You facilitate the business of tourism entrepreneurs in the destination.

It is challenging to plan the whole year’s business activities to focus on almost only one or two weeks. If there are tourists for the whole year, the operations of tourism entrepreneurs would be easier, especially in terms of employee training and hiring.

9. The same ”winter wonderland” experience can also be had at other times

Especially Northern Finland is truly beautiful for many months and not just at Christmas. Even the best winter wonderland experiences can be had in January-February instead of Christmas.

10. It’s not the best time to see the northern lights

Believe it or not, Christmas is not the best time to see the northern lights. It possible to see the northern lights from the end of August to the beginning of April, but most of them occur in the dark evenings of early autumn and, accordingly, again at the dawn of spring winter. This is because during the vernal and autumnal equinoxes, the Earth’s position allows the solar wind to efficiently transfer into the Earth’s magnetic field. So, in fact, the best chances to see the northern lights are not during Christmas.

Annele