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Snowshoeing in Kemi and Tornio

A snowy track between two rows of frost-covered spruces under a white winter sky

Illustration photo: a snowy spruce forest, not from the trips near Kemi and Tornio.

Lapland Handbook Staff How we research this

The short answer

For a forest walk with everyone at least twelve, book Sea Lapland Safaris' walk from Kemi: it lends the clothing and ends by a fire. After dark, choose Nordic Safaris' walk to the island of Toivola for woods and ice on the Swedish side, or the small aurora walk sold as Oulu–Kemi if a group of six and a child from eight suit you better.

How the operators compare

Prices are the operators' own published starting prices as of the date this guide was updated, and they change through the season.

Sea Lapland SafarisNordic Safaris@rootedlapland
Price from €105 €135 €129
When Not stated 20:00–22:00 Evening
Duration 2.5 h 2 h Not stated
Youngest 12 Not stated 8
Winter clothing Included Not stated Not stated

Only the price is marked, as arithmetic. The cheapest is the only one not sold as an evening walk, so it is not a cheaper version of the other two.

Where these figures come from
  • Sea Lapland Safaris: A forest walk from Kemi with winter clothing lent, a Lappish hut and hot drinks by a fire.
  • Nordic Safaris: An evening walk through snowy woods and over the ice to the island of Toivola on the Swedish side.
  • @rootedlapland: An aurora walk for up to six, with headlamps and homemade treats by a fire, on an unpublished route.

Three guided snowshoe walks are sold on this stretch of coast on the pages we read: one from Kemi, with no time of day given, and two after dark.

From Kemi

Sea Lapland Safaris dresses you at its safari house in Kemi in an overall, shoes, wool socks and gloves, drives you a short way to the start and walks you into the forest, with a stop to warm up in a traditional Lappish hut and hot drinks by a fire before the way back. It takes no children under twelve.1

After dark

Nordic Safaris, a company in Tornio, walks to the island of Toivola on the Swedish side, between eight and ten in the evening, through deep snow in the woods and on the ice, for at least two people from mid-December to the end of March.2 The walk sold as Oulu–Kemi by @rootedlapland takes six at most and no one under eight, lends headlamps with the snowshoes and serves homemade treats by a fire. It meets in a private yard and decides the route on the day, and its listing includes an aurora guarantee without saying what it covers.3

The icebreaker cruises from Kemi are compared in icebreaker cruises from Kemi.

Tours you can book

Questions people ask

Can we combine a snowshoe walk with the icebreaker?

Not easily on the same day. The icebreaker cruises from Kemi are listed at between seven and a half and eight and a half hours including the bus, and the walk from Kemi takes two and a half hours plus the time to dress, so the two would squeeze each other. Put the walk on the day before or after, or take the evening walk to Toivola after an afternoon back on land.

What does the aurora guarantee on the small walk mean?

The listing includes an aurora guarantee but does not say, on the page we read, what it promises or what happens if the sky stays dark. Before relying on it, ask the company whether it means a second evening, a refund or something else, and whether it depends on the weather forecast when you book.

Do we need a passport for the walk to Toivola?

The listing does not say. Toivola is an island on the Swedish side, and Finland and Sweden are both in the Schengen area, so there is normally no passport control on the way, but carrying a passport or national ID card whenever you cross into Sweden is sensible, and the company can confirm whether it expects one.

Written by

Lapland Handbook Staff

Lapland Handbook is written by its editorial staff in Rovaniemi. Every price, age limit and group size in a comparison is read from the operator's own page and marked "Not stated" when the operator does not publish it. Each guide names who should not book, and names the operator that suits each kind of group, whichever it is.

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