Roam+Board :: Hotel Kakslauttanen

[trip style = glamping + active & adventure + sightseeing + ski]

{Editor’s Note: Announcing our biggest giveaway yet! Enter to win two nights at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler and two Scandinave Spa Whistler bath passes. Takes less than one minute to enter. Contest closes Oct. 26, 2011.}

What
There’s the Arctic Circle and then there’s 250kms above it. With a suitcase full of thermal underwear and down-filled jackets, today’s Roam+Board is traveling towards polar bears and polar dips. With 40 log cabins Hotel Kakslauttanen is open year-round, but if you’re going to travel to the ends of the earth, you might as well trip style = glamp in an igloo! Open December/January—whenever it gets cold enough—to April, the Igloo Village has 20 thermal glass domes {read: that don’t frost over or fog up} and a snowball fight’s worth of snow igloos to give guests a frigid, first-hand experience.

Where
Finland. Hotel Kakslauttanen is 1085kms away from Helsinki. If you want to get there quickly, fly from Helsinki to Ivalo {via finnair or norwegian} and take a 35km {$33} transfer to the hotel. If you’ve got time and want to see the Finnish landscape—saunas and all—ride a train/bus combo.

When
During the Aurora Borealis viewing season {late August – April}. Though it’s never guaranteed you’re going to see the night skies flow like Joseph’s technicolor dreamcoat, the hotel rings a signal bell when the Northern Lights are visible.

Who/Why
You’re a modern-day Christopher Columbus, exploring the earth’s far reaches in search of a green and pink-hued night sky and the world’s largest smoke sauna.

Cost
Two people can stay in a glass igloo for $477 and a snow igloo for $472 in winter. Add $36 per person/day for breakfast and dinner. Don’t worry, for this price, they won’t leave you out in the cold, every glass igloo is equipped with a toilet, sink and luxury beds. Plus, in the words of the hotel: “on every evening a hot sauna and a refreshing ice hole are waiting for you.” Hmm, ice hole. I can handle cold plunges, but polar dips are another story!
{Trip Styler Tip :: Most people choose to stay in a glass or snow igloo for one night, and in a cabin {starting at $338 double occ} for the remaining nights. Why? All cabins have showers and personal saunas…}

More Roam+Board
The Met – Vancouver
Custom Hotel – LAX
Bitter End Yacht Club – BVI
Sleep On The Water – London
A Woodsy Hideaway – Big Sur, CA

[photos assembled by @tripstyler via Hotel Kakslauttanen]