Swedish Lapland vs Finnish Lapland with Kids: Which Should You Choose?
- minna
- Jun 21
- 7 min read
When we started planning our first Lapland trip, we did what most parents do: typed "Lapland with kids" into Google and got approximately four thousand results all pointing toward Rovaniemi and Santa Claus Village. The marketing is so great that it's tempting to book a package holiday until you see the costs.
As Lapland is a region which covers both Sweden and Finland we decided to explore Swedish Lapland in the end which was significantly cheaper than a comparable trip to Finnish Lapland. I want to be honest in this post rather than definitive because Finnish Lapland is not a bad choice and Swedish Lapland is not automatically the right one. They're genuinely different experiences and the right answer depends entirely on what kind of trip you want to have and what matters most to you as a family. What I can do is lay out the real differences so you can make the call with clear information rather than whichever destination has the most visible advertising.
The Quick Answer
Choose Finnish Lapland if: Santa is the main event and you want everything organised for you in one package, or the idea of planning logistics in a remote winter destination feels overwhelming.
Choose Swedish Lapland if: you want authentic wilderness over theme park, you're planning yourself rather than buying a package, cost is a significant factor, your kids are interested in huskies, the Northern Lights and you want to feel like you've actually been somewhere rather than visited a product.
Both have dogsledding, reindeer, the Northern Lights, glass igloos, Sami culture, and snowmobiles. The difference is context and atmosphere, not activities.
The Cost Difference
This is the biggest practical reason to consider Swedish Lapland, and it is substantial. To make the comparison fair, all figures below are based on the same trip: two adults and one toddler, five nights, with a full programme of winter activities.
Packaged Finnish Lapland (5 nights, peak December)
UK package operators like Inghams, Tui, and Santa's Lapland price holidays per person. The entry bar for a basic family package can actually start lower than you might think, often around £3,000 to £3,500 total for a family of three. This lower starting price is tempting, but it usually covers a stripped-back 3-4 night itinerary with minimal activities and lots of hidden costs.
When you scale a package up to a full five nights and add a proper schedule of dogsledding and excursions, the commercial markup hits hard and the true cost quickly climbs past £5,000.
Self-planned Finnish Lapland (5 nights, peak December)
If you plan Finnish Lapland yourself, you gain total flexibility but the Christmas pricing still presents a challenge. Rovaniemi accommodation at peak season (mid-December through early January) runs 50% to 100% more expensive than January or February. Mid-range hotels average around £235 per night, while glass igloos and forest cabins climb steeply from there.
Based on real cost data from families who travelled recently, a self-planned five night family trip to Rovaniemi at Christmas, including flights, a mid-range cabin, car hire, activities, and food, costs around £3,500 to £4,500. It requires more organisation than a package, but it saves you thousands on a like-for-like five night stay.
Self-planned Finnish Lapland (5 nights, Jan/Feb off-peak)
If you choose to visit Finland in January or February instead of December then flights drop to around £100 to £150 return per person, and accommodation falls back to around £100 to £150 per night. A self-planned five night January trip for a family of three runs closer to £2,000 to £2,600 all-in.
Self-planned Swedish Lapland (5 nights, year-round)
Here is the key difference: Kiruna completely avoids the astronomical December Santa markup and Sweden remains highly competitive across the entire winter. A riverside cabin costs around £100 per night in December and roughly the same in March. SAS flights from Heathrow via Stockholm stay stable at £150 to £300 return per adult.
A family of three doing five nights with dogsledding, an Icehotel visit, and a day at Abisko will typically spend £1,600 to £2,200 all-in. So families who want the full winter experience during the Christmas school holidays can go to Kiruna in December without paying a premium for the privilege.
Cost Comparison Summary
Destination and Trip Type | Family of 3 for 5 Nights (Estimated total) |
Swedish Lapland (Self-planned, year-round) | £1,600–£2,200 |
Finnish Lapland (Self-planned, Jan/Feb off-peak) | £2,000–£2,600 |
Finnish Lapland (Self-planned, peak December) | £3,500–£4,500 |
Finnish Lapland (Package holiday, peak December) | £5,000–£7,500+ |
The honest takeaway: Swedish Lapland offers consistent pricing throughout the year, which makes it significantly cheaper for families who want to go at Christmas or during school holidays when Finnish prices peak.
The Santa Question
Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi is the official hometown of Santa Claus, where you can meet him every day of the year. The meeting is private, the elves take it seriously, and the magic is real if you approach it in the right spirit. If you want a real Santa memory for your kid then Finnish Lapland is the winner.
But the caveats are also real because Santa Claus Village is incredibly crowded, particularly in December, when it becomes impossible to move. The lines are long, noise is constant, and you can easily spend more time waiting for an attraction than enjoying it. Some of my friends have described it as too commercialised and money-grabbing, with extortionate costs throughout the experience and stay.
Swedish Lapland doesn't have a Santa product. There's no village, no elves, no official meeting. What it has instead is the Sami tradition of reindeer herding, genuine wilderness and the best place in the world statistically to spot the Northern Lights which is a different kind of magic to the Finnish version.
The Activities
The menu of activities is broadly the same across both destinations. The prices, however, are not always identical and a few notable differences are worth knowing before you budget.
Activity | Swedish Lapland (Kiruna) | Finnish Lapland (Rovaniemi) |
Dogsledding (short passenger ride) | £35–£50/person | £55–£82/person |
Dogsledding (half-day tour) | £130–£160/person | £130–£175/person |
Northern Lights snowmobile tour | £90–£130/person | £85–£130/person |
Reindeer sleigh ride | £55–£70/person | £65–£90/person |
A few things the table doesn't capture:
Northern Lights
Both destinations are in the Aurora zone however Abisko in Swedish Lapland sits inside a documented microclimate called the "blue hole" which keeps skies unusually clear when cloud covers the surrounding region. It's considered one of the best places in the world to see the Northern Lights so if you want the best chance to see them then Swedish Lapland wins.
Santa
The meeting itself at Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi is free to queue for. You only pay for the official photos, which start at around £46 for a digital package for the family. The broader Santa Claus Village experience — SantaPark, Snowman World, reindeer rides — adds up quickly if you buy tickets for everything. Swedish Lapland has no Santa product at all.
Unique accommodation
The Icehotel at Jukkasjärvi is the original and still the most architecturally extraordinary ice hotel in the world. Finnish Lapland has a wider range of glass igloo options at more varied price points, with some mid-range igloo resorts around Rovaniemi more accessibly priced than the Icehotel's premium rooms.
The Atmosphere
Finnish Lapland, particularly around Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi, is set up as a major tourist attraction. Beyond the magic of Santa you will experience queues and extortionate pricing like at a theme park. That being said there is stunning nature here and Rovaniemi has endless forests, frozen rivers, and small cabins where you can find peace and quiet if you plan well, and explore beyond the Santa Claus Village. The honest point is that most UK package visitors don't access that side of Finnish Lapland because the package doesn't take them there.
Swedish Lapland around Kiruna is more authentic and quieter. With fewer tourists it means you can have a more intimate experience and often enjoy the wilderness by yourself putting the money you have saved into the different winter activities which are available. We found it more immersive and the freedom to explore without having herds of tourists or queues meant we could take things at our own pace.
Ages and What They Get From Each
Under 3: Swedish Lapland actually works well for this age group, because they don't need Santa to find it magical because the dogs, snow, reindeer and the night sky will do that for you. Finnish Lapland is equally good at this age but you're paying more for the Santa element that they won't fully appreciate yet.
3–6: If your child is obsessed with Santa and will understand the significance of the meeting, Finnish Lapland makes a powerful case. This is the window when choosing Rovaniemi likely makes memories that last a lifetime.
7–12: Both work well. Older children get more from dogsledding, snowmobiling and the Icehotel experience, appreciate the Sami cultural context, and are old enough to stay awake for a Northern Lights alert at midnight. The Santa meeting in Finnish Lapland is starting to lose its magic by this age, which shifts the balance toward Swedish Lapland's more adventure-focused offering.
Adults travelling with children: Swedish Lapland has a bigger appeal for adults. The Aurora from a frozen lake, the Icehotel ice bar, the Camp Ripan spa and the Abisko national park are experiences which will be magical for both you and the kids.
Our Honest Recommendation
While Finnish Lapland is the traditional default for families chasing the Santa experience, our honest advice is to lean firmly towards Swedish Lapland. Even if your children are in that peak three to six age bracket, the massive financial premium and intense theme park crowds in Rovaniemi can easily overshadow the magic.
Swedish Lapland offers an authentic Arctic adventure that resonates deeply with both kids and adults. By choosing the Kiruna region, you skip the endless queues and unlock a genuine winter wonderland at a fraction of the price. Instead of paying inflated peak season markups, your budget goes directly into unforgettable experiences like husky or reindeer sledding or exploring the extraordinary Icehotel. If you want true wilderness, peaceful snowy landscapes, and the absolute best chance of spotting the Northern Lights together as a family, Swedish Lapland is the better choice.
For everything you need to plan Swedish Lapland, start with our 5-night itinerary, then the where to stay guide, and check back as we publish the rest of the hub — costs, packing, dogsledding, the Icehotel and more.