When most people think of Lapland, they probably picture children meeting Santa, Christmas elves and families wrapped up in snowsuits. It's definitely a destination that's heavily marketed towards families, but there's so much more to Lapland than Santa.
My first trip to Finnish Lapland was to Levi with my family. I loved it so much that when I started planning my second trip, I decided to go back without the kids and take one of my friends instead.
This time we chose Rovaniemi for a three-day adults-only break and planned the trip around the things we wanted to do. We slept in a hotel made from snow and ice, tried the world's only Snow Sauna, went snowmobiling across a frozen lake in the dark, rode huskies and reindeer and still found time to visit Santa Claus Village.
Since then, I've been back to Lapland again and tried even more activities that I'd happily do on an adults-only trip, including ice karting, ice restaurants and Finnish saunas.
So, is Lapland worth visiting as an adult? For me, absolutely. There's loads to do without children, and you don't need to have any interest in meeting Santa to fill your trip.
That doesn't mean you need to avoid the more Christmassy side either. On our adults-only trip we still went to Santa Claus Village, crossed the Arctic Circle and visited Santa's Main Post Office.
In this guide, I'll share what we thought of visiting Lapland without kids, what there is to do for adults and whether I'd choose it again for a couples or friends trip.
If you want to see exactly what we did, our 3 Day Rovaniemi Itinerary includes the full adults-only trip, where we stayed and what we spent.
From DIY itineraries and Northern Lights tips to budgeting advice, destination guides and honest reviews of the places we've visited, you'll find everything together in our Lapland Travel Guide Hub.
Just a quick note before we begin. Some of the links in this guide are affiliate links. This means we may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through them, at no extra cost to you. We only recommend products, services and experiences we've used ourselves or genuinely believe will help you plan your trip. Thanks for supporting Build a Break.
⭐ Is Lapland worth visiting as an adult? Yes. I've done an adults-only Lapland trip and would happily do another.
👫 Who is it good for? Couples, friends, solo travellers and anyone who loves winter trips and wants to try some of the activities Lapland is famous for.
❄️ What is there to do? Snowmobiling, huskies, reindeer, saunas, ice karting, skiing, ice skating, Northern Lights trips and some really unusual places to eat and stay.
🎅 Do you have to do the Santa stuff? No. There's more than enough to fill a trip without meeting Santa, although we still enjoyed visiting Santa Claus Village as adults.
🧖♀️ Good for a relaxing trip? It can be. Glass igloos, saunas, hot tubs, nice restaurants and unusual stays can make Lapland feel completely different without younger children.
🌙 Good for nightlife? I wouldn't choose Lapland for a big nightlife trip. For us, the evenings were more about activities, food, saunas and hopefully seeing the Northern Lights.
📍 Where would I choose? We've visited both Levi and Rovaniemi and I'd happily return to either without kids. They offer quite different trips, so it depends what you want from your break.
💙 Would I go back without the kids? Definitely. Our adults-only Rovaniemi trip is still one of my favourite Lapland trips.
No, and I think this is probably the biggest misconception about visiting Lapland as an adult.
Santa is obviously a huge part of Lapland tourism, particularly in Rovaniemi, and if most of what you've seen online is families visiting Santa Claus Village or going on Christmas package holidays, I can understand why you might wonder whether you'd feel a bit out of place without children. That wasn't our experience at all.
On our adults-only trip, we spent very little of our time doing anything that felt aimed specifically at children. We slept at the Arctic SnowHotel, tried the Snow Sauna, went on an evening snowmobile safari and did husky and reindeer rides. We also visited Snowman World and Santa Claus Village, but they were just part of the trip rather than the whole reason for going.
One of my favourite memories from that trip was actually our evening snowmobile safari. We travelled around 30km across a frozen lake and through the forest in the dark, stopping halfway at a wooden hut for hot berry juice and food around the fire. It was one of our favourite experiences from any of our Lapland trips and definitely didn't feel like we'd booked something designed for children.
I think the main difference when you visit Lapland without kids is simply how you plan the trip. You can skip Santa completely if that doesn't interest you and build your days around the activities, food, saunas, Northern Lights and places you actually want to experience.
This is probably the bit that surprised me most once we'd visited a few times. There are so many Lapland activities that work just as well for adults, and quite a few that I'd actually rather do without younger children.
Snowmobiling is an obvious one. We've done this on more than one trip, including an evening safari in Rovaniemi where we drove across a frozen lake in complete darkness. We didn't get the Northern Lights because it was snowing heavily, but it was still one of the best things we've done in Lapland.
Saunas are another big part of a Finnish Lapland trip. On our adults-only visit we tried the Snow Sauna at the Arctic SnowHotel, which involved a traditional sauna, a sauna made from snow and an outdoor hot tub overlooking the forest.
We've since tried Sauna World at Lapland Winter Park too, and we have a separate Snow Sauna vs Sauna World Guide comparing the two.
Then you've got husky rides, reindeer rides, ice karting, ice skating and skiing if that's your thing. Skiing definitely isn't ours, but Levi in particular has plenty of options if you want to combine the usual Lapland activities with some time on the slopes.
You can also make the accommodation part of the experience. We spent a night sleeping in a room made entirely from snow and ice at the Arctic SnowHotel, which was something I'd wanted to try for ages.
There are glass igloos, cabins with hot tubs and all sorts of other unusual options too, which I've included in our Most Unique Places to Stay in Lapland Guide.
We've now tried around 20 different activities across our Lapland trips, so rather than list every single one again here, our 20 Lapland Activities We've Tried Guide covers what we did and which ones we'd actually recommend.
For an adults-only trip, I'd just pick the things that appeal to you and build the holiday around those. There's definitely no need to fill your itinerary with Santa and Christmas activities unless you actually want to.
I think it is, as long as you go knowing what to expect.
We visited Santa Claus Village on our adults-only trip and didn't feel strange being there without children. We crossed the Arctic Circle, visited Santa's Main Post Office, had a wander around the shops and spent some time at Snowman World.
We didn't build the whole trip around Santa though. For us, Santa Claus Village was somewhere we wanted to see while we were in Rovaniemi, alongside all the other things we'd planned.
I actually really enjoyed Santa's Main Post Office. Seeing all the letters that had arrived for Santa from around the world was surprisingly lovely, and you can send postcards home with the official Arctic Circle postmark too.
Snowman World is also quite fun without kids. There's an ice bar and restaurant, ice skating, snow slides and loads of snow and ice sculptures. We spent a couple of hours there and didn't feel like we needed children with us to enjoy it.
Would I spend an entire adults-only Lapland trip doing Santa activities? Probably not. But if you're staying in Rovaniemi, I'd still go and have a look around. You can do quite a lot there without spending anything too.
Our Complete Santa Claus Village Guide covers everything there is to do, and we also have a separate Snowman World Guide if you're deciding whether to include that while you're there.
Yes, I think Lapland works really well for both.
I went to Rovaniemi with a friend for our adults-only trip, and for most of the trip we didn't feel like we'd chosen somewhere mainly aimed at families. Snowman World was probably the exception, but even then we enjoyed having a drink in the ice bar and looking around all the snow and ice sculptures.
We had three very full days and could easily have stayed longer.
I think it would work just as well for couples too. There are some lovely places to stay, and you could make the trip as relaxed or as busy as you wanted. You could book a glass igloo or cabin, spend an afternoon in a sauna, go out for dinner and then head out looking for the Northern Lights.
Or you can do what we did and pack the days with activities. Our trip included snowmobiling, huskies, reindeer, the Snow Sauna and a night at the Arctic SnowHotel, so it ended up feeling more like an adventure break than a Christmas trip.
It would also make a great trip for a birthday or special occasion. There are enough unusual experiences in Lapland that you can make it feel quite special without needing to plan the trip around Santa.
For me, the biggest advantage of going with another adult is being able to plan the trip completely around what you both want to do. If you'd rather spend the money on a snowmobile safari, a sauna or somewhere unusual to stay, you can.
Yes, and I actually think this is one of the things that makes Lapland work so well for adults.
Our trip to Rovaniemi was only three days, but we fitted loads in. We arrived in the evening and went straight to the Arctic SnowHotel, then over the next couple of days did the Snow Sauna, Snowman World, an evening snowmobile safari, huskies, reindeer and Santa Claus Village.
Because we were only away for a long weekend, we didn't need to take much time off work either. We flew direct from Liverpool and paid just £48 each return for our flights, which made it feel like a very different type of European city break.
You definitely don't need a full week to make an adults-only Lapland trip worthwhile. If you can find good flights, I'd happily go for two or three full days and choose a handful of experiences I really wanted to do.
Our 3 Day Rovaniemi Itinerary has the full trip if you're thinking of doing something similar.
We've visited both Levi and Rovaniemi, and I'd happily go back to either without kids, but they would give you quite different adults-only trips.
Rovaniemi worked really well for our trip with friends because there was so much we could fit into a short break. There are loads of activities to choose from, some unusual places to stay and plenty of restaurants in the city centre. It's also particularly easy to reach from the UK, which is useful if you're only going for a few days.
Levi would be my choice if I wanted more of a snowy resort break. The centre is compact, there are restaurants and bars within walking distance, and you have the ski slopes right there if skiing is your thing. We've visited Levi as a family, but there was plenty there that I'd happily go back and do on an adults-only trip.
I don't think you need to choose your destination based on avoiding families. You'll see children in both, particularly during the Christmas season, but that wouldn't put me off visiting either as an adult.
We've compared the two properly in our Levi vs Rovaniemi Guide, so I'd have a read of that if you're trying to decide which would suit your trip better.
It can be, especially once you start adding activities, but travelling without children does give you a lot more control over where you spend your money.
Our three-day adults-only Rovaniemi trip cost £646 each in total, including return flights, accommodation, activities, food and transport. We only paid £48 each for our flights, but this wasn't really a budget trip because we chose to spend money on things like a night at the Arctic SnowHotel, the Snow Sauna and an evening snowmobile safari.
You could easily do it for less by staying in a normal hotel or apartment and choosing fewer paid activities. Equally, an adults-only trip could get very expensive if you wanted glass igloos, nice restaurants and an activity every day.
We've already covered Lapland prices properly in our Is Lapland Expensive? Guide, so I won't repeat all the costs here. For me, the important bit is that an adults-only Lapland trip can work at quite different budgets depending on the type of break you want.
Yes. If Santa isn't something you're interested in, I'd still consider Lapland for an adults-only trip.
Some of our favourite experiences across our trips have had nothing to do with Christmas. Snowmobiling across a frozen lake at night, trying Finnish saunas, ice karting, huskies and staying overnight at the Arctic SnowHotel would all have been worth travelling to Lapland for.
You can also plan your trip later in the winter. There's no need to visit in the run-up to Christmas just because that's when Lapland gets the most attention in the UK. In fact, our adults-only trip was in February, and we still had deep snow and all the winter activities we'd gone for.
For me, I'd actually plan an adults-only trip around the winter side of Lapland rather than Christmas. I'd choose a few activities we really wanted to do, find somewhere nice or unusual to stay and leave enough free time for saunas, food and hopefully seeing the Northern Lights.
If you're wondering when to go, our Best Time to Visit Lapland Guide goes through the different parts of the winter season in much more detail.
Yes, definitely. Our adults-only trip to Rovaniemi is still one of my favourite trips we've done to Lapland.
I liked being able to choose the experiences we wanted to do without having to think about whether they would suit younger children. We could stay out snowmobiling until midnight, book the Snow Sauna the following morning and spend the night sleeping in an ice hotel because those were the things that appealed to us.
If I planned another adults-only trip, I'd probably do it slightly differently again. I'd be tempted to try Levi without the kids, stay somewhere a bit special and mix a few activities with more time for food, drinks and saunas.
Having now experienced Lapland both with and without children, I don't think you need kids with you to enjoy it. There is so much more to Finnish Lapland than Santa, and an adults-only trip gives you the chance to experience a completely different side of it.
So if you've been looking at Lapland and wondering whether you'd feel silly going without children, I wouldn't let that put you off. I'd happily book another adults-only trip.
Whenever I spot great-value DIY Lapland flights and accommodation from UK airports, I share them with members of the Build a Break Travel Club. If you'd like to experience Lapland without paying package holiday prices, it's a great place to start.
Copyright © Build a Break | Website by Furness Media
