Would you rather see authentic life in the North or visit a convenient tourist destination there? In Finnish Lapland, popular ski resorts are comfortable, but everything there is built for tourists. In comparison with real towns, I find them convenient but lacking character. Let’s take a closer look.
In this post, we will take a bit of an alternative look at Finnish Lapland. I will share my opinion about small northern towns and what differentiates them from purely touristic destinations. We will visit Kemijärvi, some lesser-known, almost abandoned* ski resorts, and see things in between.
*The trip took place in winter 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Foreword
It seems most of the places in Finnish Lapland are tourist factories that go out of their way to get more visitors. And, in my opinion, some destinations overdo it. In Rovaniemi, I saw interiors with huge, wall-size pictures of northern lights, Santa Claus, and polar bears. (There are no polar bears in Finland). There were reindeer shells on every surface, and lamps were made of reindeer horns. That’s exactly how people in the North live (sarcasm).
Towns that aren’t focused on tourism look genuine. If you go there, you see the real life of people, with their problems and ambitions. Small towns in Lapland have this “conquering the North” vibe, which, for some weird reason, I find attractive. I like visiting them even if it means less comfort compared to the resorts.
Just to be fair, I have to mention that there are cool things you can find event if purely touristy places. You can find quite unique, independently-run spots. We especially liked a reindeer-specialized restaurant in Levi and a burger spot in Ruka. It’s just… they are lost in between chain restaurants and tourist traps.
And yea… just to get it out of the way. I don’t do downhill skiing. If that is your thing, I believe the ski resorts will provide good value. I look at them from a traveler’s perspective.
Away from major touristy spots
So, I had done all the Lapland touristy stuff many years ago. It was nice, but I don’t feel like doing it twice. I felt like I want to stay away from the well-known resorts, just to see what it’s like. I also was recovering from a minor injury, and the maximum I could do was low-tempo cross country skiing. I was looking for a calm place and ended up visiting a friend’s cottage not far from Suomu*.
*It isn’t a typo. Suomu is the name of the area (Suomi – Finland in Finnish)
Abandoned Suomu
To my surprise, Suomu had a pretty good slope, but during COVID, most of the facilities looked abandoned. Suomu is among top 10 ski resorts in Finland, so I was really surprised to see it like that. We were left one-on-one with nature.
Kemijärvi
The nearest town to Suomu is Kemijärvi.nThat’s where we had a bit of an argument. Even though there wasn’t much to do there, I kinda liked this place. It is one of the small towns with no chain restaurants and where people say ‘hi’ to strangers on the streets. My friend though, didn’t see anything in it. Just another town with nothing to do.
Conclusion
Unlike other countries that have sizable territories inside the Arctic Circle, Finland offers only touristic resorts. There are rare exceptions. But the size of the cities doesn’t compare to neighboring Norway and Russia. If regular tourist activities are something you like, you will enjoy the trip. I personally found them enjoyable only once.
If you stay away from the resorts in Finnish Lapland, you won’t find many things to do. There would be lovely places for backcountry skiing. Also, it is a good place if staying in a cottage in the wilderness is your thing. In the end of the day, I think calm rest in nature is the best thing Finland has to offer.
So finally. If you look for a good ski resort – Finnish Lapland offers good slopes. If you want to see genuine life in the North – travel to Norway or Russia.