FINLAND HIGHLIGHTS & NORTH CAPE 2006

12 days / 11 nights, Helsinki - Porvoo - Imatra - Savonlinna - Joensuu - Kuhmo -

Kuusamo - Rovaniemi - Arctic Circle - Kittilä - Alta - Honningsvåg -

North Cape - Karasjok - Inari - Saariselkä – Helsinki

Departures: June 02, 09, 16, 22, 29 / July 05, 11, 17, 23, 29 /
August 02, 06, 10, 14, 18, 2006

This comprehensive tour features Finnish heritage, history and culture. A great combination of the Finland Highlights and the Norht Cape Explorer. From historic sites to the Saimaa Lake district, with more than 180.000 lakes the largest inland waterway system in Europe. Continue through South Karelia, a borderland between East and West, where eastern Orthodox traditions are part of everyday life. Visit Imatra and Savonlinna with its medieval Olavinlinna Castle. Founded in 1475, the castle is now the setting for one of the oldest music festivals in Europe, the annual Savonlinna Opera Festival. Past the Arctic Circle, to Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland. Explore the vastness and unspoiled nature of the northernmost part of Finnish Lapland, with many National Parks and nature preserves. Cross the Norwegian border to the Finnmark region and on to the North Cape. Learn about the history, culture and traditions in Kautokeino and Karasjok, and experience the magic of the Midnight Sun, the polar nights, the sea and fjells.

Day 1 HELSINKI
Arrive Helsinki and transfer on your own to the hotel. Overnight at the Sokos Vaakuna Hotel.

Day 2 HELSINKI - PORVOO - RUOTSINPYHTÄÄ - IMATRA (B, L, D)
Breakfast at the hotel. Depart by coach for Porvoo, the second oldest town in Finland. Enjoy the old Ruotsinpyhtää iron works village. Stop at the Langinkoski rapids, see the imperial fishing lodge of Czar Alexander III. Dinner and overnight at Rantisipi Hotel Valtionhotelli in Imatra.

Day 3 IMATRA - PUNKAHARJU - SAVONLINNA - VALAMO - KOLI (B, L, D)
Drive through the beautiful Punkaharju esker ridge. Continue to the Retretti Art Center with exhibition of classical and contemporary collections. Enjoy lunch before continuing to Savonlinna. On a small island, in the heart of Savonlinna, stands the stands the best preserved medieval fortress in Scandinavia, the Olavinlinna Castle. Founded in 1475, the castle is now the setting for one of the oldest music festivals in Europe, the Savonlinna Opera Festival In the afternoon visit the monastery of Valamo in Heinävesi and Koli Hills. Dinner and overnight at Hotel Koli in Lieksa.

Day 4 KOLI - JOENSUU - KIIHTELYSVAARA - TUUPOVAARA - KOLI (B, L, D)
Today's excursion will acquaint you with Karelian culture, traditions and friendly hospitality. Visit to a farm and enjoy exhibitions of local arts and crafts. Listen to music played on Kantele, the Finnish folk music instrument, and savor Karelian specialties. Dinner and overnight at Hotel Koli in Lieksa.

Day 5 KOLI - VUONISLAHTI - KUHMO (B, L, D)
After breakfast, visit Vuonislahti and the log chapel of Eva Ryynänen. In the Ruunaa wilderness near the Finnish-Russian border, you have a chance to shoot the rapids on a long wooden riverboat. After lunch, proceed to Kalevala village, for a look at the old traditions of the Karelian people. Dinner and overnight at Hotel Kalevala in Kuhmo.

Day 6 KUHMO - KUUSAMO (B, L, D)
Breakfast at the hotel. After a guided tour of the village, we continue northwards. Enjoy the Karelian landscape of hills, lakes, and lush green meadows changing to steep cliffs, streams, and wild forests. Lunch en route. In Kuusamo, stop to admire Julma Ölkky, the deepest canyon lake in the area. Dinner and overnight at the fabulous Spa Hotel Kuusamon Tropiikki or similar.

Day 7 KUUSAMO - ROVANIEMI (B, L, D)

Enjoy an excursion to Lake Kitka and a light lunch before continuing to Rovaniemi. Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland, lies at the confluence of Lapland’s mighty rivers Kemijoki and Ounasjoki. As the capital of the province, it has always been a gateway to Lapland. It is also the home of Santa Claus.Visit Santa’s Workshop at the Arctic Circle and take part in a Lapp ceremony. Dinner and overnight at Hotel Rantasipi Pohjanhovi in Rovaniemi.
 

Day 8 ROVANIEMI - KITTILÄ (B, L, D)

Breakfast at the hotel. Spend the morning at your leisure. Enjoy lunch at the Arctic Circle, in a Lapp tepee. Continue northwards along the Ounasjoki River, and stop at the Art Gallery of Reidar Särestöniemi, the most notable Lapp artist who found his motifs in Lapland's nature. His studio and home, a complex of log houses, represent traditional Lapp architecture. Dinner and overnight at Hotel Sirkantähti in Kittilä.

DAY 9 KITTILÄ - KAUTOKEINO - ALTA (B, L, D)
Set out to shoot the rapids. Properly equipped with a rain gear and a life vest, you set off from Harriniva on board a pneumatic lifeboat on an exciting one-hour journey through seven rapids. Ashore  enjoy the steaming hot soup served around a glowing campfire. Continue northwards via Kautokeino, largest Lapp cultural center in Norway. As you leave the Finnmarken, the rolling hills of Finnish Lapland change into Norwegian tundra as we reach the Arctic Ocean and the fishing port of Alta. Dinner and overnight at Rica Hotel Alta or similar.

DAY 10 ALTA - HONNINGSVÅG - NORTH CAPE PANORAMA (B, L, D)

Visit to the Alta Museum, where you have the unique opportunity to experience the world of an ancient Lapp carved into the rock. Alta is famous for its 5000 to 6000 year-old rock carvings, so prestigious that they have been included in the World Heritage List of UNESCO. Continue towards Honningsvåg, stopping for lunch on the way. You reach the North Cape in the evening. In front of your eyes opens the Arctic Ocean and the endless scenery, illuminated by the Midnight Sun. Standing on Europe's northernmost plateau you celebrate this unforgettable moment with the traditional sparkling wine and local caviar. Dinner and overnight at Rica Hotel Honningsvag or similar in Honningsvåg.
 

DAY 11 HONNINGSVÅG - KARASJOK - SAMI CULTURE - SAARISELKÄ (B, L, D)
Enjoy the last glimpses of the awesome northern landscapes of  the  Finnmark, as you head  southwards driving along one of the most beautiful Norwegian fjords. Lunch en route in the village of Karasjok, capital of the Sami culture, and seat of the Sami Parliament. Back in Finland, you visit an open air Sami Museum in Inari. Buildings and handicraft collected from different regions of Lapland give you a fascinating look into the life of the nomadic Samis or Lapps of yesterday. Visit the home of a local reindeer herder, experience the present day live of a Lapp family treasuring ancient traditions. Dinner and overnight at Hotel Riekonlinna in Saariselkä.

DAY 12 SAARISELKÄ - TANKAVAARA - ROVANIEMI - HELSINKI (B, L)
Your last stop in northern Lapland is the Tankavaara Gold Village, where you relive the thrills of the Gold Rush that once attracted hundreds of men into the region in the hope of finding a gold nugget. Try your luck in panning for gold. Lunch will be taken in Luosto on the way to Rovaniemi Airport. Evening flight on Finnair to Helsinki. Your visit to the North Cape and Lapland has come to an end.


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Departure Dates

June 02, 09, 16, 22, 29

July 05, 11, 17, 23, 29
Aug 02, 06, 10, 14, 18

Prices in US Dollars

Finland Highlights & North Cape, 12 days