Arctic Circle Saariselkä: What to wear & How to pack

Part 1: Winter Wonderland - What to do in the Arctic Circle. Read here 
Part 3:  Where to stay. Is Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort worth the hype? Coming Soon 

---

 If you are anything like Vruchi (puts the heater on even when it is 15 deg outside), chances are - you are probably a bit terrified of the Arctic Cold! But, no fear - Vruchi survived it like a boss! So here's our few tips to help you navigate the cold, so you can spend more time enjoying the beautiful landscapes that Saariselkä has to offer :) Here goes...  

WHAT TO WEAR

The best time to visit the Arctic for chances to see the lights is between November to March. We went in January. This also means it’s peak winter and it’s the coldest few months of the year. Usually the temperatures during this time range between -10 & -25 degrees. We were extremely lucky and got a warm week of temperatures ranging from -3 to -15. A week prior to our visit, temperatures were an average -30! So having the right gear is really important. Vruchi gets really cold - especially her extremities! Her toes and fingers get frozen even in relatively warmer winter climates (for example, she was dying in Slovenia and the temperature hardly went below -2 degrees). But we didn't have the right gear during our Slovenia trip - lesson learnt!

This is what Vruchi wore during the Safari activities: 
Top: 

• 3 thermals (2 ultra warm thermal tops and 1 extreme warm thermal top from Uniqlo),
• 1 cashmere sweater (Uniqlo),
• 1 fleece jumper (mountain warehouse).

Bottoms:

• 2 thermal pants (1 heat warmers and 1 Uniqlo),
• 1 pair of tights (200 denier). (On some days, she wore jeans instead of these tights)

Socks:

• ​1 merino wool socks (mountain warehouse) +
•  1 thermal thick socks (heat warmers)
  
  

+ on top of all this: 

• Ski suit that Lapland safaris provided on days we did Safaris or 
• Superdry Jacket on days we didn't have any safaris planned. 

Shoes: 
Vruchi wore her own boots from Sorel (Joan of Arctic £195) but Lapland Safaris also provide you with snow boots if you don't want to buy a pair. I bought mine from Mountain Warehouse for £50. They weren't as fancy looking as Vruchi's but they did the job. 

Accessories: 

• 1 face mask (North face),
• 1 scarf or snood (depends on the activity) +
• 2 beanies (1 heat warmers lining beaning and 1 fancy colourful beanie on top for photos).

I didn't wear these many top layers but I don't get as cold as Vruchi does. We wore variations of these layers without the ski suit on days we didn’t do activities.

Pro Tip 1: 
For the first few days, Vruchi wore 4 thermal socks as the toes are the worst place she get cold, but a few locals I talked to said that -  that many layers of socks was actually the reason why she was feeling cold. For thermal socks to work, you need a bit of room for the air to circulate. You’re actually warmer if you only wear 1 or 2 layers of socks instead of 4. She tried that advice on the last two nights and there was definitely a massive improvement.

Pro Tip 2: 
If you get really cold, carry Heat Warmers pouches (the ones you can snap or expose to air and put them in your gloves). I ordered a whole box from eBay for cheap and the heat lasts for about 8-10 hours! Perfect for this weather!

Pro Tip 3: 
All the hotel rooms are quite warm inside so save some space in your luggage and don’t carry fleecy night wear. You won’t need it. Normal PJs would be fine.

How to pack

Some useful tips for your to pack efficiently! 

 Winter clothes are bulky. Plus, the key is to layer - so inadvertently you'll be carrying a  fair few items with you. 

If you’re doing this as a long weekend trip and you don’t want to purchase check-in luggage like us, here are a few cheeky tips to avoid the pesky check-in fee and yet not sacrifice on your layers! ;) 

• Wear a jacket and carry one jacket in your hand at the airport.
• In the sleeves of the jacket you’re carrying in your hand, you can shove scarfs and snoods to save space for bulky winter gear in your hand luggage ;)
• We also shoved our thick thermal socks in our tripod / camera bag as unlike Easy-jet and their 1 bag policy, Finnair allows you to carry your camera bag or a small purse separately to your hand luggage suitcase.

• We’d also recommend to use packing cubes (we got ours cheap from eBay) so you can separate all your thermals and socks and gloves. You can try and avoid the dreaded “Where is my other glove??” question if you use a packing cube. Also somehow, because everything is nicely compact in the cube, you can carry a lot more in your bag compared to carrying it without the cube!

• You don't need that many tops as you hardly sweat in this weather. Vruchi and I carried 3 tops for 5 days. We used the same thermals for all 5 days (airing it out at night).  ​​

 But basically, pack smart. Don't go overboard as you can re-use the same things for multiple days as you will wear a jacket on top regardless. :) 
Annnnd that's it! Hopefully that gives you a good idea on how to keep warm in extreme weathers and still enjoy your days out exploring without losing a toe or two to the cold :D 

---

Let us know if you have other tips and tricks that can help us and our readers navigate traveling in extreme cold environments. :) 

Part 1: Winter Wonderland - What to do in the Arctic Circle. Read here 
Part 3:  Where to stay. Is Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort worth the hype? Coming Soon 

Lots of love 
​S&V