Kiruna Winter 4-Night Travel Guide (Cold-Sensitive Version - Part 2)

Day 22: Dog Sledding & Hot Spring Soak 🐶♨️ Dog sledding was by far the most fun activity for me—I even felt like I could’ve gone further! The dogs are super cute, though a heads-up: they might do their business while running 😂. I found a company called Kiruna Dogsled via Google; their prices were reasonable, and they even included hotel pick-up and drop-off. The session was from 1 PM to 4 PM, which isn’t too late, so it didn’t get unbearably cold. I booked the Aurora Spa at Camp Ripan—book in advance! A quick tip: always pack a swimsuit in your luggage. Most hotels in Northern Europe have spas, and Camp Ripan also offers swimsuit rentals if you forget. They do a great job controlling the number of guests per time slot, so it never feels crowded. There are two main pools: the outdoor one is nice and warm, and soaking in it while surrounded by snow is such a cool experience! Plus, there are four different saunas. Free drinks like water and lingonberry juice are provided too 🥤. It’s about a 10-minute walk back to our hotel from Ripan, and since our bodies were warm after the spa, the evening walk didn’t feel cold at all. Day 23: Ice Hotel & Northern Lights Chase 🏨🌌 There are only 1-2 public buses to the Ice Hotel per day, and they might not even run on weekends. Taking a taxi is super expensive because it’s far from the city center. Looking back, the best option is to book a combined tour—like a snowmobile + Ice Hotel package. You can drive the snowmobile halfway, warm up inside the Ice Hotel, then head back out. The Ice Hotel itself takes less than an hour to explore (it’s mostly ice sculpture displays in rooms), so spending half a day going there alone + waiting for buses really isn’t worth the time. For the Northern Lights chase, we booked a 3-hour driving-only tour (no clothing provided) with Aurora River Camp. Lucky us—we had the tour all to ourselves! Our guide was such an extrovert and loved chatting nonstop 🤣. The route was flexible: we stopped a few times, going wherever the auroras appeared. We chased them all the way to Abisko and saw vivid green-and-purple auroras that “danced” right before our eyes! Even the guide said it was the most spectacular aurora he’d ever seen. Pro tip: Buy waterproof, snug-fitting shoes—snow getting into your shoes is freezing! I even dropped my phone in the snow (oops) 🥲. Day 24: Morning Flight Home ✈️ We felt like there were still more things to do—skiing, for example! We’d planned to go, but we didn’t check that the ski resort has different opening hours every day. With a tight schedule, we ended up skipping it. We also missed the Sami Camp and Safari tours, which are close to the Ice Hotel. Booking combined tours would definitely help you make better use of your time. Final Tips for Cold-Sensitive Travelers 🧣 If you’re prone to feeling cold, bring a thick neck gaiter (not a regular scarf)—the kind that’s like a sports headband you slip over your neck. I bought mine at Stadium, and it kept me super warm. For outdoor activities, contact lenses are more convenient—glasses tend to fog up if you’re wearing a neck gaiter. If you have a sensitive stomach, bring some meds and a thermos. Kiruna isn’t overdeveloped for tourism yet, and every guide we met was fantastic! #SwedenTravel #EuropeTravel #KirunaTravelGuide #SwedenItinerary #SwedenAttractions