Winter in Kiruna – things to see and do in a winter wonderland in Swedish Lapland
Planning a trip to Kiruna during winter? Don’t know what there is to see and do in and around the city? Look no further, this post is all about Kiruna. If you would’ve asked me what there is to see and do in Kiruna when I was younger. I probably would’ve said nothing. At that time, I just didn’t realize what a special place Kiruna really is. But hey, you’re allowed to change your mind!
Today, Kiruna is a fun winter destination with lots of experiences both for the young and old. How do I know? Well, judging by all the thousands of tourists that nowaways pilgrimage to Kiruna during the winter, there simply has to be something drawing them in.
Facts about Kiruna
- Kiruna is, on the surface, Sweden’s largest municipality (20,000 square kilometers).
- In total, there’s around 23,000 people living in Kiruna and its surroundings
About 18,000 people live in Kiruna city and the rest are distributed in the around 50-ish villages. - Kiruna church has been named Sweden’s most beautiful public building in 2001.
- The city has more daylight than Stockholm during seven of the year’s months.
- Kiruna has midnight sun for 50 summer days.
- Polar night in Kiruna usually lasts from December 12 until January 4 – a total of 20 days.
During this period, the sun does not reach the horizon at all. - Giron means Kiruna in Northern Sami.
And then there was that list of everything to see and do in Kiruna and the surrounding area. Here it comes! All experiences and excursions are within day excursion distance from Kiruna.
Experience the Northern Lights in Abisko
In Abisko you will find Aurora Sky Station (located up on the mountain Nuolja) which has been named “the best place in the world to experience the northern lights” by Lonely Planet. I can only agree – it’s a great place to view the northern lights as long as the weather is good. Abisko’s geographical location means that it is often cloudless there, which in turn provides better conditions for experiencing the dancing northern light.
When I worked at a tourism company in Kiruna, I spent many evenings in Abisko. Unfortunately I had really bad luck with the weather most days. Though, that might’ve been a good thing as I actually had to spend a lot of time indoors working. One evening however, there were reasonably good weather conditions and I got to experience a beautiful northern light that danced over the mountain Nuolja. I do still dream of actually being up in the mountains during a clear winter night with swirling northern lights above me. Hopefully that dream will become reality soon.
At Aurora Sky Station you have the opportunity to book a four-course Exclusive Dinner which is inspired by the Lapland environment and the Nordic cuisine. The dinner costs SEK 1925 and it’s recommended that you book in advance as there’s only a limited number of tickets available each night. They also have a large outdoor terrace and a lookout tower up on the mountain Nuolja where the Sky Station is located. It is also possible to “only” go up with the lift on a Night Visit – this costs SEK 745.
It’s around 100km between Kiruna and Abisko but during the wintertime the weather can change quickly, especially up in the mountains. So some days it might take a little bit longer to drive up there. Keep that in mind if you’re planning to go there.
Experience the Northern Lights from other places
Even though Abisko is a really good place to experience the lights from, it doesn’t mean that you can’t see them anywhere else. Honestly, if you ask me, there isn’t a bad place to experience them at. No matter where you are, I’m sure you’ll be enchanted when you see them! To maximize your chances to see them – keep away from the cities and all artificial light!
Lucky for you, Kiruna has about 1 inhabitant per square kilometer and most of them actually lives in the city centre or in one of the villages. So that means if you can get outside the city, you’ll have a good chance of seeing the northern lights as long as there’s a clear sky and most important, you also need optimal conditions for northern lights.
So, how can you tell if there’s gonna be northern lights on a particular night. You really can’t tell but I recommend you to check out Aurora Service .
If you don’t have access to a car and can get away from the city lights on your own – I always recommend going on a northern lights tour. While going on a tour doesn’t increase your chances of seeing the lights it does give you the advantage of being out in the forest and away from all light sources. And that gives you better conditions of seeing them.
There’s quite a few Northern Lights tours where you ride snowmobiles or dog sledding which can be a fun experience even if there is no Northern Lights during that particular evening.
Sleep in a snow suite at ICEHOTEL
A visit to ICEHOTEL in Jukkasjärvi is a must when visiting Kiruna. At least if it’s your first visit here. The ice scuptures and the hotel is actually built from scratch each year so it might be fun to visit even if you’ve already been before.
If you’re feeling brave you can book a room in either one of the ice rooms, or if you have some extra money and want to splurge a little – stay in one of the art suites. I’ve never stayed there myself so I can’t say what it’s like. But I’m sure it’s a cool experience to sleep in a room made of snow and ice.
I have been to the ICE HOTEL a few times, always with a few years in between so it still feels like a fun experience. Nowadays they also have the ICEHOTEL 365 which you can visit all year around. And did you know that the ICEHOTEL is constantly finding it’s way to various lists of places you need to visit??
Läs mer: Ishotellet i Jukkasjärvi – en året runt upplevelse
Experience Sami culture at Nutti Sámi Siida in Jukkasjärvi
Experiencing Sami culture while you are in Kiruna feels like a must. A perfect way to do this is by visiting Nutti Sámi Siida in Jukkasjärvi. Here you can learn more about Sami history and culture while also being able to visit those cute reindeers.
They also have a lávvu (a sami tent) on site with a small café where you can eat a traditional Sami lunch by the open fire. Because when you are in Kiruna and the surrounding area you have to taste the souvas!
It costs SEK 200 for a visit and a guided tour is included. If you want a more exclusive experience, you can book a day trip where you can also go reindeer sledding. This costs from 1980 SEK.
Prices are for an adult.
Läs mer: Nutti Sámi Siida – ett besök bland renar och samisk kultur
Dogsledding in a gorgeous winter wonderland
I’ve only going dogsledding once and I absolutely loved it! It’s something I would love to experience again. Just imaging going on a longer tour to experience the nature and the mountains with your own little dog family.
You can go on a lot of different dog sledding excursions – daytrips, overnight stays, northern light tours, airport transfers… I have listed (and linked) some of the companies I know that offer dog sledding tours in the Kiruna area. If you know of any more companies that offer this, please feel free to leave a comment and I’ll update the list.
Different tours that you can go on in Kiruna
- Dogsledding with wildernesslunch (or with just coffee)
- Dogsledding with overnight stay
- Sled Dog Transfer from Kiruna airport to ICEHOTEL
- Dogsledding Night tour (Northern Lights tour)
Companies in Kiruna that offer dogsleddingtours
- Kiruna Husky
- Fjellborg Arctic Journeys
- Jukkasjärvi VildmarksTurer
- White Trail Adventures
- Laxforsen Sleddog
- Husky Home
You can either book directly with the dogsledding companies or book through a tourism company such as Kiruna Guidetur or ICEHOTEL.
Spend a few hours on the ski slope
If you like winter you might also like to ski downhill? Or just crosscountry skiing?
There’s a few different ski slopes near Kiruna but if you don’t want to leave the city, you have Loussabacken. Other ski slopes within around an hours driving are Björkliden’s Fjällby (opens February 7) and Riksgränsen (opens February 27th). If you like to go off-piste then you have the opportunity to do so in Abisko – on February 21st Nuolja opens their off-piste for the season.
And there’s also Dundret in Gällivare. Techically Dundret isn’t in Kiruna municipality but I wanted to include it as well.
LKAB – the world’s largest underground iron ore mine
If you are interested in mines, then I think you should visit LKAB and their Visitor Center which is located about 300 meters below the ground on what is called Level 540. There you will get an insight into the modern mining industry. LKAB is the world’s largest underground iron ore mine and also the reason why Kiruna’s city center is currently being moved
I’ve actually not visited LKAB myself (unless we did it as a school field trip – but if we did I don’t remember it…) but my boyfriend Kenny has been there with his dad. They thought it was very interesting and hearing them tell me all about it made me regret not going with them.
The price for one adult is 380 SEK. Advance bookings are recommended because their tours are quite popular and spots are limited.
More winter experiences in Kiruna
- Ice fishing
- Cross Country skiing
- Go on a guided snowmobile tour and experience the wilderness
- Horseback under the northern lights
- Snowmobile tour to Kebnekaise
- Dinner with a taste of Swedish Lapland (Camp Ripan)
- Kiruna Snow Festival (February 22-26, 2020)
- Kiruna wintermarket (February 13-15, 2020)
- Sami & Reindeer experience at Rávttas
Other places worth visiting in Kiruna
- Kiruna church
- Aurora SPA at Camp Ripan
- Go for a walk up on Loussabacken (great view over Kiruna so don’t forget your camera!)
- Hjalmar Lundbohmsgården – one of the oldest buildings in Kiruna
Places worth visiting outside of Kiruna
- Abisko National Park
- Kebnekaise
- Esrange Visitor Center – Sweden’s only space rocket base
- Jukkasjärvi church
- Moose Safari – Drive along the road to Nikkaloukta and see if you can spot the King of the forest
- If you have access to a car I really recommend the road between Kiruna and Abisko – it’s gorgeous and worth driving even if you’re only going over the day.
- The road between Kiruna and Nikkaloukta – also gorgeous!
Restaurants and cafés in Kiruna
My personal favourites to eat in Kiruna is definitely the “souvaskebab” from Empes Gatukök (the one behind Hotel Scandic – Mommagatan 4), hamburger at Annis grill and the lunchbuffet at ICEHOTEL’s restaurant in Jukkasjärvi. The pizza at Lombolo Pizzeria & Grill äis also great and highly recommended.
Café Safari has delicious sandwiches (my favourite is the one with ham and cheese). Pizzeria Sicilia is located right in the city centre and I always go for a Hawaii pizza there. I also liked the Sundaybrunch at SPIS Mat & Dryck – also in the city centre. SPIS also has a small café at Kiruna Airport and when I worked there I always had a sandwich for lunch.
Stejk Street Food was also quite good although a bit expensive. But that’s always the case with souvas and reindeer/moose meat. I haven’t been dining at Landströms but have heard only good things even if they also are a little bit pricey. Last but not least, I’ve had a great lunch at Camp Ripan although it was a few years ago.
And of course, there’s a lot more places to eat in Kiruna but these are my favourites and the ones I’ve heard good things about. And if you haven’t tried souvas yet, definitely do it before you leave the north!
Accomodation in Kiruna
There are several different types of accommodation to choose from when you’re planning your visit to Kiruna – everything from hotels and hostels to cottages and igloos. Although I have visited Kiruna more times than I can count (I was actually born there and lived there during my first three years of life), I have not often had to book accommodation there. I’ve either only been there during the day or been able to stay overnight with relatives.
But, I have actually stayed one night at Scandic Ferrum that gets the grade approved. I collect points at Scandic so I usually choose accommodation on that chain if there is one. I also stayed one night at STF Malmfältens Folkhögskola when we were booked on the morning flight at 06.05. I’m not a morning person so getting up in the middle of the night to travel around 2 hours to the airport is something I try to avoid if I can. Especially during wintertime.
However, if you want a little more unique experience than a “regular” hotel, I recommend staying at Aurora Camp i Kurravaara. There you stay in cottages out in the countryside, right by the river. When I worked with tourism in Kiruna I stayed here for a few nights – the accommodation belongs to Kiruna Guidetur where I worked. It is really cozy out there, especially if you are lucky with the weather and solar winds so you can northern lights in the sky. New for this year is that they have Igloo huts! I’m dreaming about staying in one of those actually.
Camp Ripan also have cozy cabins and if you stay there, you’re very close to their spa. My brothers have spent a night at SPiS Hotel & Hostel and they recommend it. They thought it was good value for their money. A new place outside the city is Aurora Dome and like I mentioned above, I would really love to spend a night or two in a glass igloo or dome. Last but not least, there’s always the ICEHOTEL with both warm and cold rooms. They are probably also the most expensive option though but definitely an experience I’d say.
I always check Booking.com (my go-to website to book accomodation) first to get an overview over all the different accomodation options in a new destination. I also always compare their prices with the hotel’s own website – sometimes it’s cheaper to book directly.
There’s also lots of different places on Airbnb’s i Kiruna.
I enjoyed your article about Kiruna. A couple of years ago I took the train from Stockholm to Abisko in the winter. The train broke down but I still enjoyed the trip. I’ve made the trek to Sweden’s Arctic Circle three times to see the aurora but have not been lucky. Sometimes I wonder if the Northern Lights are like the Bigfoot myth 😉 Still, I can’t wait to return. Thanks for your article.
Thank you Kevin! I’m happy you liked it. Taking the train between Stockholm and Abisko can be a fun experience, but maybe not as much fun when the train breaks down. It does happen quite a bit actually. I hope you’ll be able to return to the Arctic Circle soon again and that you’ll be able to see the aurora dance. The fourth time’s a charm? Hopefully!!
Sorry for my slow reply – I just found your comment in my spamfolder 🙁
Wow this is the ultimate blog!
Thanks for sharing so much info and recommendations for Kiruna!
We visited. However, I didn’t get to do everything I would’ve liked so i’ll be sure to keep some of these ideas in mind when I head back one day!
Hi Bea! Thank you so much for your nice comments! I read yout blog post and looks like you’ve had a great time even though you didn’t get a chance to do everything. There never is enough time, is there?! I hope you’ll be able to come back one day.
Can we experience ice hotel and skiing in mid- Nov? Also how is the weather in mid November for northen lights?
Yes, and no. You can experience ICEHOTEL 365 which is open all year. But the full ICEHOTEL experience usually opens in the beginning of December. You can read more about it here: https://www.icehotel.com/icehotel-365
As for skiing, do you mean cross country skiing? If so, yes, you should be able to do that. As for downhill skiing, I’m not sure if the slopes are open as early as mid-November.
It’s hard to speak about the weather as it varies. But as for seeing the northern lights, it’s definitely possible. Personally I have seen some amazing lights as early as late August and beginning of September. And last year in November, there were some nights with amazing displays of the lights.