Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

Stood on the crisp snow covered riverbank, gazing into the break of white water cascading past 'The Mill' as I placed my snowball and thoughts in a secret position to be remembered upon my return to 'the real world'.Standing back to admire the 5 hours worth of hard work from our group of four quincee builders, before creating a 'Benny Hill' style sketch around them! Thanks girls - such fun!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Superb! Very approachable, chatty and knowledgeable of the local area. All staff gave every effort to their jobs but also created a relaxed atmosphere whilst efficiently going about their work - from the cook to the group leaders, excellent.

Advice for Potential Travellers

You really don't need to take much with you to wear, other than personal items such as underwear and thermals. A holiday where you could almost get away with hand luggage!

Most Inspirational Moment

The enthusiasm and strength of the husky teams was awesome. I'll never forget the quiet whisper of the sledge and the sense of wonder as we sailed along the trails in the remote forest under the pink skies. 

Most Inspirational Moment

Stood in the middle of a frozen lake ankle deep in snow in perfect silence!Listening to the huskeys howl with excitement at the forthcoming ride we were about to do!Reaching the top oif the ice wall after battering away at it on three previous attempts!

Thoughts on Group Leader

The staff in general were brilliant, always helpful, always smiling, always eager to fulfill our constant demands even when they were understaffed and rushed off of their feet.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Plan your trip well as the extras can be expensive!

Most Inspirational Moment

seeing the northern lights was a bonus .huskying was great .the surroundings where perfect .

Thoughts on Group Leader

henry was great in fact all of them were

Advice for Potential Travellers

read whats included in your trip properly

Most Inspirational Moment

The dogsledding was for me, my most inspirational moment, there is no other feeling than being as one with the dogs and seeing scenary that you would not normally see from the road, it was completely mystical.  The dogs were great as well albeit some hair-raising moments when I thought I was going to lose control of my sled.

Thoughts on Group Leader

The group leader was very friendly and accomodating.  If you ever needed any information, advise or assistance both the group leader and his team were available and would always go the extra mile to help.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Give everything a go...  if you are a complete novice like I was then it is easy to want to skip certain activities however the leaders are very supportive, so if you have the money look at the additional activities that you can do like the rock climbing or jet skiing - promise you it will be a great experience!

Most Inspirational Moment

Location was superb. Nice to see the Northern Lights even if not a full on display. Staff - you could not have had better

Thoughts on Group Leader

Henri - was superb, always happy and helpful, despite being very short staffed.He was an excellent instructor too.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The Trip notes were spot on - you really do not need any Outdoor clothing - it is all supplied, down to base layer thermals, socks, gloves, hat, shoes - the lot. It was often minus 26 on my trip and apart from fingers occassionaly I was not cold.

Most Inspirational Moment

Inspirational moments that is a tricky one...Definitely seeing the sun rise (and set just an hour later) that little ball of red on the horizon just adds so much beauty to an already stunning place.Snow-shoeing round the bear trail was an experience but the views of complete wilderness and tranquility you get are something special. Also f your if really lucky and quiet you might just get yourself run over by a reindeer or two.If I name much more I think I will have just mentioned the entire holiday, everything has its special moments from dog-sledding to being the only one on the slope in Ruka. 

Thoughts on Group Leader

Eki and his colleagues are great they are helpful, informative and a barrel of laughs. If you get a chance ask them about some Finnish card games, playing 'Pass the Salt' was a well spent evening.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Mate, it's freezing out there!! Think about the layers you need and then wear some more. I did manage my planning very well and realise halfway to the airport (whilst on a train) that I didn't have a coat. This wasn't a problem once I got to Oulanka basecamp but I definitely felt it standing at the airport waiting to board the plane!! I think my recommendations for all of the rest of you considering this, aside from to stop umm-ing and aahh-ing and look into your crsytal ball and see that you really must go, is to have a go at the Little Bear Trail or if thats a bit too far for the time you have avaliable head out to Castle rocks! Its just a whole other world out there.

Most Inspirational Moment

Basecamp Oulanka was so beautiful and as such, this provided a setting which made each of the activities inspirational. The snowshoeing allowed us to reach so many unspoilt parts, the cross country skiing was exhilarating and the husky sledding in the park was simply incredible! The area is so peaceful, the air is probably the cleanest I have breathed and the food was glorious so that I felt refreshed, relaxed and revived when I returned and many colleagues commented on how well I appeared. This felt like a week of playtime and I haven't thrown myself around in the snow so much since I was a child. 

Thoughts on Group Leader

Henry and Hanna were incredible. They were generous with their time, their patience knew no bounds, their knowledge of their environment and the skills they taught were admirable and their sense of humour and kindnesses made the holiday particularly special. I could not thank them enough for what they did for us.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Just go. Book it now if you can, I promise you will not be disappointed.

Most Inspirational Moment

Huskie sledding. Though bitterly cold the landscape was memorable especially as the daylight faded into dusk. The guide was a very interesting guy and the dogs were fantastic.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Very friendly and amenable though didn't provide much insight into the Finnish way of life or culture. The team as a whole did do a good job though and I don't want to take anything away from that.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The option to X country ski anywhere other than on the lake was very limited for a novice. There did not seem to be any trails as such and trying to attempt to go through the forest in deep virgin snow on undulating ground was very challenging if not impossible.

Most Inspirational Moment

The scenery in the national parks was awe inspiring.  Some wonderful memories of our husky rides through the most unspoilt wilderness with lunches in the open air or in tipis, in sub zero temperatures sat around fires on reindeer skins.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Eki was amazing.  He runs Basecamp Oulanka with the help of an amazing team and their knowledge of the local area and it's flora and fauna was excellent. With his help and willingness to make sure we had the best holiday, we did all of the activities that we could and packed them in to a week.  I can't not mention our host Lowric from the husky farm.  If it wasn't for him and his team we wouldn't have seen much of this beautiful part of the world. 

Advice for Potential Travellers

Just enjoy yourselves...................then again, it's hard not to.