February 11th to 15th
There are no amount of words that can possibly praise or say how truly amazing this place is along with every member of the Apukka team that work here.. but I will try.
(Anyone who has anything bad to say about this place must be somewhere else...)
Every member of staff here (I really wish I could remember names) were so extremely friendly, polite and chatty. They would always explain things and check if you’re okay or how your day was going. Offer recommendations and remember you when you pass them. Me and my partner have learned so much whilst being here about the Finnish culture, all about the aurora borealis, the animals, the stars, the different foods and how they are cooked... the list goes on. Nothing is ever to much for the staff here and you really get a sense that they genuinely just want to help you and have the best experience here as you can. The people at reception are so helpful and just lovely people along with the bar lady, all the guides and cleaner/ cooking staff. We have never been anywhere as friendly as Apukka. So a massive thank you to ALL your staff.
We stayed in the Aurora cabin.. oh my goodness, what a treat! Perfect size, lovely bathroom and comfy beds, there was even hot chocolate.
We were in cabin 12 by the main building but it really doesn’t matter because the whole place is just beautiful.
Every night at 6 you get to experience something different (Finnish foods) go and try the salmon!!! It is unreal, cooked on the fire in-front of you whilst enjoying a nice Lappish vodka..
The breakfast is wonderful, so much choice! The evening meal buffet was the best we have had abroad and we have been to lots of places. The food is fresh, extremely tasty and there is plenty of choice. Lots of people praised the food here and I can see why. They always have Finnish options as well like baked salmon, reindeer (actually very nice) and lots of other things I tried but cannot remember names. There was also, slow cooked pork, Bolognese, slow cooked beef, roasted vegetables, mash, salmon and roasted potatoes, wedges, pork, ham. Along with the salad bar, breads etc.
The bar is reasonably priced and cheaper than what we expected and the snack foods are tasty. We loved trying the different Lappish vodkas which are coloured after the colours of the aurora Borealis (bar lady told us).
I read reviews about how the sauna is expensive etc, but we still enquired and ended up booking on. You get complete private use of the whole ice sauna, electric sauna, wooden sauna and jacuzzi for one and a half hours. You get towels, bath robe, slippers and a lovely shower room. We enjoyed it as we knew no one else was there, it was a real treat. The ice sauna is definitely something to experience. We thought that it was a good deal considering no one else was going to be there!! And we are so pleased we experienced it.
We were expecting rubbish WiFi in the Cabins but were surprised that it worked very fast, faster than our home WiFi!!
In the evening they light little fires everywhere and it really makes the whole place look magical.
The excursions!! WOW. Do them, as many as you can... every single one of them was different and exciting. We had a different guide for each of them and they all were amazing, professional and unique. We did the reindeer safari, santa village, husky safari, sauna and a snow mobile on the last night and we even saw the northern lights.
On a whole this place is faultless and I really can’t emphasise enough about the staff here, they make the holiday for you. EVERY SINGLE ONE!!! Felt very sad to leave but was made better by receiving hugs and well wishes.
Thank you Apukka ❤️