Last updated on April 16, 2026
Choosing where to stay in Lapland is half the fun. The region is filled with unique places to sleep, from glass igloos and aurora cabins to snow hotels and fairytale woodland chalets. And many are created with families in mind.
Here’s my guide to the most magical places to stay in Lapland, whether you’re dreaming of Northern Lights views, remote cabin cosiness, or full bells-and-whistles Arctic resorts.
I’ve broken it down by area: Rovaniemi, Pyhä, Levi, Saariselkä and Inari, with a couple of standout stays in Kemi and Swedish Lapland too.
Most of these are fairly high-end (Korvalan Kestikievari is the best value), but I have more budget-friendly options in my guide to how much a trip to Lapland costs.
The most special places to stay in Lapland
Northern Lights Village
Northern Lights Village is a brand with several locations across Finnish Lapland (Saariselkä, Levi, Ivalo, Pyhä), known for its stylish cabins, glass-roof igloos and range of included experiences.
If you want an “all in one” winter escape, with accommodation, meals, activities and transfers often bundled into a package, this is a strong choice. We’ve did their Searching for Santa programme, which was one of the most magical, story-led Santa encounters we’ve ever done.
The glass-roof cabins are well designed and feel thoughtfully integrated into the landscape. Many locations have activities on site or easy access to wilderness experiences, making it possible to stay put for several nights without needing to plan much independently.
These resorts can be pricey, but the convenience and range of experiences, from reindeer rides to aurora hunts, can make them feel worth it.
Check prices and availability.
Special places to stay in and around Rovaniemi
Korvalan Kestikievari
One of our very favourite places in Lapland. Korvalan Kestikievari is a family-run husky farm set beside a frozen lake, with charming cabins and a historic main house where meals are served. As one of Lapland’s longest-running tourism businesses, it feels deeply rooted in place – quiet, relaxed and a world away from a typical resort.
The real highlight here is the huskies. On both our visits, meeting the dogs and doing a full-length safari was a highlight for everyone.
The wooden cabins are fairly simple but super cosy – more homely than the polished likes of Apukka and Northern Lights – and that’s all part of the charm. They’re all gathered around the lake in a beautiful wilderness setting, and there’s also space for ice skating, cross-country skiing, tobogganing and a lakeside sauna. This was the first place we took the kids to in Lapland, and they still talk about it often. I can’t recommend it enough.
The on-site restaurant is also a huge highlight – the epitome of Finnish cosiness.
Check prices and availability.
Silver Birch Resort
Silver Birch Resort is a small, design-led hideaway on the edge of Lake Jyrhämäjärvi, around 20 minutes from Rovaniemi but feeling completely secluded. There are just a handful of mirrored glass cabins, designed to blend into the forest and lake backdrop. The mirrored glass gives you privacy while inside.
Waking up to snow-covered trees and a frozen lake is magical, and although we didn’t get the Northern Lights during our stay due to cloudy skies, the cabin still felt like an experience rather than just a room. And because the resort is so small, it has a secret hideaway feel, which is perfect after busy days exploring.
The cabins work well for families, sleeping up to four, but are equally appealing for couples looking for something immersive and quiet.
Check prices and availability.
Apukka Resort
Apukka is one of Lapland’s best-known luxury resorts, with a choice of glass cabins and lakeside suites. Some of the accommodation is spectacular, and the overall experience leans into that “once-in-a-lifetime” feeling that many people associate with Lapland.
Like the Northern Lights Villages, Apukka works well as a package stay, with meals and activities included, which often represents better value than booking night by night. It’s also home to one of the region’s most impressive Santa experiences.
Apukka is close to Rovaniemi, so makes an ideal base for exploring the area, but it’s also very easy to stay here for your entire trip and do everything on site.
All that said, Apukka sits firmly in the luxury category, with prices to match. And while it’s wonderful if you have the budget, it’s not the only way to have an unforgettable Lapland trip.
Check prices and availability.
Lapland Hotel Sky Ounasvaara
Lapland Hotel Sky Ounasvaara sits high above Rovaniemi on Ounasvaara fell, with sweeping views over the surrounding forest and city lights below.
Rooms are warm and understated, using natural materials and a calm Scandinavian palette. Some include saunas or large windows framing the view, and despite being just a short drive from the city centre, it still feels like a retreat.
The restaurant is a standout, known for its refined take on local ingredients. It’s a great choice if you want Lapland to feel a little more grown-up without losing easy access to Santa attractions and winter activities.
Check prices and availability.
Arctic SnowHotel and Glass Igloos
The Arctic SnowHotel is rebuilt every winter, with ice-carved rooms, an ice bar and an ice restaurant, alongside a separate area of warm glass igloos. Many visitors choose to stay for one night in the snow hotel, then move to an igloo or cabin for comfort.
We didn’t stay overnight, as I couldn’t face the cold, but we did visit and it’s an impressive experience. Even if you don’t spend the night, it’s well worth visiting and joining a guided tour.
Check prices and availability.
Arctic TreeHouse Hotel
Arctic TreeHouse Hotel is one of the most stylish places to stay around Rovaniemi. The cabins and glasshouses feature huge picture windows that frame the forest beautifully. The glasshouses include two bedrooms, making them a good option for families, and the location next to Santa Park is convenient if that’s part of your plans.
Check prices and availability.
Glass Resort
Right in Santa Claus Village, Glass Resort is more stylish than you might expect. The village itself is known more for its commercial feel than its design credentials, but this resort is sleek and modern, with geometric glass cabins, each with a private sauna and outdoor hot tub.
It’s a good choice if you want to stay close to Rovaniemi and Santa Claus Village while still having a glass-roof experience. Light pollution is higher here, so Northern Lights sightings are less reliable than in more remote areas, though still possible.
Check prices and availability.
Octola Private Wilderness
Octola is Lapland at its most exclusive. This isn’t a hotel you simply book a room in, it’s a fully private wilderness lodge, reserved for one group at a time.
Every element of the stay is tailored to you, from private guides and bespoke winter activities to fireside dining and days paced entirely around your group. The setting is deep in the forest, the interiors beautifully designed, and the experience seamless from start to finish.
This is a serious splurge, but if you have the budget, it’s a rare and extraordinary experience.
Check prices and availability.
Special places to stay in and around Pyhä–Luosto
Sunday Morning Resort
Sunday Morning Resort is a peaceful lakeside hideaway in the Luosto area, and one of those places that naturally encourages you to slow down. Think quiet mornings with coffee and snow outside, evening saunas, starry skies and long, unhurried meals.
The cabins and apartments are modern and cosy, with epic, double-height windows overlooking the snowy landscape. The lakeside sauna is a huge highlight, with incredible lake and mountain views. You can book it for private use, and it feels like a properly special Finnish experience.
You can book activities through the lodge, including reindeer farm visits (we loved Kopara!) and visits to the amethyst mine (another of our favourites!).
Check prices and availability.
Santa’s Hotel Aurora
Santa’s Hotel Aurora is a convenient option in Luosto, with a mix of hotel rooms and igloos, making it easy to experience both. The igloos sit close to the hotel, so the setting feels less wild, but they’re more reasonably priced than many alternatives.
The igloos sleep two adults and one child, so this option works best for smaller families. We stayed here before we had kids.
Check prices and availability.
Pyhä Igloo Hotel
Pyhä Igloo Hotel is a more affordable glass-roof stay with a slightly different layout to most igloo resorts. Rather than standalone units, the rooms are part of a single building, branching out into spacious glass-fronted rooms with panoramic ceilings.
They sleep two to four people and are more generous in size than many igloos. The location is a big plus, with ski slopes, trails and restaurants all within easy walking distance, making it a practical base for a ski trip.
Check prices and availability.
Special places to stay in and around Levi
Levin Iglut
Perched high above Levi, Levin Iglut’s glass igloos come with sweeping views over the forest and village lights below. The elevated position helps with darker skies, and the setting feels more dramatic than many lower-lying igloo resorts.
This is a strong choice if you want to combine skiing or resort life in Levi with a memorable stay above it all. It’s best suited to couples or families looking for something peaceful, as the emphasis here is on views and atmosphere rather than on-site play spaces.
Check prices and availability.
Olo Resort
Olo Resort is a small, high-end hideaway on the edge of Levi that feels more like a retreat than a traditional ski resort. The atmosphere is calm and design-focused, with an emphasis on good food, privacy and the classic Lapland rhythm of sauna, snow and slow mornings.
It’s a good option if you want easy access to Levi’s slopes and restaurants, but prefer to return somewhere quiet and stylish at the end of the day.
Check prices and availability.
Special places to stay in Saariselkä and Inari
Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort
Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort is one of the original glass-igloo names. While it’s not the most refined stylistically, the Kelo-Glass Igloos work well for families, combining log-cabin living spaces with glass-roofed bedrooms and private saunas.
Check prices and availability.
Wilderness Hotel Saariselkä and Inari
The Wilderness Hotel group has several locations across Lapland, including Saariselkä and Inari. These lodge-style stays suit families well, with spacious wooden cabins and a strong focus on nature-led experiences. Some cabins include private outdoor hot tubs, and activity packages can be booked directly with the hotel.
Aurora Village Ivalo
Aurora Village sits in a quiet woodland setting just outside Ivalo, well above the Arctic Circle and far from light pollution. If Northern Lights are a priority, this is exactly the kind of location you want.
The atmosphere is calm and understated, with glass-roofed cabins spaced among the trees rather than clustered together. It works particularly well as part of a northern-focused itinerary around Inari and Ivalo, where the emphasis is on wilderness, sky-watching and slowing down rather than Santa attractions.
Check prices and availability.
Special places to stay in Kemi and Swedish Lapland
SnowCastle of Kemi
Kids will love this playful snow-and-ice stay on the edge of the Bothnian Bay. The SnowCastle of Kemi is best thought of as a novelty overnight rather than somewhere to linger. Rooms are carved entirely from ice, with thermal sleeping bags and plenty of theatre for kids who love the idea of sleeping in a castle made of snow.
It works particularly well if you’re already exploring Sea Lapland, and is often paired with warmer accommodation nearby so you get the experience without committing to more than one very cold night.
Check prices and availability.
ICEHOTEL
The original ice hotel, just across the border in Swedish Lapland, and still the most iconic of them all. Rebuilt every winter with newly sculpted rooms created by artists from around the world, it feels more like a living gallery than a hotel.
As with most ice and snow hotels, families typically stay for one night in an ice room before switching to the warm cabins on site, striking a good balance between an unforgettable experience and comfort.
Check prices and availability.
Read all our Lapland guides
We have a Lapland planning hub, or you can see all the individual posts here…
Lapland planning tips: How to plan a family trip to Lapland | Four-day Lapland itineraries | Things to do in Lapland with kids | What to pack for Lapland | Northern Lights tips for Lapland | How much does a trip to Lapland cost? | Special places to stay in Lapland
Lapland Santa tips: How to meet Santa in Lapland | Guide to Santa Claus Village, Lapland | Northern Lights Villages’ Searching for Santa review