Why January Works for a Honeymoon

A honeymoon is the first holiday of your marriage, and January in Lapland suits couples who want to be somewhere that feels like the edge of the world. The days are short and soft, the nights are long and clear, and everything slows down. There are fewer of the Christmas-season crowds, the snow is deep and stable, and the northern lights are at their best from September to March.

It is also a quiet kind of romance. A January day in Rovaniemi is a few hours of blue twilight, a long lunch, an activity, a sauna and then the dark, with a fire and a window onto the sky. If you want sun and beaches, this is not your honeymoon, and it is better to know that before you book. Some couples pair it with a warmer second week elsewhere, flying home through Helsinki, which gives the best of both trips. If you want candlelight, snow and each other, it is one of the best.

What the Weather and Light Are Really Like

Winter in Lapland, from November to March, is typically −10 to −20 °C, and January can be colder. Daylight is limited, mostly a blue and pink twilight, so plan outdoor time in the middle of the day and keep evenings for warm spaces and the sky. Our polar night guide explains the light month by month. Dress in layers and rent proper winter clothing if you need it; our guide to what to wear on an aurora tour describes the layers.

Where to Stay: Igloos, Cabins and Villas

The place you sleep is half of the honeymoon. The main choices are:

• Glass igloos and aurora cabins. Heated to room temperature, with a view of the sky from bed. Book well ahead for December to February. See Arctic SnowHotel & Glass Igloos for glass igloos.
• Wilderness cabins with sauna and fireplace. A private cabin is the classic honeymoon: a fire, a sauna and nobody else.
• Resorts with a spa. Aurora Hill Resort and Silver Birch Resort combine comfort with setting.
• A lakeside villa. Arcticmint Villa sits by lake Norvajärvi, for a quiet stay.
• Boutique hotels in Rovaniemi. Close to restaurants and the airport, and easier on a tight budget.

Accommodation ranges from guesthouses at €80–€150 per night to glass igloos and resort suites at €300–€800 per night, according to the season. Our romantic cabins and villas guide goes through the options.

A Four-Day January Honeymoon Outline

This is the shape we suggest for a first honeymoon trip to Rovaniemi. It leaves room for rest, and for weather.

If you have more time, add a second aurora night, a visit to the Arctic SnowHotel, or simply a day with no plan at all. Our guide to honeymoons in Lapland has longer options, and for a month with a Christmas touch see our December honeymoon guide.

Activities for Two

Honeymoon activities in Lapland include a private northern lights chase, a husky safari, reindeer sleigh rides, a lakeside sauna, ice floating in a dry suit and a visit to Santa Claus Village. In winter you can also try snowmobiles and ice fishing. Husky rides last from 20 minutes to over an hour, and couples usually ride together on one sled wrapped in reindeer hides; reindeer sleigh rides typically last 15–30 minutes. Do not over-schedule: two or three activities across four days is plenty, because the cold is tiring and the best honeymoon moments tend to be the quiet ones.

For the northern lights, aurora season runs from September to March, and nobody can promise the sky. Plan at least two nights if you can, and keep one evening with no other plan. If you are also thinking of a proposal on the same trip, our private aurora tour Yes Under the Aurora is designed for exactly that, and our guide to combining a holiday with a proposal or wedding shows how.

What We Can Set Up for Honeymooners

Rovaniemi Weddings offers honeymoon styling as one of our services: romantic dinners, cabin florals and coordination from the wedding to the honeymoon. Two things we do often for honeymooners:

• A Thousand Petals, from €700. You open the door and the room is ready: rose petals, 70 roses on the bed, 15 heart balloons, sparkling wine. It is also suited to an anniversary, a honeymoon or a special evening, whether you are married or not. Set-up is included within 30 km of Rovaniemi city centre.
• Right Where You Are, from €650. A styled setting at your cabin, villa or hotel, with 30 roses and sparkling wine, which needs the property’s agreement.

We can also arrange a romantic dinner, and decorate a cabin for a wedding night. See our guide to wedding night and honeymoon styling.

Getting There and Practicalities

Rovaniemi Airport has direct flights from Helsinki, and Finland is in the EU and the Schengen area. Citizens of the US, Canada, the UK and Australia can visit visa-free for up to 90 days, though you should check current rules before you travel. Return flights from most European cities cost roughly €150–€500 per person, with direct flights from Helsinki year-round and seasonal ones from London, Paris and other cities. The airport is about ten minutes from the town centre. Book glass igloos and northern lights tours well ahead for December to February.

What a Honeymoon Costs, Roughly

We never quote tour prices, because operators set their own, but the main items can be framed with figures we know. Flights are roughly €150–€500 return per person from most European cities. Accommodation runs from guesthouses at €80–€150 per night to glass igloos and resort suites at €300–€800 per night, so a four-night stay for two can range widely. A room surprise such as A Thousand Petals starts at €700, and a styled setting through Right Where You Are at €650. Activities, meals and transfers are extra and depend on what you choose, so look at the current prices of the operators you prefer.

If you want to spend less, do it on the nights you will mostly be asleep: a simple guesthouse in town for two nights and a glass igloo or private cabin for the aurora night. If you want to spend more, spend on the one thing you will remember, such as a private cabin with a sauna or a styled dinner. Our budget guide for weddings uses the same ranges.

A Cabin Evening: Sauna, Fire and Nothing Else

The best honeymoon evenings in Lapland are not activities. They are a cabin with a fireplace and a sauna, a table with candles, and a window. In the Finnish way, you heat the sauna, cool off in the snow or on the porch, and repeat, and in between you eat and talk and watch the sky. We recommend at least one evening like that, with nothing planned. It is the closest thing to what Finns do themselves, and it asks for nothing but time.

If you want help making that evening special, we can arrange a romantic dinner and cabin florals, and set up A Thousand Petals for your return from an activity. Ask for a quiet, private plan, and we will keep it that way.

If You Are Marrying Here Too

Many couples marry in Lapland and honeymoon in the same trip. A civil wedding needs an examination of impediments, which takes about seven working days or longer and costs around €60, so start three to four months ahead. See Getting Married in Finland, Elopement in Lapland and our foreigner’s guide to marrying in Finland. We can coordinate the wedding and the honeymoon styling in one plan.

Rovaniemi Weddings is our own company, and we reply within one business day. Tell us about your trip through Contact Rovaniemi Weddings.

FAQ

Our Honest Final Word

A January honeymoon in Rovaniemi is a quiet, glowing kind of trip, not a busy one. It asks you to accept the cold and the dark, and gives you snow, candlelight, sauna evenings and the aurora. Keep the plan light, book the places that matter early, and leave a night free for the sky.

We are the people who set up the rose petals and plan the weddings, and this is our own business, so we are happy to help. Write to us through Contact Rovaniemi Weddings, and start with Honeymoon in Lapland, A Thousand Petals and Weddings.

Rovaniemi Weddings · by Joona & Alla

Honeymoon and wedding styling we plan in Lapland

Every option is planned, set up and quietly packed down by our own team, and nearly every proposal includes a photographer. Tell us your story and we reply within one business day.

WeddingsHoneymoon in LaplandRovaniemi WeddingsSee more →Signature proposalA Thousand PetalsFrom €700 · year-roundDiscover this proposal →Signature proposalRight Where You AreFrom €650 · year-roundDiscover this proposal →VenueArcticmint VillaLake Norvajärvi, Rovaniemi — about 20 minutes from Rovaniemi city centre, 15 minutes from Rovaniemi Airport and Santa Claus VillageSee more →

Rovaniemi Weddings is our own wedding planning and proposal design company — Joona & Alla, based in Rovaniemi. We plan, style and coordinate proposals and weddings across Lapland, Finland, Sweden and Norway.