Greg Dickinson
10/21/2020
In our recent Reader Awards, we asked you to name the thing at the very top of your bucket list. The answer didn't surprise us one bit. It was, resoundingly, to witness the Northern Lights.
So for this season's final episode of The Rough Guide to Everywhere (iTunes; Soundcloud), our podcast host Greg Dickinson travelled to Finnish Lapland in a hunt for the aurora borealis.
In the episode, Greg meets with local Sámi woman Linda, who explains the local folklore behind the Northern Lights. "Some people used to believe that it was a huge firefox running through the fells and when its tail hit the fells it created the Northern Lights", she says.
As time goes by and his chances of seeing the Northern Lights are looking slimmer, Greg takes a crash course in riding a snowmobile. Alongside his French guide, Anthony, Greg drives across a frozen lake and deep into the woods in a last-ditch attempt to catch a glimpse of the aurora.
Listen now to find out what happens.
Greg travelled to Finland with The Aurora Zone, the UK’s only dedicated Northern Lights holiday company. Three-night trips include return flights to Nellim in Finnish Lapland from London, transfers, full-board accommodation, cold-weather clothing and experienced guides. A range of activities (extra) can be added to the trip, including a reindeer farm visit, a husky safari and an Aurora snowmobile safari. For more information, contact The Aurora Zone on 01670 785012.
Related tailor-made travel itineraries for Finland
Top image © Sara Winter/Shutterstock
Travel advice for Finland
Find even more inspiration for Finland here
- These are the world's most bizarre spa treatments
- 20 unforgettable things to do at night on your travels
- 20 of the world's most impressive natural phenomena
- Expert Q&A - all your Scandinavian travel questions answered
- The world's scariest extreme sports
- 12 months of the quirkiest festivals around the world
- Brave new world: the quirks of Finland’s saunas
- Things not to miss
- Podcast: In search of the Northern Lights
- The most beautiful countries in the world – as voted by you