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Sweden: Reindeer, Mountains, and Sámi Culture

HIGHLIGHTS
  • Hike with reindeer and learn about the significance of these captivating creatures.
  • Learn the techniques Sámi people have been using for thousands of years.
  • Make the most of the Swedish summer with family-friendly water activities in the pristine lakes.
  • Relax in traditional Swedish saunas, and take in the mountain views.
  • Learn about the Sámi culture, and share stories of your own around a fire.
  • Sleep in a traditional tipi on the warmth of reindeer fur.
  • See some of Sweden's most impressive sights, such as the highest waterfall, and the world's oldest tree.
DAY 1: ARRIVE IN SWEDEN
STF GRÖVELSJÖN MOUNTAIN STATION

Your journey will begin near the town of Idre. Your guide will bring you to STF Grövelsjöns Mountain Station, where you'll be staying the next five nights.

The family rooms, containing four beds, were restored to their origins from 1937 with a great view of the Norwegian and Swedish mountains. A mountain station is a special kind of lodging - a blend between hostel and hotel. At the beginning of the 1900s, the government provided Sveriges Turistförening (STF) to make it possible for the Swedish people to experience the mountain environment. Those mountain stations are the only facility of its kind to be built at such high altitudes in Sweden.

It may also be the world’s most environmentally friendly mountain facility. In 2006 STF Grövelsjön won the Royal Accommodation Award for Sustainable Tourism.

DAY 2: IDRE
STF GRÖVELSJÖN MOUNTAIN STATION

Experience the feeling of a reindeer nibbling from your hand and learn how reindeer have adapted to a northern climate. Today you'll hike with these fascinating creatures in an area where Sámi people have lived and worked for thousands of years.

Learn about the history of reindeer herders in Sweden and also how to find tracks from historical activities like hunting pit systems, old Sámi settlements, and reindeer grazing.

DAY 3: IDRE
STF GRÖVELSJÖN MOUNTAIN STATION

Today will be a day by the lake to go fishing, paddle a boat or canoe, or have a nice swim in the refreshing water.

Warm up with a sauna at the lodge afterward, or make your own handcrafts using traditional Sámi culture techniques.

DAY 4: IDRE
STF GRÖVELSJÖN MOUNTAIN STATION

Explore on foot as you hike through the great wilderness of the borderland. This is a vast protected area of national parks and nature reserves. During the hike, your guide will show you hidden and magnificent locations while explaining the area's culture, history, flora, and fauna. You can feel the purity of the air as you breathe and taste the cleanliness of the water as you drink directly from its source.

DAY 5: IDRE
STF GRÖVELSJÖN MOUNTAIN STATION

Throughout the borderland, there is a shimmering network of streams, rivers, and many lakes that bring life. Today you'll paddle a packraft along these waters.

A packraft is a very light, inflatable, sturdy boat that makes it possible to combine hiking and canoeing. This family-friendly activity is a unique way to explore the mountain world.

DAY 6: TRADITIONAL SAMI TIPI

Few occasions inspire true family bonding and storytelling as much as sitting together around a fireplace. Tonight in a traditional Sámi tipi, you'll learn about the stories and legends of this culture with the crackle of the fire in the background.

Your guide will help you prepare a traditional dinner of the Sámi cuisine over the fire, then you'll fall sleep in tipis keeping warm on reindeer furs.

DAY 7: FULUFJÄLLET MOUNTAIN
RÖSJÖSTUGORNA

After breakfast, your guide will drive you 1.5-hours to Fulufjället.

Your accommodation for the night, Rösjöstugorna, is located on the mountain and can only be reached via a two-hour hike. This part of the world is mostly untouched. You'll carry everything for tonight in your backpack, but it is possible to leave unneeded belongings at STF Grövelsjön Mountain Station.

Once at the top, you can fish in the small mountain rivers for brown trout, hike the nearby trails, go swimming in the lake, paddle a boat, or unwind in the sauna. Dinner will be created together on the fireplace and shared along with your stories from the day.

The accommodation is cabins with bunk beds hosting four people per room. There are shared bathroom facilities in an outhouse.

DAY 8: DEPARTURE DAY

On your way down from the Rösjöstugorna, stop in to visit Sweden's highest waterfall. The Njupeskär cascades down from 93 meters / 305 feet above.

You'll also get to witness the world's oldest tree, Old Tjikko, which is a 9550-year-old Norway Spruce. Learn about the birds of the mountains that live here, then transfer to the airport for your international flight home.

Interested in booking this itinerary or customizing a trip to Sweden? Get in touch with a private travel designer!