I was just that close to doing this Sweden trip solo to finally check the northern lights off my bucket list. My original travel buddy had to cancel last minute for very reasonable reasons, so I randomly asked around in my bouldering group if anyone wanted to join. And I’m really glad I did.

The itinerary

Getting to Abisko is already a small but manageable challenge. From Dresden, we first had to get to Berlin by bus, then fly to Kiruna (with a layover in Stockholm). From Kiruna it’s “only” about a 1.5-hour train ride to Abisko.

The only catch is timing, because we arrived in the evening and there were just a couple affordable connections per day. So we had to stay one night in Kiruna before finally reaching our target destination. Likewise, the returning route has to be planned wisely. You can’t just wing it completely.

This is how the final iternary looked like:

• Day 1: Arriving in Kiruna
• Day 2: Getting to Abisko and settling in
• Day 3: Hiking in the Abisko National Park
• Day 4: Reindeer Barbecue & Polar Light Chasing tour
• Day 5: Half Day Trip to Norway, Abisko Sky Station
• Day 6: Back to kiruna, Snowmobilie Polar Light Chasing Tour
• Day 7: Husky Sled Tour, ice Hotel
• Day 8: Departure

Day 1: Arriving in Kiruna

We started our journey at 6 AM, mostly to make sure we’d arrive at BER in time for our 10 AM flight. From there it was a long-but-manageable travel day to Kiruna, with a 5-hour layover in Stockholm. We finally landed around 8 PM.

The moment we stepped out of the plane, a cold wind hit us right in the face like a very direct “welcome to northern Sweden” kind of greeting. The airport itself was (unsurprisingly) tiny and probably just connects Kiruna with Stockholm as the hub. We basically walked off the plane, entered the airport through a rotating door, and… boom, we were already at baggage claim with another ten steps to the exit.

Even though we were among the first to get our luggage, we were some of the last to leave the airport. Naturally, we were a little panicked because we weren’t really sure how to get to the city center at this hour. So, we did the classic beginner move and took the first taxi driver who approached us. He offered a ride for 400 Swedish crowns (about €35) and we actually got lucky, because that seemed to be a common rate (for tourists?).      

After check-in, we went hunting for food at the local Coop, while also being amazed about all the snow.  Mind you, it was only the beginning of winter, and still everything already looked properly Arctic to me.

The plan for the next day was to continue to Abisko by train. However, the earlier train around 9 AM got cancelled, so we had to take the later one at 3 PM instead. Knowing we suddenly had “extra time,” we took it slow, arrived mentally, tried to settle into our new adventure and finally fell asleep around 2 AM.

Day 2: Getting to Abisko and settling in

Our accommodation also included breakfast, so even though we could sleep in, we obviously had to take full advantage of it. We woke up at 9:30, rushed downstairs and still managed to feast until breakfast closed.

We checked out in time, left our luggage in the lobby and explored Kiruna a little bit before our departure.

Then we continued our journey to Abisko, and arriving there we were welcomed with… a heavy snowstorm. The weather forecast was already not great for polar light seeing, but that being the first thing after we arrived made me really question the universe!

In Abisko, we quickly realized there isn’t a huge variety of food places (like two in total), which is a little rough when you’re trying to eat vegan. So, we were extra happy to see that our hostel was split into two rooms (three beds each) and had a fully functioning kitchen. The local Coop wasn’t far either and had everything we needed to survive the upcoming days.

Day 3: Hiking in the Abisko National Park

Because Ina didn’t feel so well, Tobias and I went on a little solo hiking mission, while she could enjoy a less stressful (and less cold) day in the accommodation. Our goal was a short hike into Abisko National Park, just 5 km, and then back home in the early afternoon.

However, we started way too late, at half past 12. The sun was about to set at half past one, and we had only managed to complete about one quarter of the hike. Luckily, the snow reflected a lot of light, and the trail was clearly used by many people, so it was already carved in. You only really noticed that the snow was knee-deep once you stepped off the track.

This became especially apparent when Komoot told us to take a turn that simply didn’t exist in real life. It felt like wandering blind through the forest: no visible trail, no signs, just a thick layer of snow covering everything. We also had to cross three “bridges,” which were tiny wooden planks with a thick layer of snow on top that spread wider than the plank underneath. It looked deceptively safe. Well, it was not.

Somehow, we made it through the rough part, but by around 3 PM it was already super dark and we had to take out our headlamps. At 5, we finally arrived back at our hostel.

To end the day effectively (and with the weather forecast in mind), we gave the pier another visit and even saw others who had the same ide. Even though the polar light radar showed high activity, we could only see a few shrouds of aurora. That was a good hands-on lesson that a clear sky is still the most important thing, no matter how strong the aurora activity is.

Day 4: Reindeer Barbecue & Polar Light Chasing tour

A common theme across my trips seems to be waking up way later than planned and then, instead of taking it easy, panicking and rushing to do random things out of fear of missing out and “not using vacation time effectively enough.” And this day was no different.

We realized we probably should’ve booked some activities in advance instead of being spontaneous and adventurous, because by now a lot of tours in Abisko were already fully booked.

We had already managed to fill most of the remaining days, but tonight was still free. So, before our afternoon stroll, we went to the receptionist to see if any tours still had space for three people. And surprisingly, yes. There was one tour available for the same evening: a reindeer barbecue + polar light chasing combo. Perfect!

Unexpectedly, the reindeer barbecue also came with a little Sami mini-lecture from our local guide.

The polar light chasing part included two different spots, and once again we learned the same lesson as the day before. It’s really not the aurora activity that matters most. It’s the clear sky.

Day 5: Half Day Trip to Norway, Abisko Sky Station

For our last full day in Abisko, we booked an early trip to Norway, which is surprisingly close. The border is only about 40 km away, and the next bigger city is not that far from there either. Our group was small: just the three of us, plus one quite shy Japanese Fujifilm user.

I believe the small group made everything better. We could stop more often, take our time with photos, and didn’t feel like we had to rush from spot to spot. There was one place in particular that even our tour guide (who has been doing this for 13 years) spontaneously wanted to check out “just as an experiment”. It ended up being one of the most serene and beautiful spots I’ve ever seen. The timing was perfect too, with the sun slowly sinking and the fjord reflecting the clouds and mountains like a mirror. The scenery was unreal and not really possible to capture on camera (at least not by me).

We returned home to … hastily take a sauna session and roll in the snow before going to the Abisko Sky Station. The meeting point was a short 30-minute walk from our place. From there we walked another 20-ish minutes to the gondola, which then takes about 20 minutes to cover around 2 km and roughly 500 meters of elevation gain up to the mountain peak. Surprisingly, the station at the top had a warm and welcoming restaurant with working electricity. Only the toilet situation was … rather “basic”.

Luckily, we were able to see polar lights again that night. And even though our tour guide from the day before said the Sky Station is “kind of a scam” (because if you can see the aurora up there, you could also see it from down below), lying on that snow-covered mountain in those extra thick overalls was still a different experience.

Day 6: Back to Kiruna, Snowmobilie Polar Light Chasing Tour

The earliest train departing from Abisko back to Kiruna was around 1 PM, perfect for us to pack, clean up, and get some souvenirs before departing. In the end, the train was simply substituted by a bus, which didn’t seem to be that uncommon, depending on how fully booked the train was. The view outside the window was again just beautiful, with all the mountains and land covered with snow. At the same time, it felt a bit sad, as this view kind of marked the end of our chasing polar lights project.

We arrived around 4 PM at our new Airbnb, which was ironically right opposite the Coop where we bought dinner on the very first day, so we went full circle. We checked in, did a small room tour, took a short nap, and already had the next appointment: a snowmobile tour by the river.

After jumping into our jumpsuits, we were told that two people would share one snowmobile, and halfway through you swap drivers. At first it was quite exciting, but after about five minutes, it became boring surprisingly fast. Even though we were driving on a frozen lake, it seemed to be clearly a common route, so there was ice rails built up from previous snowmobiles. The trail was mostly flat too, with only a few bumps here and there in the forest. Not exactly the adrenaline experience I expected. Being the passenger was actually more fun, because then you could just stare into the night and look into the darkness. You couldn’t see very far, but it still felt kind of mysterious and cinematic.

Even though we got home quite late and still had to make dinner, we used the best feature of our Airbnb: the sauna. It truly felt refreshing after the cold snowmobile tour.

Day 7: Husky Sled Tour, ice Hotel

Another day, another tour. We booked a husky sled tour today, this time early in the morning to actually see and enjoy the landscape.

We were picked up from our accommodation, and after collecting another (German) couple, we headed to the dog sled location. As we later learned, the whole area is basically a snow-sled hotspot with a dozen different companies operating there. Once again, we got into a thick jumpsuit and off we went. Personally, the husky sled tour in the early morning was the best tour of the whole trip.

We noticed we partly used the same trail as the snowmobile tour the day before, but in daylight it looked completely different. The sunlight revealed a much wider and more beautiful scenery of the frozen lake. Sledding with the dogs through the forest also felt way more adventurous, and we were quietly rooting for them to pull through the small hills. Obviously it was no big deal for the huskies. If anything, they seemed too into it.

Although it wasn’t part of the masterplan, our guide also told us the Icehotel is a very popular spot and “not to be missed.” And since she was bringing the German couple there anyway, we could just get dropped off there as well. So, spontaneous as we are, we did exactly that. Right opposite the Icehotel museum, there was the (only) restaurant in the area, which we decided to visit first. It had a surprisingly affordable buffet with a shockingly good variety of vegan options. In contrast to the restaurant, I personally wasn’t as impressed with the Icehotel itself. The sculptures are obviously impressive and take real skill, but I’m also just a peasant who doesn’t fully understand art.

Nonetheless, FOMO satisfied, we went back home and cooked a meal from all our leftovers. And just when we were about to use the sauna one last time, Tobias noticed that the aurora forecast was showing high activity right now.

As we all know by now, aurora activity doesn’t automatically mean good aurora sightings. But since it was our last night, we gave it a shot and walked to a nearby park close to the skiing area. At first, nothing much happened. Then those “grey” clouds slowly started to appear above our heads. They got so intense that we could literally see them moving, like they were dancing in real time. First in front of us, then behind us, then in front again. We were completely mesmerized, and it just kept on giving. I believe, these were the strongest lights we were able to witness during our vacation in Sweden.

Half frozen, we returned home. Ina and Tobias went on ahead while I tried to squeeze out the last lights. We turned on the sauna one last time and went to bed early, not because we had to get up early, but because the exhaustion from the previous days was really stacking up (in a fun-but-tiring way).

Day 8: Departure

The following day was pretty unspectacular. We checked out as late as we could, did some last-minute souvenir shopping at the Coop next door, and then headed to the airport to catch our 2 PM flight.

And that concludes our trip to see the northern lights. We actually hit the mark and saw aurora on 5 out of 7 days, learned a bunch of random interesting things along the way, and now feel fully prepared for a German winter.

To be honest, I was a bit skeptical about whether this travel group would work, but surprisingly it worked out perfectly and everything fell into its place. One of the things I enjoyed most, was that we were always able to cook something for ourselves and weren’t reliant on outside food (which also saved a ton of money). The mood was always high, everyone was onboard with whatever activity was planned, I’d say we had fun and it was a little bit exhausting, but never too exhausting to stop us from watching one episode together at the end of the day.

Epilogue – Learnings

• Like a lot of other bloggers recommend: don’t plan a trip just for the polar lights. Plan some side activities too, because aurora is never guaranteed. Also, winter stuff is actually really fun if you have the right gear, but yes… it’s also quite expensive both the gear as well as the guides.
• If you take photos, shoot in RAW. Sony has a remote app, but you also have to manually set it to RAW there as well. I learned that the hard way.
• Taking photos of the polar lights does take practice.
• Don’t underestimate how much more energy it takes to walk on or through snow.
• Layering clothes is key. For me, four layers were enough at around -20 °C, but only when we were actually moving. If you’re standing around for long (aurora waiting…), you’ll feel the cold much faster. Also, consider high-ankle boots for any form of hiking / walking around.
• Renting a car is possible. It seemed like most cars come with studded/spiked tires, but  personally wouldn’t dare to drive on those icy roads without proper experience.