ÁRBI VUOJAN - Sami Excursion with Reindeer Sledding

In the small Sami village of Rávttas 20 km from Kiruna, you will encounter the genuine life of the reindeer people in an environment classified as Natura2000 by the EU. The biological diversity in this area is a fundamental prerequisite for the reindeer´s existence. In this area our ancestors lived as nomads until the 1950s and 1960s when the reindeer herding Sami finally were allowed to build houses. Thus the village of Rávttas came into being. Here we have some reindeer in a corral during the wintertime (in April we´ll let them go to graze in the mountains and roam freely). The reindeer are considered as semi-domesticated. You will get close to them and some of them will even eat from your hand. Reindeer have always been tamed for different uses; milking, carrying, transportation.

Skiing and reindeer sledding used to be the only way of transportation in Lapland in the wintertime. The highlight of this tour is the one-hour ride with the reindeer sled through the snowy forest and on the frozen moors close to the mountain range. It’s an unforgettable adventure to steer the reindeer through the snow in this magnificent landscape. After the ride it’s time to relax and enjoy your lunch with smoked and fried reindeer meat (suovas) and bread, sitting on soft reindeer hides around the open fire in the lávvu.