KIRUNA SNOWMOBILE FIELD GUIDE
Under an Arctic Roof: Snowmobile to Your Self-built Igloo and Sleep Beneath Kiruna’s Northern Lights
A 25-hour guided snowmobile overnight from Kiruna where you build and sleep in your own snow igloo/quinzhee, with helmets, warm overalls and boots provided, plus meals and an aurora-focused evening.
Under an Arctic Roof: Snowmobile to Your Self-built Igloo and Sleep Beneath Kiruna’s Northern Lights.
From Kiruna, you set out across frozen river corridors and pine-shadowed plateaus to carve a roof of snow above your own head. Over roughly a day and a night you ride, learn the craft of building a quinzhee, share a Nordic meal at an aurora-focused stop and then settle into the compact silence of a hand-made snow shelter to watch the northern lights from a sleeping bag under a snow roof.
Highlights
Outing Highlights
Riding across frozen rivers and Arctic tundra
The route takes you over frozen waterways and winter flats outside Kiruna, where open sky and stark terrain set the stage for aurora hunting after dark.
Build your own igloo/quinzhee
Participants learn how to construct a snow shelter—digging out a quinzhee that will become the night’s roof—then finish the evening by bedding down inside the structure they helped create.
Aurora-focused evening with dinner and an open fire
The program includes an aurora colosseum tour and dinner, time around an open fire to watch the sky, and an overnight in the snow shelter with a breakfast bag provided the next morning.
What the day feels like
What this experience feels like
Over roughly 25 hours you’re introduced to snowmobile operation and then traverse 30–40 km of winter terrain, stopping to build a quinzhee, eat a Nordic meal as the day darkens, and spend the night tucked into the shelter you excavated while watching for the northern lights.
Suitability
Who it's for
Who this tour suits — and who should consider alternatives.
Practical planner
Details to review before reserving
Guide with driving instruction; helmet, warm overalls and boots; lunch (first day); Aurora Colosseum tour including dinner; overnight in a snow igloo/quinzhee; and a breakfast bag (second day).
Helmet, warm overalls and boots are supplied as part of the tour package.
Review cancellation policies before reserving.
Frequently asked questions
Planning Your Outing
How long is the tour?
The tour duration is 25 hours (total tour time includes transfers to and from the snowmobile garage).
Where and when do we meet?
Meeting point is Torggatan 4, 981 30 Kiruna, Sweden; meeting times are 20–30 minutes before the listed starting time.
Do I need a license to drive a snowmobile?
Drivers must hold a valid car driver’s license to drive the snowmobiles; a separate snowmobile license is not required.
What are the age rules for drivers and children?
Drivers must be 18 years of age to operate a snowmobile; children under 13 ride in a sled pulled by the guide, and children under 5 require an adult in the sled with them.
How far do we ride?
Driving distance on the tour is approximately 30–40 km.
Is anything extra charged during the holidays?
For tours between December 24 and January 6 there is a 300 SEK per person holiday addition to the tour price.