Kiruna
Temperature
-12°
Time
11:13 AM
Kiruna
At 250 kilometres north of the polar circle, the summer sun shines for almost two months without going down, while the polar nights offer the most intense Northern Lights that can be seen. In Kiruna, you can go slalom skiing until midsummer or spend the night in a magnificent hotel built from ice. The phrase "kingdom of contrasts" is overused, but Kiruna truly embodies it.Find your trip
If you have never been in Northern Scandinavia during the midsummer period, the light is perhaps the most fascinating and obvious phenomena. The sun doesn’t go down at all. There is a good view of the surroundings from the city mountain, Luossavaara, about four km outside Kiruna. The midnight sun can be experienced between 27 May and 14 July in Kiruna.
Between September and April there is the chance of experiencing the northern lights, provided that it is a starry night. For a northern lights forecast, phone: 0900 100 10 40
Forty kilometres from Kiruna is Europe’s only civilian space base. Esrange is a centre for European space research and offers guided tours in the summertime (also wintertime on request). Learn more about the northern lights, rocket launches and micro gravitation.
The world-famous Ice Hotel is located in Jukkasjärvi, 17 km from Kiruna. The world’s largest hotel of its kind, made out of thousands of tonnes of snow and ice, is rebuilt every winter. You’ll be nice and cool as you sleep after a drink in the Absolut Icebar, beautifully chiselled out of pure blue ice from the River Torne. Open from mid-December to the end of April. In the summer you can experience ice art in the hotel’s Art Centre.
From Nikkaluokta, 66 km west of Kiruna, there are first-rate skiing and trekking trails to, among other places, the top of Sweden’s highest mountain – Kebnekaise (2103 m). Walk the first 19 km to Kebnekaise mountain station where you register for the next day’s guide-led route to the top. The trip takes about 8-10 hours and requires a good level of fitness. Minimum age is 16.
Sweden’s most well-known long-distance footpath offers spectacular experiences of the natural world. It is 500 km long and starts in Abisko, 93 km west of Kiruna. The Kebnekaise-Saltoluokta section is suitable as a shorter route with 5 days trekking. For information on suggested routes and accommodation, visit Svenska Turistföreningen’s (the Swedish Tourist Organisation) website.
Experience the world’s largest underground iron ore mine—from the inside. Visit the mine—the café, the machinery, the theatre and museum, all located 540 meters underground. Daily trips from Kiruna Lappland Tourist Office. A minimum of ten persons during the winter season. Book well in advance! Tours depart from the tourist office.
One in ten of Kiruna’s residents is of Sami origin, which creates a living culture. The Sami people have their own national anthem, flag and language. Samegården is a Sami cultural centre and museum, and Màttàrahkkà is a Sami handicrafts centre run by women.
If you have never been in Northern Scandinavia during the midsummer period, the light is perhaps the most fascinating and obvious phenomena. The sun doesn’t go down at all. There is a good view of the surroundings from the city mountain, Luossavaara, about four km outside Kiruna. The midnight sun can be experienced between 27 May and 14 July in Kiruna.
Between September and April there is the chance of experiencing the northern lights, provided that it is a starry night. For a northern lights forecast, phone: 0900 100 10 40
Serves specialities from the cuisine of Lappland. What about breast of grouse marinated in calvados with cranberry jelly or a cake made of frozen cloudberries with ”coffee-cheese” marinated in Kahlua, for example? Open all year round, but perhaps best in the summer with an area for open-air dining, midnight sun, mosquitoes and minigolf.
A classic which was mentioned in Ted Ström’s famous song Winter Saga ("and the drinking gets going in Mommas pub"). Rustic decor, cosy bar and a view over the vast expanse of the mountains and the mine.
Here you will find the largest and most tasty hamburgers in Kiruna. For all cheese lovers, they highly recommend theirs hamburgers with only cheese and extra cheese! However, here you can find also more common burgers with bacon, turmeric, onion, tomatoes and mash!
The Ice Hotel’s restaurant that serves food from Lappland in a tavern environment. Try fillet of reindeer or goat cheese, for example. Some food is served on ice plates. The Icehotel Restaurant has been awarded the Werner Vögeli Statuette, and written about in gourmet magazines throughout the world.
After climbing Kebnekaise having a good meal in the company of friends doesn’t go amiss. Skáidi in Nikkaluokta serves renkok as well as game fish from the mountain lakes. If you want to try all the Lappland specialities, order a tasting menu. Mountain view from the restaurant. Book a table in good time.
Serves specialities from the cuisine of Lappland. What about breast of grouse marinated in calvados with cranberry jelly or a cake made of frozen cloudberries with ”coffee-cheese” marinated in Kahlua, for example? Open all year round, but perhaps best in the summer with an area for open-air dining, midnight sun, mosquitoes and minigolf.
A classic which was mentioned in Ted Ström’s famous song Winter Saga ("and the drinking gets going in Mommas pub"). Rustic decor, cosy bar and a view over the vast expanse of the mountains and the mine.
This shop has a large variety of articles for outdoor sport, perfect for all those that love trekking, hiking or simply looking to gear up to better explore the beautiful nature of Northern Sweden.
Kvadrat Inredning & Design is a home decor and Scandinavian design shop where you can find everything you need to cosy up your house or buy a nice present for a friend. Original cups, colourful dishes, and many other creative pieces.
ICA Kvantum is a grocery store in Kiruna that sells a very large variety of groceries, typical products and more. It's is the perfect place to stock up on hiking fuel: food, drinks, fruit, and various snacks.
Thornéus Renprodukter started trading as early as the 1940s. The shop sells reindeer and venison, cloudberries, arctic trout and coffee-cheese.
Wennberg sells knives, jewellery and sculptures by well-known Sami artists (among plenty of other items).
This shop has a large variety of articles for outdoor sport, perfect for all those that love trekking, hiking or simply looking to gear up to better explore the beautiful nature of Northern Sweden.
Kvadrat Inredning & Design is a home decor and Scandinavian design shop where you can find everything you need to cosy up your house or buy a nice present for a friend. Original cups, colourful dishes, and many other creative pieces.
Kiruna airport is located ten kilometres from the city centre and the journey time is about 15 minutes. Airport buses are only available at certain times of the year, mainly in the summer period. For detailed information: www.swedavia.se/kiruna/buss/ Taxis cost around 250 kronor for up to four persons (around 300 kr for nights and weekends). Airport taxis cost around 125 kr per person. A taxi to Jukkasjärvi costs around 250 kr, a taxi to Björkliden costs around 1200 kr and a taxi to Riksgränsen costs around 1200 kr. Many hotels have prebooked buses waiting at the airport.
Sweden can be visited visa-free for up to 90 days by citizens of most European countries, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Israel, UAE and most countries in America. If you are unsure whether or not you need to apply for a visa, we recommend contacting the embassy or consulate in your country. International (non-Schengen) travelers need a passport that is valid for at least 3 months after the end of their intended trip in order to enter the Schengen zone. Citizens of Schengen countries can travel without a passport, but must have a valid ID with them during their stay.
One of the best time to visit Kiruna is summer: city is packed with visitors and locals enjoy long days as the sun never sets (or it does only for few hours, only to come up soon). However, this is peak season, so the prices on accommodation and flights are very very high. If you like winter and don't mind the cold, another good season to visit this city is from November to March, this time of the year you can enjoy skiing and snowboarding and, if you are brave enough to endure possibly hazardous weather, you can also experience the incredible northern lights.
Within Kiruna city centre most places are walking distance. Communications in the county are well developed, a necessity in a region where there are mile after mile of deep forests, rushing rivers and wilderness separating towns and villages from each other. Länstrafiken i Norrbotten AB is the principal provider of all public bus transport in Norrbotten and its routes run between the villages.
Taxis in Kiruna are reliable and use fare meters. It can sometimes be difficult to find a car on the street, even in the centre. Taxi Kiruna:
Nowadays you will find postal service points in supermarkets and petrol stations across Sweden. Here you can buy stamps, send and receive packets.
Country code +46 Area code: 0980
Kiruna airport is located ten kilometres from the city centre and the journey time is about 15 minutes. Airport buses are only available at certain times of the year, mainly in the summer period. For detailed information: www.swedavia.se/kiruna/buss/ Taxis cost around 250 kronor for up to four persons (around 300 kr for nights and weekends). Airport taxis cost around 125 kr per person. A taxi to Jukkasjärvi costs around 250 kr, a taxi to Björkliden costs around 1200 kr and a taxi to Riksgränsen costs around 1200 kr. Many hotels have prebooked buses waiting at the airport.
Sweden can be visited visa-free for up to 90 days by citizens of most European countries, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Israel, UAE and most countries in America. If you are unsure whether or not you need to apply for a visa, we recommend contacting the embassy or consulate in your country. International (non-Schengen) travelers need a passport that is valid for at least 3 months after the end of their intended trip in order to enter the Schengen zone. Citizens of Schengen countries can travel without a passport, but must have a valid ID with them during their stay.
