The difference in temperature between the two can reach up 60 degrees Celsius or even more – from thirty below or more in winter to thirty above at the height of summer. One thing is for certain – Northern Sweden is imposing and fantastic in all its guises, attracting visitors from all around the world, year round. In the Sami language, there are actually not four but eight seasons, which says something about how this landscape changes appearance.

In summer, Lapland and the rest of Northern Sweden is a paradise for hikers, sportspeople, fishers and nature lovers. There are many major resorts and a vast system of well-marked trails that make this spectacular landscape accessible to all travellers, even for those without prior experience. With the Midnight Sun that shines around the clock for a full three months, you can enjoy this landscape in its full, never worrying whether your watch says that it´s day or night – a truly rare and unique experience.From the magnificent Scandian mountain range along the Norwegian border in the west, the Northern Swedish landscape stretches through boundless forests and marshlands teeming with wild game such as elk, bear, wolf, lynx and wolverine, crossed by a large number of great rivers, several of which are untamed, with wild rapids full of salmon and trout. Along the long eastern coastline one finds numerous interesting towns, picturesque fishing villages and scenic archipelagos to explore.

While the Midnight Sun has long been a world-class tourist magnet, its opposite, Polar Night and Arctic cold, has more recently started to attract its own visitors, not least tourists from Japan and other densely populated countries who come to experience exotic phenomena such as perfect silence, solitude, complete darkness and the glow of vast snowy expanses – not to mention the mesmerising Northern Lights that dance across the Lapland night skies, considered by many among the most spectacular sights to be seen upon this planet. In some parts of Lapland, during the winter months the sun disappears for several weeks or more – however the faint light it produces from below the horizon for a few brief hours around midday has a magical quality in the eyes of many.

The ski season in Lapland starts in October and doesn´t end until May or even June. And skiing in the Midnight Sun at Riksgränsen and Björkliden is a classic. You must be aware, however, that the conditions are cold, and it doesn´t start to get warmer until the end of February at best. All around Lapland and Northern Sweden, there is a wide range of exciting options and activities offered at the major resorts. The most famous of these resorts, the Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi is, for obvious reasons, only open during the winter season...