4 Days Winter Horse Riding Holiday Adventure in Kiruna, Sweden

Accommodation

Check-in Time:

16:00

Check-out Time:

13:00

The packages are all for a shared room. If you want to live close to nature, have animals, like moose, outside your window and experience the silence, this is the place for you.

Ofelas has two houses for rent at the horse farm, one with three bedrooms, a common kitchen and two bathrooms (for 1 to 6 persons). You can buy your own food in Kiruna and the kitchen is fully equipped. They also have another house to rent at the farm for 1 to 4 persons with one shared bathroom. You can book horse activities and snowmobile tours with Ofelas (book in advance).

There is also a sauna at the river bank. You can, on your own, take a walk in the forest and on the river, go skiing, try the “kick” or walk with snowshoes. It is also possible to order meals if you don’t want to cook by yourself. You can rent winter clothes if needed. You can get to Kiruna by bus during the summertime.

Program

You will feel peace and quiet and be much out in nature. Hopefully, you will see northern lights, reindeer, moose, and other animals. What you will experience when you visit Ofelas Islandshästar is both genuine and exciting. After being transferred to the farm on the first day, you will start with an introduction in the afternoon to get familiar with the horses. You will then eat a three-course dinner together after.

Outside the window, you will probably see moose and maybe some northern lights. On the second day, you will go on a tarn up in the mountains and you will go there by snowmobile with two persons on each snowmobile. You will learn how to drive a snowmobile on this day and you will have an outdoor lunch prepared over an open fire.

In the evening, you will have a riding tour in the dark looking for northern lights and spend the evening in the goahti (Sami hut), around the fire eating dinner. The next day, you will have a reindeer sledding tour including lunch, where two persons are going to share a sled; that's the old way of transportation for Sami people in this area.

In the afternoon, you will visit the famous ICEHOTEL, have dinner at a restaurant and in the evening, come back to the farm. On the fourth day, go for a shorter riding tour in the forest and Ofelas Islandshästar will bring you to the airport/railway station. During these days, you will stay overnight in a house on Ofelas Islandshästar's small horse farm with double rooms, shared kitchen/living room, and bathroom.

Ofelas Islandshästar's farm is beautifully located close to the Kalix river, west of Kiruna. Ofelas Islandshästar does most activities on the farm but to some activities, you will have to go by car. Ofelas Islandshästar will serve you local specialties like game and fish. Please note that you may be doing the activities in another order than in the program and Ofelas Islandshästar will always have to respect the winter weather.

Riding Experience

Prior riding experience is not necessary but you must be in good physical health. This ride is suitable both for you with riding experience and for you who have never been riding before

Animals

Right now, Ofelas Islandshästar has about 25 Icelandic horses at the farm, a few are privately owned. The stable cat, Lunar, also lives there, as well as two goats and four dogs. During the winter, Ofelas Islandshästar also gets quite a lot of moose there.

The Ofelas Islandshästar Team

The company is run by Kerstin Nilsson and Mats Blind-Berg, since 1997. Jenny Jansson and Sara Hansson work at the farm, they have both moved up there from south of Sweden. Usually, Ofelas Islandshästar has some extra employees during high season.

Instructors

Mats Blind-Berg

Also called Matti, owner of Ofelas Islandshästar. He is from this area with roots in Girjas Sami community, and active in Sami politics and the work of the community. He likes photography when there is an opportunity for that.

Kerstin Nilsson

Kerstin is an owner of Ofelas Islandshästar and comes from this area. She is a qualified handicraft teacher from the beginning and educated in the Sami language, has also the “riding teacher 1” education. She has the roots in Leaváš Sami community and also has reindeer there.

Jenny Jansson

Jenny is from Arboga and has been working here for quite many years, she also lives in Puoltsa. Has a tourism education and has been riding Icelandic horse for a long time. She has her own horse at the farm, Skriða, and a Finnish sami dog called Ira.

Sara Hansson

Sara grew up on a farm in the south of Sweden and have always been close to animals and nature. She studied a program called “nature guide” at Umeå university 2012-2014. The autumn after that she started working there. Her dog is the black and white Border Collie Loka.

Location

Ofelas Islandshästar is located 25 kilometers west of Kiruna in the direction of Nikkaluokta with a fantastic view of the mountains and Kalix river. In wintertime, they have the northern lights and during summer, the midnight sun.

Puoltsa

The farm is located in a small village called Puoltsa (Buolža in Sami). It is between Kiruna and Nikkaluokta, next to the riverbank of the Kalix river. Ofelas Islandshästar has had the business since 1997.

Distances

Kiruna, 25 kilometers

Features

Activities

Horse riding
Sauna

General

Barbeque facilities
Kitchen

Food

Reindeer and moose meat is an important ingredient in Sámi cuisine, usually smoked to last longer when you are out in the mountains for many weeks. Other local specialties in this area are fish from the river or mountain lakes. Berries and herbs are also important ingredients, like cloudberries, blueberries, lingonberries, Angelica, meadowsweet, etc. Ofelas Islandshästar provides any special diet if you require, like no lactose, gluten-free, or vegetarian, just remember to inform them in advance.

Traditional food in Sámi is meat and fish supplemented with herbs and berries. Salt and flour were bought so you could bake bread. Fish and meat were eaten either fresh, salted, smoked, dried, or conserved in a different way. The Sami cuisine still looks the same but with new dishes and outside influences.

Reindeer and moose meat, Arctic char, Whitefish, cloudberries, blueberries, lingonberries, Angelica, and Mountain Sorrel are common in the Sami cuisine. Coffee cheese was made from reindeer milk, later, also from goat and cow milk. Lots of new exciting things are happening with the developing of Sami cooking today.

The following meals are included:

Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner

The following drinks are included:

Water
Coffee
Tea
Soda

The following dietary requirement(s) are served and/or catered for:

Vegetarian
Gluten Free
Regular (typically includes meat and fish)
Lactose Free
Other dietary requirements on request

If you have special dietary requirements it's a good idea to communicate it to the organiser when making a reservation

Things to do (optional)

You can book snowmobile tours with Ofelas Islandshästar in advance.

One night at Ice Hotel

Sauna

Dog sledding

Cross country skiing

Snowshoeing

What's included

Daily winter activities and horse rides
Services of a Swedish and English-speaking guide
Daily full board meals (From Day 1 dinner to Day 4 breakfast)
3 nights accommodation
Use of a horse with equipment
Helmet use
Warm outdoor clothes
All transfers needed within Kiruna

What's not included

Airport transfers
Extra and accommodation upgrades
Extra meals

How to get there

Recommended Airports

KRN

Kiruna Airport

19 km

Transfer available for additional US$40 per person

Arrival by airplane

Please arrange your flight to arrive at Kiruna Airport (KRN). From Stockholm, there are direct flights to Kiruna, they take approximately 90 minutes and are run by SAS and Norwegian. From the airport, there is a shuttle bus to Kiruna city center. You can also arrange a transfer service with Ofelas Islandshästar at an additional cost of 400 SEK per person.

Arrival by bus

You can get to Ofelas Islandshästar by bus from Kiruna during summertime. Kindly arrive at Nikkaluokta fjällstation, it usually departs twice a day during high season. For more information, please send Ofelas Islandshästar an inquiry.

Arrival by train

At SJ’s website, you can book train tickets to Kiruna. Between Stockholm and Kiruna, there is a night train without change. From the train station, there are free shuttles to the city center.

Arrival by taxi

If you would like to arrive through a taxi service, please send Ofelas Islandshästar an inquiry for more information.

Airport: Kiruna Airport Airport transfer available: Kiruna Airport (US$40 per person) Additional charges may apply. You can request this in the next step.

Cancellation Policy

A reservation requires a deposit of 16.94% of the total price.
The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
The rest of the payment should be paid 7 days before arrival.

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