Data
Lapland winter 2026-27 in numbers
How dark, how cold and how expensive a Lapland winter really is, from primary sources: the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Statistics Finland and sun calculations checked against the US Naval Observatory. Checked on 3 November 2026. Free to reuse with a link to this page.
Key findings
- Rovaniemi's average hotel room cost €482 in December 2025, up 30% from December 2023 (€372) and 76% from December 2019 (€274).
- November is the value month: in November 2025 a Rovaniemi room averaged €262, 46% less than in December.
- 94.6% of hotel nights in Rovaniemi in December 2025 were spent by visitors from abroad.
- The sun does rise in Rovaniemi at Christmas: 2 h 14 min of sun on 21 December 2026. North of about Ylläs it doesn't rise at all for days or weeks.
- Nuorgam, the northernmost village on the list, has the longest polar night: 53 days without sunrise, 25 Nov 2026 to 16 Jan 2027.
When does the sun stop rising in Lapland?
Polar night (kaamos) for winter 2026-27, south to north. A day counts as polar night when the sun's upper edge stays below a flat horizon all day. Hills and forest shorten real sunshine further.
| Place | Sun on 21 Dec 2026 | No sunrise from | to | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kemi | 3 h 01 min | — | — | — |
| Ruka | 2 h 37 min | — | — | — |
| Rovaniemi | 2 h 14 min | — | — | — |
| Pyhä | 1 h 28 min | — | — | — |
| Ylläs (Äkäslompolo) | No sunrise | 15 Dec 2026 | 28 Dec 2026 | 14 |
| Levi | No sunrise | 12 Dec 2026 | 31 Dec 2026 | 20 |
| Muonio | No sunrise | 10 Dec 2026 | 2 Jan 2027 | 24 |
| Saariselkä | No sunrise | 6 Dec 2026 | 6 Jan 2027 | 32 |
| Ivalo | No sunrise | 4 Dec 2026 | 8 Jan 2027 | 36 |
| Inari | No sunrise | 2 Dec 2026 | 10 Jan 2027 | 40 |
| Kilpisjärvi | No sunrise | 1 Dec 2026 | 11 Jan 2027 | 42 |
| Utsjoki | No sunrise | 26 Nov 2026 | 16 Jan 2027 | 52 |
| Nuorgam | No sunrise | 25 Nov 2026 | 16 Jan 2027 | 53 |
How cold is a Lapland winter?
Finnish Meteorological Institute 1991-2020 averages. Resorts have no stations of their own, so the nearest station is shown. Individual days can be far colder than the monthly mean.
| Station | December mean | January mean | January average daily low | Snow depth, 15 March (median) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kemi-Tornio airport | -6.6 °C | -9.6 °C | -14.1 °C | Not recorded |
| Rovaniemi airport | -7.7 °C | -10.3 °C | -13.5 °C | 77 cm |
| Kuusamo airport (Ruka area) | -8.6 °C | -11.5 °C | -15.9 °C | Not recorded |
| Sodankylä Tähtelä | -9.6 °C | -12.5 °C | -17.5 °C | 77 cm |
| Kittilä Pokka (Levi area) | -10.4 °C | -12.9 °C | -18 °C | 88 cm |
| Muonio village | -11.1 °C | -13.7 °C | -18.1 °C | 76 cm |
| Saariselkä resort | -9.7 °C | -12.1 °C | -15.6 °C | 77 cm |
| Ivalo airport | -9.1 °C | -11.8 °C | -16.5 °C | Not recorded |
| Kilpisjärvi village | -10.1 °C | -12.2 °C | -17.3 °C | 93 cm |
| Utsjoki Kevo | -10.6 °C | -13.3 °C | -18.3 °C | 64 cm |
How much do Lapland hotels cost in December?
Statistics Finland, average room price and room occupancy in hotels, by municipality. These are averages across all hotels, not quotes; cabins, glass igloos and packages are not included. Sodankylä has few hotels, so its average swings with a handful of high-priced properties.
| Municipality | Dec 2019 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2025 | Nov 2025 | Mar 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rovaniemi | €27491.5% full | €37295% full | €41397% full | €48293.5% full | €26278.7% full | €26268.5% full |
| Kittilä (Levi) | €16677.5% full | €21887.7% full | €24490.8% full | €28789.3% full | €17440.2% full | €25677.3% full |
| Inari (Saariselkä, Ivalo, Inari) | €13873.2% full | €16276.2% full | €18878% full | €18776% full | €13632% full | €19868.1% full |
| Kuusamo (Ruka) | €13565.3% full | €15364% full | €16174.3% full | €16778.5% full | €15242% full | €15473.5% full |
| Sodankylä (Luosto) | €30370.4% full | €32775.4% full | €56684.1% full | €48379.9% full | €33929.6% full | €32255.7% full |
Download and reuse
The tables are free to use in articles and research. Please credit "Finnish Lapland Guide" with a link to this page.
Sources and method
- Sunrise and polar night: calculated for each place's coordinates with the NOAA solar position algorithm (sun centre at -0.833° for refraction and the solar disc, flat horizon, Finnish winter time UTC+2). Boundary days were checked against, and the 21 December sunshine times taken from, the US Naval Observatory; for example, the sun rises in Levi on 11 December 2026 and next on 1 January 2027.
- Climate: Finnish Meteorological Institute 1991-2020 temperature normals and snow normals.
- Hotels: Statistics Finland, accommodation statistics, table 11lm ("Monthly hotel capacity and nights spent by municipality", average room price and room occupancy) via its open data API, retrieved 3 November 2026. Recent months can be revised.
Planning a trip rather than writing about one? Start with the best time to visit Lapland or Lapland winter weather.