Rovaniemi ice floating by daylight or under the aurora
Nordic Adventures runs its Rovaniemi ice float in two versions, one in daylight and one after dark with a chance of the northern lights. The suit and the hole in the ice stay the same, and so does the three-hour length. What changes is the light, and with it the cold and the pictures you take home.
One lake, two times of day
Both trips belong to Nordic Adventures, and both take you by van from your hotel to a frozen forest lake outside Rovaniemi. The two share the same entry rules as well, which our limits page sets out in full.
The daytime float at ~$133 and the aurora float at ~$138 each last three hours. So the choice comes down to what you want to see from the water, and how cold you are willing to get.
What daylight gives you
By day you see where you are. Snowy forest rings the lake, and the floaters in their red suits stand out against the white ice.
In midwinter the sun stays low over Lapland, and the light often turns soft and pink. Around December, Rovaniemi gets only a few hours of daylight, so a daytime float can start in bright light and end in dusk.
Pictures come out sharper too. The guide holds the camera, since your phone cannot come into the water, and daylight shots need no long exposure.
The day trip suits families with teenagers and anyone who feels the cold. It also has the longer review record of the two, as the table further down shows, and daylight makes the walk across the ice easier to judge.
What the night adds
After dark the trip turns quieter. Nordic Adventures uses a lake far enough from the city for dark skies, with the ice hole in the middle. There is a campfire too, plus a heated cabin to warm up in.
Hot berry juice or glögi and cookies come after the float. Lying on your back in the dark, you look straight up at the sky, which is the whole idea of the night trip.
On a clear night with enough solar activity, the northern lights can appear overhead while you float. Whether they do depends on the sky that evening, which nobody can book in advance.
Float under a dark Lapland sky
Nordic Adventures' three-hour evening float on a lake away from the city lights, with hotel pickup. A campfire and a heated cabin wait after the float, and the aurora is possible on a clear night, never promised.
The aurora is a chance, never a promise
Nordic Adventures does not promise the lights, and the trip goes ahead in any weather. Thick cloud or falling snow can hide the sky for the whole three hours.
Reviewers on the night float often saw no lights at all and still enjoyed the evening. The dark lake and the fire carry the trip on their own, and our page on your odds of an aurora overhead explains what has to line up.
If seeing the lights matters most, book the night float early in your stay. A cloudy evening then leaves time for another aurora outing before you fly home.
Colder air, harder photos
The night float is the colder of the two. Temperatures drop after sunset, and you spend time standing on the ice before and after the hole, so warm layers under the suit count for more.
Our guide on what to wear under the suit has the full list. Thin warm layers plus wool socks matter more than a thick coat, which comes off before the suit goes on.
Photos are harder at night. Pictures of you in the water depend on the guide's camera and whatever light there is, and one reviewer waited days for a promised video, so check with the guide how the files get to you.
Ratings and prices side by side
| Trip | From | GetYourGuide | Viator | What you see |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daytime float | ~$133 | 4.8 from 200+ | 4.9 from 82 | Snowy forest, low winter sun |
| Aurora float | ~$138 | 4.7 from 68 | 4.9 from 100+ | Dark sky, campfire, a chance of the lights |
The scores sit too close to decide it for you. The night trip costs a few dollars more, and our page on what ice floating costs sets both against the icebreaker days.
Doing both in one stay
If you have the time, book the day float first and the night float later in the trip. The day teaches you the suit and the hole, so after dark you can relax and watch the sky instead of thinking about the edge of the ice.
Two floats cost about twice a single one, still well under a single icebreaker day. Leave a day between them if you can, or pair the second float with a slow day in town.
With only one evening in Rovaniemi, weigh it the other way. A single night is a thin bet on the aurora, so the daytime float gives you the surer experience, and the lights can wait for another outing.
Which one to book
- Book the daytime float for teenagers and clear photos, or if you feel the cold
- Book the aurora float if lying under a dark Lapland sky is the point, whether the lights show up or not
- Book both if you have the time, since they feel like two different trips
- Skip the night float if an evening without lights would spoil it for you
Either way, the lake has to freeze first, so read when to book before you pick dates. That matters most for a trip early in the winter.
For the bigger choice between a lake and the frozen sea, see our lake-versus-icebreaker guide. It covers the ship days that take younger children.