Book now for the 16-19 Dec 2008 Special offer to visit Santa in Syote.

Book before the by 31 July 2008 and receive a £75 per person discount on the brochure / web prices for the 16-19 December 2008 departures from Manchester and Luton to visit Santa in Northern Finland.

Syöte, which is often called the gateway to Lapland and is located in northern Finland just below the Arctic Circle, and is home to Finland’s southern most fells.

This really is a beautiful, but isolated location, the nearest large village with shops is 35km away, but is a must for those looking for unspoilt nature, open spaces and a wide range of exhilarating activities.

The hotels, Iso-Syote and Syote Keskus, sit on top of these gentle fells and allow easy access to the surrounding nature, excellent tobogganing and a chance to try skiing on the adjacent slopes.

Meet Santa, once, as a family while he rests in a forest cabin and again at the Christmas party on the final evening. Take part in husky and snowmobile safaris. Try your hand at ice fishing, snow shoeing, riding in a reindeer pulled sled and quad biking.

For further details on the 16-19 December holiday to Hotel Iso Syote click here

Experience the new Viking XPRS and the Estonian capital.

This high speed passenger and car ferry has been a huge success since it started service at the start of the summer. It sails daily between Helsinki (Finland) and Tallinn (Estonia) taking just 2 ½ hours.

The brand new vessel can carry 2,500 passengers and cruises at a top speed of 25 knots. It promises to offer comfort, reliability, great onboard service and a short crossing time regardless of weather conditions throughout the year. The ship will be especially popular during winter when the traditional catamaran services are unable to operate due to sea conditions.

Passengers can pass their time on board in the duty free shops, deli, bars and restaurant.

Visitors to Finland wishing to pop across for a taster of Tallinn can choose from two cruise options.

The day cruise that gives visitors 4 hours in Tallinn or a night cruise that includes a night onboard ship and a full day to explore the city.

For further details and prices click here.

In Hämeenlinna Finland 31 July – 03 August 2008.

For the past 30 years the Hippalot Festival has brought a diverse range of art, theatre and drama activities specifically for children.

The festival takes place in Hämeenlinna in Finland, located approximately 100km north of the countries capital, Helsinki.

Each year the festival has a theme and this year they have chosen the circus. The theme will be explored through drama, workshops, visual art, dance, music, circus and encounters with a host of art forms.

 This festival has been a firm favourite with the Finns for many years but as interest grows internationally some English language events have been introduced.

For further details about the festival click here.

London to Helsinki.

The UK based low cost airline, Easyjet, will start a service between London Gatwick and Finland's capital city, Helsinki, on 03 November 2008.

Seats will go on sale on the airlines website this month.

Be a Snow and Ice Princess for a day.

Over the past few years we at Emagine have had the pleasure of arranging many weddings in the far north of Finnish Lapland at Hotel Kakslauttanen.  The couples have always been unique, varying in age, some travelling alone and others with hundreds of guests but the one thing they have all had in common is their dream of a winter wonderland wedding.

At Kakslauttanen they have created the perfect setting. Accommodation is in individual cosy log cabins set in the forest.  All have fireplace and sauna, ideal for those evenings in. Alternatively there is the Queen suite complete with four poster bed and private outdoor hot tub!

Weddings can be arranged in a simple wooden chapel or when conditions allow a stunning Ice Chapel. The most popular method of transport between the cabins and chapel has been reindeer pulled sleighs. Round the day off with celebratory drinks in a glass tepee and a wedding dinner in the hotels pretty log restaurant.

There is something else that adds to this special location…….igloos. You can choose between heated glass igloo’s that allow uninterrupted views of the nights sky and hopefully Aurora Boralis or the may braver choose Ice igloo’s that are created at the start of each winter.  In the Ice igloos you will be provided with cosy sleeping bags and sleeping hats to ward off the cold.

While at Kakslauttanen many of our wedding couples and their guests have headed out on exhilarating husky safaris and explored the beautiful nearby fells on snowmobiles. They certainly come home with pictures of their wedding or honeymoon unlike anyone else’s.

 For further details of weddings at Hotel Kakslauttanen in Finnish Lapland click here.

We would like to thank Mr & Mrs Greensmith for allowing us to use some of their photos of their special day.

Finlands oldest Festival.

For many years this has been an opportunity for all of the strawberry pickers to let their hair down for a few days during their busy season. The first Strawberry Carnival was held in1970 and takes place in Suonenjoki, in the Finnish Lakes region.

In the early days the Carnival attracted locals, berry pickers and summer vacationers but over the years the word has spread and visitors come much further a field. The influx in recent years of foreign berry pickers during the season has also meant a growing international interest.

The Carnival starts with a procession through the crowd lined streets of the town. Over the following days there will be an action packed programme with shows and concerts by popular Finnish artists. A jury will present the prize to the Strawberry Farmer of the Year and choose Miss Strawberry from among the local beauties.  A funfair sets up in town. The National championship in strawberry eating, strawberry joke competition, the best scarecrow competition, the run race, horse race and rally race among others are also included in the carnival programme.

There will of course be many opportunities to eat strawberries in many different ways; in milk-shakes, ice-creams, jams, purées, juices, cakes, and just as fresh, delicious berries!

For further details on visiting Finland’s oldest Festival click here.

Calling all aviators to northern Finland!

Pudasjärvi airport (EFPU), located in northern Finland just below the Arctic Circle will once again play host to pilots from around the world. The event makes the most of the regions never ending summer days.

The Air Rally will set off from Malmi (Helsinki) EFHF airport and make its way north via several airfields over the beautiful lakes region of Finland on 02 July 2008. During the journey their will be a number of tasks such as spot landings, observation and navigation tests.

Upon arrival in Pudasjarvi there will be a welcome ceremony, dinner and get together around the campfire with other aviators. Accommodation can be under canvas at the airfield or in nearby cabins, hotels and campsites.

Between 3 and 6 July 2008 there will be numerous activities such as formation flights, flying tours to Lapland, precision flying and landing competitions and skydiving. At the weekend airfield is open to the public so they can visit the aircraft and watch the competitions.

For those that wish to extend their visit it is worth noting that the region offers excellent hiking trails and canoeing, especially in the nearby Iso-Syote National park.

For the full programme and registration details click here.

The city turns out to party in style.

Thursday 12 June 2008 will see Finland’s capitol city, Helsinki, turn into one big party. The city was founded in 1550 and for the 50^th time the special event will be celebrated all over the city.

Stages will be set up in several city parks offering pop, jazz, dancers, magicians, folk, rock and opera guaranteeing something for everyone.

The day is at the heart of a week of events in the city that have included a Samba festival and harbour festival. A highlight of the week is the arrival of

Götheborg Tall Ship that will be located at Pakkahuone Quay, 8-13 June.

To visit Helsinki click here.

For further details on the weeks events click here.