nordic odyssey tours review

As a tourist and traveler you are often dependent on tour operators for activities, tours and experiences. It can sometimes be difficult to distinguish the good and honest tour operators from the tourist traps.

The nature in Lapland is impressive and endless. You can of course enjoy yourself for days in the vast nature. But there are, especially in Lapland, so many unique experiences for which you simply need a tour operator. It is always nice to know that a tour operator is reliable and provides unique experiences.

The Traveltomtom Team almost calls Rovaniemi home as we have visited Lapland lots of times now, but we recently discovered something new.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 6

Nordic Odyssey, a relatively small and certainly a new tour operator in Rovaniemi. We decided to book some Rovaniemi tours with them and are happy to share our experiences with you.

This blog was written by travel writer and Traveltomtom team member Ashley. She went on multiple trips with Nordic Odyssey and wrote this blog about her experiences.

Table of Contents

About Nordic Odyssey

Nordic Odyssey is quite a young company. The ideas for Nordic Odyssey started in 2020. A difficult year, especially to conceive and set up a new company in the tourism sector. Yet that is what Chris, the founder of Nordic Odyssey, did. In fact, from January 2021 he started testing the developed ideas and tours. This resulted in Chris Adventures in May 2021. Later Chris Adventures became Nordic Odyssey.

The 2021-2022 season was an important one, as it was their first full season operational. That first year they already employed about 9 staff members.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 4

The following year they grew to 16 employees and continued to expand their diversity of tours and activities. They also started offering activities in the summer season for the first time in 2022, their de-seasonality project.

Over the last two years they have grown further, opened a new and larger office in Rovaniemi and are slowly but surely becoming an established name!

nordic odyssey tours efatbike 3

Their main office is located in Rovaniemi and most tours and activities are offered from here. Earlier this year they expanded their business and also established themselves in Ylläs. Here they mainly offer multi-day packages. They have two wooden chalets in Ylläs in the middle of Lappish nature.

They also offer activities in other parts of Finnish Lapland and even in Norway and Sweden. They use local partners for this.

Nordic Odyssey values

Nordic Odyssey has three core values ​​that make me very happy as a traveler and customer.

High-quality instead of large quantity

The pursuit of excellence is an objective that constantly drives everyone at Nordic Odyssey. They choose quality rather than quantity whenever possible. This is really reflected, for example, in the limited number of 8 people per tour. They want to keep it small, unique and exclusive and above all not end up in mass tourism.

Honesty and Transparency

At Nordic Odyssey they are committed to being honest with its customers and above all providing transparent services and add value to the customers overall experience.

Respect for others

Respect for others is a fundamental principle in the organization and activities of the company. This is translated in different ways within the company, some examples given: Respect to indigenous communities when it comes to cultural activities.

Respect for nature during guided excursions. This includes taking care of the places visited, not causing any damage and informing the guests about the use of local nature.

Tours, experiences and adventures

nordic odyssey tours legends and tales 1

Nordic Odyssey is a tour operator that operates all year round. Winter is by far the most popular but also the busiest season in Rovaniemi and Lapland. Don't get me wrong, I totally get it. We have already been to Rovaniemi twice in winter, there is simply no more magical place.

Nordic Odyssey is the perfect tour operator if you are looking for those ultimate winter bucket list activities. They deliberately keep the groups small for their activities so that the tours are experienced as personal. Typical winter activities include ice fishing, husky and reindeer experiences, skiing, snowshoeing, sauna and much more.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 10

We have been very lucky to visit Rovaniemi a number of times already, including in the summer and autumn. Although winter is of course most people's favorite time to visit, summer and autumn are perhaps our most favorite seasons in Lapland. We think nature is at its best in summer and autumn. Besides that, autumn proves to be the best time of the year to see the amazing Northern Lights.

nordic odyssey tours amethyst mine 10

In addition, the activities and experiences that you can do in Rovaniemi during these seasons are really great. Some of the special activities that Nordic Odyssey offers in the summer and autumn are canoeing and kayaking, sunset sauna, hiking trips to the Amethyst mine, national parks and waterfalls, e-fat bike tours, arctic berry picking and much more.

Of course they also offer the Northern Lights tours from around August onwards. You can go on a Northern Lights photography tour, but you can also float under the Northern Lights or take a snow shoe tour under the Northern Lights. Please note, the Northern Lights are a natural phenomenon and can never be guaranteed!

They organize several multi-day trips from Rovaniemi. With these multi-day trips you really get to know Lapland. How about a three-day ski trekking expedition or visiting 3 national parks or two days of snowshoeing in the beautiful Lappish nature. Be sure to check their website if you want to spend several days in Lapland.

Rental

nordic odyssey tours efatbike 2

Many people want to discover Lapland, but don't always want to be tied to tour operators and the designated tours they offer. We have experienced this ourselves before when traveling, that we take a tour and see beautiful or nice places along the way where we simply do not stop because it is not included. Nordic Odyssey offers a solution for travelers who want to discover a destination on their own. You can rent equipment from them and go out yourself. It is often not only more fun to go out on your own, but also cheaper this way.

There is a wide range of equipment you can rent from Nordic Odyssey. A small selection from their rental offering;(electric) fat bike, overnight camping package, canoes, SUP boards, hiking poles, snowshoes, winter overalls and boots and more!

Rental items can be collected directly from their office in the city of Rovaniemi.

Our experiences with Nordic Odyssey

During our recent trip to Rovaniemi we had a full 3-day itinerary with the awesome team at Nordic Odyssey. Five activities spread over 3 days, Nordic Odyssey has done everything it can to let us experience Rovaniemi in autumn to the fullest!

Cultural E-fat bike tour around Rovaniemi

nordic odyssey tours efatbike 1

This E-fat bike tour is the first tour we did. You meet your guide at the Nordic Odyssey office in the city center of Rovaniemi. You get all instructions you need for the E-fat bike and once everyone is comfortable with the bike, the group is ready to go. We had a small group with only two other guests, so including the tour guide a group of 5.

The route can be adjusted according to the wishes of the guests. For example, according to the website you go to Santa Claus Village. But if everyone in the group has already been there, it can be decided to skip it and go more into nature. This tour was really fun and educational.

The first part goes through the center of Rovaniemi, where you will learn a lot about the history of the city. We also got to see many buildings that we had never seen before.

nordic odyssey tours efatbike 5

Then you go into nature and get a beautiful view from a viewpoint on the Ounasvaara hill. In the end we cycled a route of about 17 km, saw a lot of Rovaniemi and learned a lot of new things. This tour is highly recommended! You can find more about this tour here.

Full day hike to the Amethyst mine

nordic odyssey tours amethyst mine 4

This is perhaps the best thing we did in Rovaniemi. Totally new to us too. The Pyhä-Luosto National Park is just over an hour drive from Rovaniemi. The Lampivaara Amethyst Mine is also located in this park.

nordic odyssey tours amethyst mine 8

As a visitor you can dig here yourself and look for a real Amethyst stone. Very fun to do. Search carefully and you are assured of beautiful and unique Amethyst stones for your home. A great souvenir.

nordic odyssey tours amethyst mine 1

The day starts with a pick-up at your hotel. When the group is complete, the journey continues towards the Amethyst Mine. Before you arrive at the Amethyst Mine, you first walk a beautiful route through the National Park. Keep your eyes open along the way, especially in the fall. This is the perfect time to pick delicious blueberries, straight from nature!

nordic odyssey tours amethyst mine 3

Once you arrive at the mine, it is first time for lunch. You grill your own sausage on the barbecue, a typical Finnish lunch.

nordic odyssey tours amethyst mine 5

nordic odyssey tours amethyst mine 9

We highly recommend the Amethyst mine hiking trip, find more information here.

E-fat bike independent rental

nordic odyssey tours efatbike 7

We have said before that Nordic Odyssey's independent rental is ideal for people who prefer to go out alone, but would like the right equipment, tips and instructions. During our trip we also used their independent rental. We rented E-fat bikes through them. You will be equipped with one of the latest E-fat bikes, a helmet, instructions and the best routes in the area. Then you can go out and enjoy yourself.

Finnish legends and tales evening

nordic odyssey tours legends and tales 3

I had no expectations at all about the Finnish legends and tales evening. I went into it completely blank and wanted to be surprised. Past experiences with these types of activities have not always been positive, so I kept a light approach. That soon turned out to be completely unnecessary.

Chris, the owner of Nordic Odyssey and our guide for this storytelling evening, is a super chill and laidback guy. Partly through his studies, he has delved deeply into Finnish culture, history and mythology.

nordic odyssey tours legends and tales 2

He builds up this evening slowly but steadily, during which you are also provided with delicious pancakes with blueberry jam and a hot drink. At the end of the evening you will undoubtedly go home with a good feeling.

You learn more about Finland and I think every traveler should do these kinds of activities to learn more about the country, its people, its culture and its history. You can find more information on this specific activity here.

Guided canoe adventure with sunset and panoramic sauna

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 1

Our last activity with Nordic Odyssey was a special one, namely a guided canoe trip followed by a wonderful sauna experience. It just so happened that our accommodation was across the river from their beautiful sauna.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 8

Here too, Chris was our guide and he picked us up from our accommodation by canoe. Very special to start like this.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 5

After canoeing about 3 kilometers, we docked near the sauna. Nordic Odyssey had this sauna built in June 2024. A brand new sauna that is fully equipped. A beautiful outdoor terrace, BBQ and, above all, an amazing view over the river.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 11

Ultimate enjoyment. I would immediately book this tour again, if only for this special sauna. Check it out here.

Nordic Odyssey's future

Nordic Odyssey is a fairly young company and they have made significant steps and major growth in the first years of their existence
Of course, they also look ahead to the future and are constantly working to improve and grow their company.

For them their growth for the next few years is in multi day trips, road trips and expeditions. They want to grow in the type and quality of activities and not so much on the quantity.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 9

Another area of focus for them is the summer and autumn season. By further developing these seasons, they also hope to offload the extremely busy winter a bit.

nordic odyssey tours canoe and sauna 3

We hope that this travel blog got you excited about traveling to Fininsh Lapland. If you have any questions please leave a comment below.