How to Visit Riisitunturi National Park (and see Finland’s Famous Snow-Covered Trees!)
Are you looking to find those iconic snow-covered trees in Finland? Then head to Riisitunturi National Park! On a short and easy hike, you can experience a magical white landscape of snow-covered trees with amazing views over Finland’s forests, lakes, and fells. In this guide, we’ll share everything you need to know about hiking in Riisitunturi National Park in Finland in the winter, including how to get there, what to bring, when to go, and what to expect on the trail!
Finnish Lapland first took high priority on our list of places to go because we had heard that it’s one of the best places to see the northern lights (and, by the way, we can confirm that this is true!).
But as we researched more and more about visiting Finland in the winter, we realized that there was so much more to this beautiful country than just a shot at seeing the dancing green lights.
The landscape turns into a stunning winter wonderland filled with snow-capped trees, frozen lakes, and snowy fells (basically, small hills), and to experience it all, you could choose from a ton of different and unique winter activities like dogsled rides, reindeer safaris, snowmobile tours, ski tours, and more. This quickly shot Finland up to the top spot on our list and we knew we had to experience it!
But what really got us excited to visit Finland in the winter were some very specific pictures we often saw during our research- photos of oddly shaped trees that dotted a white blanket landscape and that had been coated in such a thick layer of snow that they had contorted into unique and ghostly figures. The pictures looked as if they were something out of a fairytale!
But, they are very real, and you can find this otherworldly landscape in Riisitunturi National Park in Lapland, Finland.
Riisitunturi Park is a small protected area of wilderness that sits over two hours southeast of the city of Rovaniemi in Lapland. Its unique environment combined with Finland’s cold and snowy winters creates the beautiful fairytale-like landscape that makes this National Park such an iconic place to visit in Finland.
Of course, you have to visit this magical place under just the right conditions to experience the true winter wonderland that happens here, and while we didn’t get quite those picture-perfect conditions, it was still a beautiful place to hike to experience the Arctic-like environment of Finnish Lapland.
Want to experience Finland’s winter wonderland for yourself?
In this guide, we’ll go over everything you need to know to visit Riisitunturi National Park. We’ll share the best trail in Riisitunturi for seeing the famous snow-covered trees, how to get to Riisitunturi National Park, the best time to go, what to bring, and what to expect on the trail.
So, let’s get to it!
In this Riisitunturi National Park guide:
Why Visit Riisitunturi National Park in Winter?
Winter views in Riisitunturi National Park
This question is totally valid- we get it. We don’t often find ourselves actively seeking out must-do hikes in the winter season (though we don’t mind a winter hike here or there!).
But while hiking in Riisitunturi is a year-round activity, the winter is extra special.
That’s because of the unique environment of Riisitunturi National Park. The fells of this park are relatively low in elevation (the summit of the park on Riisitunturi Fell is only 465 meters above sea level), and they often experience low lying clouds that provide misty and humid conditions. Because the fells are lower in elevation, the summits are not entirely above the tree line unlike many of the larger hills in northern Lapland, so there are still lots of spruce trees scattered across the fells.
The heavy winter snowfall covers the landscape and the trees, and the humid conditions and lack of really high winds allow this snow to stick and accumulate. The weight of the accumulated snow causes the trees to bend and contort into weird shapes, creating an effect of white ghostly figures spread across a pristine snow-covered landscape.
The term for this particular phenomenon of the somewhat ghostly-looking snow and ice-covered trees that are often found in Riisitunturi National Park is “tykky”, and under the right conditions, it can truly transform the landscape into that of a fairytale.
A partial tykky effect in Riisitunturi National Park
But the key words here are “right conditions”, and this depends on any given year. With that in mind, let’s get into the best time to go to Riisitunturi National Park to give you your best chance at seeing this winter wonderland…
Best Time to Go to Riisitunturi National Park in Finland
Honestly, you can hike in Riisitunturi National Park year round, but if you are specifically looking to see the tykky effect, then we’d say the best time to hike in Riisitunturi is January and February.
Waiting until January or February will have given enough time for snow to accumulate on the trees to create the effect you’re looking for. November and December would likely be too early in the winter.
Some say that March is also still a good time to see the snow-covered trees in Riisitunturi, and this might be the case- depending on the year.
Usually in March, there still should be plenty of snow in Lapland to enjoy most of the fun winter activities- snowmobiling, dogsledding, reindeer rides, hiking, etc. We decided to visit Finland in March because we knew there’d still be plenty of snow, and because we’d get to have longer daylight and slightly warmer temperatures. Plus, it’s a great time to see the northern lights! It sounded like the perfect time to come.
After a really good and snowy winter, you may be able to still see the snow-covered trees in Riisitunturi in early March, but for us, this wasn’t the case. In the particular year we visited, Finland didn’t have a typically cold and snowy winter, and temperatures were warmer than usual by March. So, there wasn’t enough accumulation of snow throughout the season to see the effect tykky last into March, unfortunately.
On the bright side, we still visited Riisitunturi, and we still though it was worth the visit! The landscape was still a beautiful white, there was still some remnants of snow-covered trees at the summit of Riisitunturi Fell, and the views from the top over Lapland were really pretty.
Regardless of whether you experience complete tykky or not, hiking in Riisitunturi is still a great way to experience winter hiking near the Arctic and experience a true Finnish winter landscape.
In terms of the best time of day to hike in Riisitunturi National Park, it doesn’t matter too much- just be sure to pay attention to sunrise and sunset times as daylight hours can be pretty short depending on when you go! For example, in early January just after the winter solstice, you may only get a few short hours. If you want to keep your hike in daylight hours, plan to start your drive in the dark, and be prepared to leave in the dark as well (and bring a headlamp just in case you need it for the hike!).
How to Get to Riisitunturi National Park in Finland
Riisitunturi National Park is about a 2.5 hour drive southeast of Rovaniemi, the main tourist hub of Finnish Lapland, so it’s a bit out of the way. You’ll want to set your GPS to this parking lot in Google Maps.
The drive from Rovaniemi to Riisitunturi National Park is easy and straightforward. You’ll stay on one main road (Highway 81) for most of the drive, where you can take in the beautiful and typical Lapland scenery of frozen lakes and forests of tall narrow pine trees. It’s a pretty drive, though the scenery doesn’t change too much.
Driving on the main roads from Rovaniemi to Riisitunturi National Park
In the winter, the roads in Finland can be a bit snowy depending on when you’re there, but we found driving in Lapland to be no problem since rentals come with snow tires (usually studded). There was maybe one slick patch that we experienced on the entire drive, and the roads are not busy at all, so we really had no issues.
The final two roads to the trailhead are a bit narrow, but they can accommodate two-way traffic. There are pull-off areas along the way so take note of these as you’re driving and try to move over as far as you can for bigger vehicles coming from the other direction (you might see big tour vans or buses on these roads).
The side roads to Riisitunturi National Park are a bit narrower and snowier than the main roads
This is the final road into Riisitunturi National Park
Along parts of the drive as you get closer, you can actually see the snowy trees on top of Riisitunturi Fell in the distance. Seeing these definitely made me feel a bit better since none of the trees on the entire drive there had any accumulation of snow on them whatsoever- but those trees up on Riisitunturi Fell were still hanging on to it, as they are known to do!
The parking lot for the trailhead is pretty big so you shouldn’t have issues finding parking. In mid-March, the lot was actually fairly empty, though I’m sure it gets much busier in the peak of winter.
At the parking lot, you’ll find bathroom, a small café, and some informational signs.
The large parking lot at the Riisitunturi National Park trailhead
Pro tip: A good halfway point on the drive between Rovaniemi and Riisitunturi National Park is the Auttikongas Viewpoint. This is a good place to stretch your legs on the way there or back. Here, you can walk down to a small bridge that runs across the top of a waterfall with an old log chute, and look out to a scenic gorge along the Kemijoki River. You can walk an entire 3.5 km nature trail through the forest along the river, but we just hiked up the other side to a better viewpoint of the waterfall. There are also some informational boards here, as well as a café.
Walking down to the bridge over the gorge
Views over the log chute and gorge
What is the Best Trail in Riisitunturi National Park?
The best trail in Riisitunturi National Park in winter, and the one you’ll want to be on the lookout for, is the Riisin Raapasy trail.
This is a short and easy loop trail that heads up to the highest point in the park- the summit of Riisitunturi Fell, which sits at 465 meters, or just 1500 feet above sea level. This fell, and the trail to it, is where you can find the famous snow-covered trees of Finland, and the famous and picturesque Riisitunturi Open Wilderness Hut.
Standing on top of Riisitunturi Fell
Riisitunturi National Park Map
This map is found at the trailhead for the Riisin Raapasy trail and shows the trail, and the location of the Riisitunturi summit and hut.
To hike the Riisin Raapasy trail, you’ll hike the smaller green loop on this Riisitunturi map, passing by Ikkunalampi and the Riisitunturi hut.
How Long is the Hike in Riisitunturi National Park?
Even though you’re climbing to a summit, and the highest point in the park, the walk is very easy and relatively short.
Here are our stats for the Riisin Raapasy trail in Riisitunturi National Park.
Distance: 5 km (about 3.2 miles)
Elevation gain: 146 meters (480 ft)
Time: The whole hike took us two hours. It took us 40 minutes to get to the summit of Riisitunturi Fell, which probably could be done much faster, but we were taking our time to space ourselves out from the guided groups heading up the trail. We spent about 40 minutes at the summit exploring the ridge and its trees. On the way down the other side of the summit, it took us about 20 minutes to get to the Wilderness Hut, and then another half hour from there to get back to the trailhead.
Elevation profile:
Our elevation profile (in feet and miles) for the Riisin Raapasy trail in Riisitunturi National Park
Riisin Rappasy trail map:
This is a satellite view of our hike in Riisitunturi National Park on the Riisin Raapasy trail
How Hard is the Hike in Riisitunturi National Park?
Like we’ve said, the Riisin Raapasy trail is fairly easy. It starts off with a very easy and gradual incline that gets steeper as you get higher up the trail, but it’s never strenuous, and the climb is over before you know it. By the time we got to the summit, it felt as though we had barely climbed anything!
Looking down the gradual incline of the Riisin Raapasy trail
Once you leave the summit and continue the hike, it’s a mix of very gradual downhill and flat terrain.
The only thing that makes the hike in Riisitunturi National Park difficult is when it gets slick and icy. When we hiked in March, the trails were definitely on the slick side, as the warm temperatures were causing the snow to melt and refreeze. I wore my normal hiking boots on the trail which have good traction and I had no problem (the downhill was a tad bit slick in places), but Kevin was in between hiking boots and didn’t exactly have the best footwear for this trip, and he struggled a bit (and by struggle, I mean he had fun sliding down the trail pretending he was on skis!).
Sliding down the slick trails of late winter!
In these types of conditions, we definitely recommend having a pair of microspikes which will make hiking on the slick snow and ice so much easier. We didn’t travel with ours, but you can rent them in Rovaniemi if you need to for the day (check out this list of gear providers).
The Riisin Raapasy trail itself is well-trodden, so it is easy to follow (there are also wooden poles with green blazes that you can follow to stay on track), and it’s usually well-packed so that snowshoes are not necessary. If there was a lot of fresh snow recently, you may want to consider having them on hand. In March, we had no problems without them, though- just be sure to stick to the trail!
It might be tempting to wander off trail to explore the landscape and admire the snow-covered trees (and there are certainly a lot of footprints everywhere that make it look like it’s easy), but the snow is deeper than it looks, and while the trail itself is well-packed and maintained, you can do some serious post-holing once off-trail. Take it from me- I took a few steps off- trail for a picture and I was suddenly up to almost my hip in snow!
Just a few feet off the trail!
In any case, the park does recommend sticking to the trail, and all the footprints all over the place do kind of ruin the look of the pristine white landscape, too!
What to Pack for Hiking in Riisitunturi National Park in Finland
Here are some things we’d recommend specifically for hiking in Riisitunturi National Park.
Wear layers. You’re hiking in Finnish Lapland in the winter, so expect frigid temperatures. My standard go-to in Lapland was a warm base layer, a mid-layer fleece (and I carried an extra just in case!), and an outer winter coat. Often, I start with all the layers and then quickly delayer as I start getting warm so that I don’t sweat too much (which will just make you colder!). Or try to start with less layers- it sucks to start a little on the colder side but you’ll warm up quickly once you start hiking, and then you can layer up when needed.
Outer winter gear. Make sure to have gloves and a hat at the very least. I also wore an ear band and a neck gaiter.
Sun protection. Have sunscreen on and sunglasses are super helpful on sunny days when the glare can really reflect off the white snow.
Toilet paper. The bathroom at the Riisitunturi Wilderness Hut may not be stocked, so the park recommends you bring your own.
Headlamp. Bring a headlamp just in case. Depending on when you hike in Riisitunturi National Park, the days can be short, and you might be starting or ending your hike in low light.
Microspikes. If you’re coming later in the season, these can be super helpful and make your hike a lot easier.
Snowshoes. We’d recommend these only if you really want to go off-trail, or if there was a lot of fresh snowfall right before your hike.
A power bank or extra batteries. This is in case your phone or camera batteries die in the cold since you’ll likely have it out so much taking pictures!
A tripod. If you’re hiking in Riisitunturi National Park at night to see the northern lights, be sure to carry a tripod to get clear pictures with your phone or camera.
Do You Need A Guide for Riisitunturi National Park?
Not at all! We thought Riisitunturi National Park was super easy to visit and hike on our own.
However, it’s quite a drive and if you don’t have a car, you’ll need a tour guide to bring you there and back. Also, if you’re not used to winter hiking and are unsure of the conditions or want a guide who can provide you with any necessary gear, then booking a tour might also be a good option.
Hiking in Riisitunturi National Park: Our Experience
Here, we want to detail our experience of hiking in Riisitunturi National Park so you have a better idea of what to expect!
Once we arrived at the trailhead and got situated, we followed signs for the Riisin Raapasy trail.
The trailhead for the Riisin raapasy trail in Riisitunturi National Park
The trail starts off as a wide path through a pretty forest of spruce and pine. Like we said above, the trail is well-trodden so it’s easy to follow, and we didn’t need snowshoes (though microspikes would have been helpful!). You’ll start to notice the wooden poles with orange and green blazes that you’ll be following for the rest of the hike.
The start of the Riisin Raapasy trail. You can see the wooden poles with the orange and green blazes.
Just a few minutes into the hike, you’ll come to a junction that marks the start of the loop portion of the Riisin Raapasy trail. According to the sign here, the trail is a one-way hike and you should go clockwise (left) at this fork.
Continuing down the trail after the fork
As you continue the hike, the trail very gradually starts to climb up to the fell (it was such a gentle climb that it was barely noticeable at this point).
As we got a little higher, the trees became more sparse and the white landscape started opening up more around us. The trees up here were also starting to hang on to small clumps of snow here and there as remnants of the past winter months. It was a little sad knowing what this could like in the peak of winter when the conditions were right, but it was a still pretty landscape nonetheless.
The gradual incline at the beginning of the Riisin Raapasy trail
Towards the last half of the trail to the Riisitunturi summit, the climb gets steeper (though never too steep!). Don’t forget to start looking behind you now as the views over the distant lakes and forests below open up.
Looking back across the sparse forest and distant lakes from the Riisin Raapasy trail
As we continued higher, the trees were definitely becoming more sparse, and there were now a lot of little trees that dotted the landscape and were covered in snow, kind of giving us the effect of tykky! And the bigger trees were now holding onto larger clumps of snow, and some were a bit distorted from past snow and wind.
Starting to see some of those snow-covered trees of Riisitunturi National Park
Ahead, we could now see the ridge on the summit of Riisitunturi Fell, and we could see the snow-covered trees at the top still hanging on! We were happy that we would at least get to see a few of them!
The view to the top of Riisitunturi Fell!
Loving this winter wonderland view near the top of Riisitunturi Fell
Up here, despite the less-than-ideal winter conditions, the scenery did begin to really make us feel like we were hiking in the Arctic (though this park doesn’t actually lie in the Arctic- it’s just beneath the Arctic Circle, but close enough!). The landscape was a barren blanket of white, with little bumps of snow-covered trees dotting the fell, and larger windswept trees lining the trail. It was definitely unique and different, even from other winter hikes we’ve done back home.
On the upper part of the Riisin Raapasy trail
The final climb to the summit of Riisitunturi Fell was short but slick. It will spill you right out onto the start of the summit ridge. To continue the trail, you’ll follow the green sign for Riisin Raapasy as it heads right back down the other side of the ridge. But first…take some time and explore the ridge’s snow-covered trees. Afterall, this is the whole point of doing this hike!
The final short climb to Riisitunturi Fell
Looking back down over the landscape of Riisitunturi National Park
The summit of Riisitunturi Fell!
From the Riisitunturi Fell summit, you get great panoramic views over the lakes, forests, and fells surrounding the park. But the main star of the show are the trees.
The trees up here had some cool windswept looks to them with unique shapes and curves. This late in the unusually warm season, the trees had snow covering just one side of them, but from the right perspective, we could kind of still get the illusion of what the environment and landscape would look like in better and snowier conditions.
The view off the backside of Riisitunturi Fell
Exploring what was left of the snow-covered trees on Riisitunturi Fell
There are lots of herd paths that wander along the ridge and through the trees that are easily walkable, but just be careful not to step off these paths into an area where you can really sink in.
Even though it wasn’t the winter wonderland, fairytale-like landscape we were hoping for, we were still pretty happy to see the unique looking trees and to experience some winter Finland hiking and landscapes! We spent about 40 minutes or so up here exploring around the different trees, admiring the patterns of the snow drifts, and enjoying the views.
Loved seeing the snow drifts on Riisitunturi Fell
When you’re ready to continue your hike, head back to the trail sign where the trail first came up. Follow the sign for Riisin Raapasy down the trail that descends off the side of the fell.
Follow this trail sign on Riisitunturi Fell to continue the Riisin Raapasy loop
This initial short descent is the steepest one along the trail, and it can be a little slick.
Hiking off of Riisitunturi Fell
Looking back up the trail to the Riisitunturi summit
After this, the trail makes a large loop around the backside of the fell, which is mostly in view for the rest of the hike. Through most of this portion of the hike, the trail is flat as it traverses across the white landscape. In normal winter conditions, the trees throughout this entire part of the trek would be snow-covered and mystical, but we didn’t get so lucky. For some reason, the trail was much quieter back here, too, and we only saw one group until the hut, so it was a very peaceful walk.
Walking through the peaceful landscape along the backside of Riisitunturi Fell
A view of the backside of Riisitunturi Fell
The trail will take you past Ikkunalampi, a snow-covered lake, and then past a junction, so be sure to keep following the signs for Riisin Raapasy.
After just about 20 minutes of hiking down from the summit, we came to the Riisitunturi Open Wilderness Hut, which is often photographed surrounded by snow-covered trees under the moonlight (again- no winter wonderland vibes for us!).
There is a composting toilet here that you can use, but other than this, we quickly continued on our way, following the signs for the Riisin Raapasy trail.
From the hut, the trail takes you under the other side of Riisitunturi Fell. As it makes its way back into the denser forest, the trail very gradually makes its way downhill until it meets back up with the beginning part of the trail (where the loop first started).
From here, it’s just a few minutes back to the parking lot.
Heading back to the trailhead
All in all, it took us exactly two hours to do this Riisitunturi National Park hike- and this was at a pretty slow pace and a large break at the summit. It was an easy trail, not overly crowded (though you may want to expect some larger guided groups), and a scenic winter hike for exploring the landscapes of Finnish Lapland.
More Finland Guides
Heading to Finland in the winter? Be sure to check out our other guides to visiting Finland in the winter to help you plan your trip!
We hope this guide helps you plan a great winter trip to Riisitunturi National Park in Finland! Let us know if you have any questions, and be sure to come back and let us know how your experience was!