Lapland in May: The Awkward In-Between Month
May in Lapland is mud season. There’s no polite way to say it. The snow is melting into brown slush, the winter activities have shut down, and summer hasn’t arrived yet. Finns call this kelirikko – literally the season when roads give up. Some gravel roads in remote areas become impassable. The landscape looks like it’s recovering from something, which it is. If you’re planning a Lapland trip and your only option is May, this article will help you make the best of it. But honestly? You should probably pick a different month.
Temperatures range from around 1°C (34°F) at night to 11°C during the day – above freezing, but not warm. It rains. It drizzles. The ground is saturated. Rivers flood with snowmelt. And the mosquitoes start hatching toward the end of the month, a preview of the swarms that will define June and July. The upside? Almost no tourists, very long days, and by late May, the midnight sun begins. It’s a month of transformation – just not a particularly pretty one.
Weather and Daylight in May
May’s weather is caught between seasons. Average highs of 11°C and lows of 1°C mean you’ll need layers but not full winter gear. Snow depth is around 20cm at the start of the month but usually gone by late May. Precipitation averages 40mm – mostly rain, sometimes wet snow early in the month. You can expect about 11 sunny days out of 31, which is average for Lapland.
The real story is the daylight. It’s extraordinary and it changes fast.
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 May | 03:50 | 20:39 | ~17 hours |
| 15 May | 02:52 | 21:35 | ~19 hours |
| 31 May | 01:45 | 22:44 | ~21 hours |
By the end of May, the sun barely dips below the horizon. Around 30 May, the midnight sun officially begins above the Arctic Circle. The flip side: no northern lights. Zero chance. Nights are far too bright, and they only get brighter from here.
What’s Open (and What Isn’t)
This is the fundamental problem with May. Most of what people come to Lapland for is closed.
| Activity | Status in May | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Husky safaris | ✗ Closed | Season ends March/April |
| Snowmobile safaris | ✗ Closed | No snow |
| Reindeer sleigh rides | ✗ Closed | Calving season – reindeer herders are busy |
| Northern lights | ✗ Not possible | No darkness at all |
| Downhill skiing | ✓ Limited | Some resorts open into early May. Day pass 42-58€ |
| Cross-country skiing | ✓ Limited | Possible early May on remaining snow. Rental 25-40€/day |
| Ice fishing | ✓ Early May only | Ice melting rapidly – check conditions. Guided 60-90€ |
| Hiking | ✓ Muddy | Trails opening but wet. Waterproof boots essential. Free |
| Summer activities | ✗ Not yet | River rafting, midnight sun hikes, berry picking start June |
If you arrive in early May, you might catch the tail end of skiing season. Levi and some other resorts sometimes stay open into the first week of May depending on conditions. But this is borrowed time – the snow is soft, slushy, and disappearing.
Ice fishing is technically possible in early May, but the ice is thinning. You’d want a local guide who knows which lakes are still safe. By mid-May, forget it.
Hiking is your most reliable option, but “reliable” is relative. Trails are saturated with snowmelt. Boardwalks over wetlands may be partially submerged. You’ll want proper waterproof boots, not trainers. Check trail conditions with Nationalparks.fi before heading out – they update conditions for each park.
The Mosquito Warning
Late May is when the first mosquitoes appear. They’re not at full force yet – that horror show peaks in late June and July – but they’re hatching. Especially near stagnant water, which in May means everywhere, because the entire landscape is waterlogged. Bring repellent. If you’ve never experienced Finnish mosquitoes, know that they’re a different category from what you encounter in Southern Europe. They are abundant, persistent, and unbothered by your annoyance.
Why You Might Come Anyway
Reasons to visit Lapland in May, ranked by how good they actually are:
Solitude. You will have the place to yourself. Tourist numbers are at their absolute lowest. If you genuinely want to be alone in the wilderness – not in a “quiet resort” way but in a “haven’t seen another person for hours” way – May delivers. National park huts that require queuing in summer will be empty.
Prices. Accommodation runs at roughly 0.6x the baseline (with March as the reference point). A mid-range hotel that costs 130-250€ in peak season will be at the low end of that range, and many properties offer additional discounts to attract the few visitors who do show up. Flights from Helsinki run 80-200€ return.
The midnight sun transition. If you time it right and visit the last days of May, you’ll witness the start of the midnight sun – and the landscape transforms from brown and grey to green almost overnight. Birch trees bud in a rush. It’s a genuinely remarkable natural phenomenon, even if the ground is still muddy underneath.
Birdwatching. Migratory birds return in May. If you’re a birder, this is actually a legitimate reason to visit – species are arriving and establishing territories. The wetlands and thawing lakes attract waders and waterfowl.
Getting There and Getting Around
Flights operate year-round from Helsinki to Rovaniemi (1.5 hours, 80-200€ return), Kittilä (1.5 hours, 80-200€ return, 1-2 daily), and Ivalo (1.75 hours, 80-200€ return, 1 daily). From the UK, you’ll connect through Helsinki – no direct seasonal charters in May.
The overnight train from Helsinki to Rovaniemi (12 hours, departing 18:00-19:00, arriving 06:00-08:00) runs year-round. Prices range from from €23 for a seat (typically €50–90) to from €94 per cabin for a sleeping cabin with shower/WC. You can book through Omio for easy comparison and English-language booking, or direct with VR if you speak Finnish and want to check for slightly lower fares.
Car rental runs 50-80€ per day. A car is more useful in May than in some other months because public transport between remote areas is infrequent. But be warned: kelirikko means some gravel roads – especially forestry roads – can be in terrible condition. Mud, potholes, soft shoulders. Stick to main roads unless you know what you’re doing.
The Honest Recommendation
If you have flexibility in your dates, move your trip. April still has snow and winter activities. June has the midnight sun, green landscapes, and the summer season properly open. May sits in an awkward gap where neither season works properly. The scenery is at its worst, most activities are unavailable, and the weather is grey and damp more often than not.
The exception: if you specifically want solitude, rock-bottom prices, and the raw experience of watching an Arctic landscape thaw, May has a stark beauty to it. Just manage your expectations. This isn’t the Lapland from the travel brochures. It’s the Lapland that Finns endure between seasons.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is May a good time to visit Lapland?
No, for most visitors. It’s mud season – winter activities are closed, summer hasn’t started, and the landscape is at its least attractive. The last few days of May can be interesting as the midnight sun begins, but April or June are better choices on either side.
Can you see the northern lights in May in Lapland?
No. There’s no darkness in May – daylight ranges from 17 to 21 hours, and the remaining hours are bright twilight. Aurora viewing is impossible until mid-September.
What is kelirikko?
Kelirikko is the Finnish term for the spring thaw period when frost leaves the ground and roads – especially unpaved ones – become soft, muddy, and sometimes impassable. In Lapland it typically runs from late April through May. Some forestry roads have official weight restrictions or closures during this time.
Are there any activities available in Lapland in May?
Limited ones. Hiking is possible but trails are wet and muddy. Some ski resorts stay open into early May. Ice fishing may work in the first week if lake ice is still safe. Summer activities like river rafting and midnight sun hikes don’t start until June. Bring waterproof boots and lower expectations.
Best Booking Resources for Lapland
After years of travelling to and around Lapland, these are the booking tools I keep coming back to. They consistently offer the best prices, the most relevant options for northern Finland, and actually work well for Lapland-specific searches — which not all platforms do.
- Skyscanner – The best flight search engine for Lapland routes. It catches the budget airlines and seasonal charters that other search tools miss, and the price alerts are genuinely useful for spotting deals on Helsinki-Rovaniemi or direct UK routes.
- VR Finnish Railways – The only way to book Finland’s overnight trains. The Santa Claus Express from Helsinki to Rovaniemi is an experience in itself — book early for the cabin berths, they sell out weeks ahead in peak season.
- DiscoverCars – Compares all the major rental companies at Lapland airports in one search. Crucially, they show which rentals include studded winter tyres — mandatory in Lapland and a detail other comparison sites bury in the fine print.
- Booking.com – Has the widest selection of Lapland accommodation by far, including cabins, glass igloos, and small family-run guesthouses that don’t list elsewhere. Free cancellation on most properties makes it low-risk for planning ahead.
- GetYourGuide – The largest marketplace for Lapland activities: husky safaris, snowmobile tours, aurora trips, reindeer visits. You can compare operators and prices side by side, and most bookings are cancellable up to 24 hours before.
- SafetyWing – Travel insurance designed for adventurous trips. Covers winter sports, extreme cold activities, and medical evacuation — all relevant when you’re snowmobiling at -25°C. Affordable and the claims process is straightforward.
- Holafly – eSIM that works in Finland from the moment you land. No hunting for local SIM cards at the airport, no roaming surprises. Set it up on your phone before departure and you’re connected in Lapland immediately.
Some of the links above are affiliate links — if you book through them, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend services I genuinely use and trust for Lapland travel.
