Urho Kekkonen National Park is absolutely worth visiting. Covering over 2,550 square kilometres of pristine Arctic wilderness in Finnish Lapland, it is one of Finland’s largest and most spectacular national parks, offering world-class hiking, extraordinary wildlife encounters, and some of the best conditions in Europe for witnessing the Northern Lights. Whether you are an experienced wilderness trekker or a first-time visitor to the Arctic, the park delivers an experience that is genuinely difficult to find anywhere else on the continent. Below, we answer the most common questions travellers ask before planning their trip.
Where is Urho Kekkonen National Park located?
Urho Kekkonen National Park, often referred to as UKK National Park, is located in the municipality of Inari in Finnish Lapland, in the far north of Finland. It sits directly adjacent to the fell village of Saariselkä, approximately 250 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle along the E75 highway. The park shares a border with Russia to the east and stretches deep into the Lapland wilderness, making it one of the most remote and unspoiled natural areas in all of northern Europe.
The park’s proximity to Saariselkä is one of its greatest practical advantages. Saariselkä functions as the primary gateway to the park, giving visitors immediate access to well-marked trails, equipment rental, and accommodation without the need for long transfers. You can step off the bus from Ivalo or Rovaniemi Airport and be standing at a trailhead within minutes.
Getting there is straightforward. The nearest airports are Ivalo Airport, roughly 25 kilometres away, and Rovaniemi Airport, which serves as a major hub for international connections to Finnish Lapland. Both airports offer onward transport links to Saariselkä, making the park accessible from virtually anywhere in the world with a single layover in Helsinki.
What can you do in Urho Kekkonen National Park?
Urho Kekkonen National Park offers a wide range of outdoor activities across every season, from long-distance wilderness hiking and cross-country skiing in winter to fishing, fell walking, and wildlife spotting in summer. The park has an extensive network of marked trails and wilderness huts, catering to everything from short day walks to multi-day expeditions deep into the backcountry.
Hiking and trekking
The park is one of the finest hiking destinations in northern Finland. Trails range from gentle introductory routes around the Saariselkä fell area to challenging multi-day routes that take you far into the park’s remote interior. Wilderness huts maintained by Metsähallitus, Finland’s national parks authority, are spaced along the longer routes, allowing hikers to travel light and spend nights in the genuine Arctic wilderness without carrying a full camping setup.
Winter activities
In winter, the park transforms into an exceptional cross-country skiing destination. Groomed ski trails connect Saariselkä to the park’s outer reaches, while off-trail skiing opens up for those with backcountry experience. The park is also a prime location for aurora hunting, as its vast open fells and complete absence of light pollution create ideal conditions for Northern Lights viewing. Guided snowmobile excursions, reindeer sleigh rides, and ice fishing on the park’s frozen lakes and rivers round out the winter programme. Husky safaris departing from the Saariselkä area frequently pass through or alongside the park’s boundaries, offering a memorable way to experience the landscape at a slower pace.
What wildlife and nature can you see in the park?
Urho Kekkonen National Park is home to a remarkable range of Arctic wildlife and diverse natural landscapes. Visitors have the opportunity to encounter reindeer, elk, wolverines, and brown bears, while bird life includes golden eagles, whooper swans, and the Siberian jay. The fox is a resident of the park’s open fells and is sometimes spotted by walkers, particularly in winter when its white coat stands out less against the snow than you might expect.
The park’s terrain is equally varied. Open treeless fells dominate the higher ground, offering sweeping panoramic views across the Lapland wilderness. Lower elevations are covered in old-growth boreal forest, where ancient pines and birches create a quiet, almost otherworldly atmosphere. Rivers and streams run through the valleys, and the park contains numerous pristine lakes where ice fishing is popular in winter and fly fishing draws visitors in summer.
The flora is also distinctive. In late summer, the fell heaths turn vivid shades of red, orange, and gold during the ruska season, the Finnish term for autumn foliage. This period is particularly popular with photographers and hikers who want to experience the landscape at its most visually dramatic. In spring, the snowmelt reveals cloudberry fields, lingonberries, and bog cotton, all part of the Arctic ecosystem that makes this Finnish Lapland national park so ecologically rich.
What is the best time of year to visit Urho Kekkonen National Park?
The best time to visit Urho Kekkonen National Park depends on what you want to experience. Winter, from November through March, is ideal for Northern Lights viewing, snow activities, and experiencing the dramatic Arctic landscape under a blanket of snow. Summer, from June to August, offers the midnight sun, lush green fells, and excellent hiking conditions. Each season has a genuinely distinct character and its own set of rewards.
For Northern Lights seekers, the prime window runs from late August through early April, when the nights are dark enough for aurora activity to be visible. The clearest skies and most reliable conditions tend to occur between December and February, when the polar night brings almost continuous darkness in this part of Finnish Lapland. The park’s location far from any significant light pollution source makes it one of the best places in Europe to observe the aurora borealis.
Hikers and nature lovers often favour the shoulder seasons. September brings the ruska colours to the fells, combining excellent trail conditions with spectacular scenery. May and early June see the snow recede and the first wildflowers emerge, though trails can be wet and some higher routes may still have snow. Midsummer in July offers long warm days and the surreal experience of the midnight sun, when the sun never fully sets and the park glows with a golden light around the clock.
Winter visitors should be prepared for temperatures that regularly drop below minus 20 degrees Celsius, particularly in January and February. Proper layering and quality cold-weather gear are essential. Most activity operators and accommodation providers in Saariselkä are well-equipped to advise first-time visitors on what to bring.
Is Urho Kekkonen National Park worth visiting?
Yes, Urho Kekkonen National Park is absolutely worth visiting for anyone drawn to unspoiled Arctic wilderness, outdoor adventure, or natural phenomena like the Northern Lights. As one of the largest and least-developed national parks in northern Finland, it offers a genuine wilderness experience at a scale that is rare in Europe, yet remains accessible thanks to the infrastructure and services available in nearby Saariselkä.
What sets UKK National Park apart from many other wilderness destinations is the combination of accessibility and remoteness. You can arrive directly from an international flight, pick up gear in Saariselkä, and be deep in the backcountry within a few hours. Yet once you are inside the park, the sense of space and solitude is profound. The park covers terrain that takes days to cross on foot, and even in peak season, it is easy to find yourself completely alone on the fells.
The park also rewards repeat visits. Each season brings an entirely different experience: the silence and Northern Lights of midwinter, the explosive colours of autumn, the endless daylight of midsummer. Visitors who come once almost universally want to return in a different season to see how completely the landscape transforms.
For those looking to make the most of a visit to the park, staying in Saariselkä puts you right at the entrance. We are located here at Aurora Queen Resort, and our guests regularly tell us that being able to watch the Northern Lights from the warmth of their glass-ceiling igloo accommodation in Saariselkä after a full day on the trails is an experience that combines the very best of what this part of Finnish Lapland has to offer. The park is the reason many people come to this corner of the Arctic, and it rarely disappoints.