In January 2024, my husband and I embarked on an epic, two week vacation for my milestone birthday, which we lovingly dubbed my Nordy Forty as it took us through 80% of the Nordic nations. If you’re looking for a Nordic or Scandinavia itinerary, have I got the thing for you. It seemed a shame to gatekeep, so here you go! Use it all or bits and pieces to create your own dream vacation.
No kids & fancy free!
If you use any of this free itinerary, please share with me on Instagram so I can live vicariously!
Note! The one Nordic country we didn’t get to in this epic adventure was Norway. If you want to hit all five countries – Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland – I would roughly plan for 3 weeks to have a decent amount of time in each.
If you’d like a deeper dive into any of the destinations, the all of the Miles From Somewhere destination guides can be found here.
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Ramping Up in Reykjavik
Miles From Somewhere Guide to Reykjavik
Day One: Flight Night
Go: Fly overnight from your home airport to Reykjavik on Icelandair, leveraging their Stopover program.
Day Two: Morning Arrival & Day 1 in Reykjavik
Arrive: Land at KEF (the international airport serving Reykjavik) insanely early in the morning. Get a ride into city center on the Flybus Airport Transfer.
Stay: Ion City Hotel – Drop your bags or check in at your hotel.
Breakfast: Brauð & Co for coffee and pastries
Do: Hallgrimskirkja & the Leif Eriksson monument
Do: Walk and shop along Rainbow Street and Laugavegur
Dinner: Café Loki – Be sure to get the Rye Bread Ice Cream
Day Three: Reykjavik Day 2
Breakfast: Sandholt – Do yourself a favor and get the waffle with fried egg, bacon, and cream cheese dressing
Do: Sky Lagoon – Get a reservation for when they open and include the 7-step ritual
Lunch: Seabaron lobster soup and/or the fully loaded hot dog from Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur (We did both)
Do: Walk along the lava-rock-lined harbor past the Harpa and the Sun Voyager
Dinner: Hlemmur Mathöll – Don’t miss the pescado tacos at Fuego Taco
Moving On to Copenhagen
Miles From Somewhere Guide to Copenhagen
Day Four: On That Morning Flight to Copenhagen
Go: Early flight from KEF to CPH
Arrive: Take the train from Terminal 3 into city center
Stay – Villa Copenhagen
Lunch: John’s Hotdog Deli
Do: Wander around town being sure to pass by Gammeltorv, Strøget, and Christiansborg Palace
Do: Nyhavn – Take the time to grab a drink at one of the various restaurants with outdoor tables along the harbor
Dinner: Reservation at Bæst for one of the best meals of your life
Day Five: Day in Copenhagen, Night on the Train
Breakfast: Andersen Bakery – I personally recommend the cappuccino and kanelsnegl (cinnamon roll)
Do: Walk along the water, crossing at the Lille Longebro bridge near the Danish Architecture Center.
Do: Rundetaarn – Pay to walk the spiral to the top of the tower
Lunch: Gasoline Grill – This is something we didn’t do because of the Queen’s-abdication crowds, so tell me all about it in exceptional detail so I can live through you
Do: Walk a bit more and pick up your bags
Dinner: Either a smørrebrød from Hallernes in the Tivoli Food Hall or another hot dog from John’s Hot Dog Deli cause they’re that good
Go: Early evening train from Copenhagen to Stockholm
Arrive: Take a night walk from the Stockholm central train station to your hotel
Stockholm Syndrome
Miles From Somewhere Guide to Stockholm
Day Six: Stockholm Day 1
Stay: Downtown Camper by Scandic
Breakfast: Bröd & Salt – Cappuccinos & pastries
Do: ABBA The Museum – Dust off your inner dancing queen and enjoy the interactive exhibits
Lunch: Mom’s Kitchen Nybrogatan – Traditional Swedish meatballs
Do: Gamla Stan – Take the metro to wander around the old town
Fika: Café Schweizer – An afternoon coffee and cake is a Swedish tradition known as Fika
Do: Iron Boy/Boy Watching the Moon: Find this miniature sculpture in Gamla Stan
Do: The Nest Wellness at Downtown Camper by Scandic – Enjoy the rooftop heated pool, sauna, and shower experience
Dinner: DiWINE Stockholm or Campfire Grill and Bar
Day Seven: Stockholm Day 2 & Overnight Cruise to Helsinki
Breakfast: Vete-Katten – located in the Gallerian shopping mall for cappuccinos and pastries
Do: Walk – Wander around Gamla Stan again and then walk over to central Stockholm
Lunch: Sthlm City Food Hall – So many delicious options
Go: Tallink Silja Line – This overnight cruise will get you to Helsinki while you sleep
Dinner: Onboard – Lots of great dining options onboard the cruise
Living the Finnish Dream
Miles From Somewhere Guide to Finnish Lapland
Miles From Somewhere Guide to Helsinki
Day Eight: Go, Go, Helsinki, Go
Arrive: Store Bags – Take the tram from the cruise dock to the train station where you can rent a luggage locker
Breakfast: Cafe Roasberg
Do: Kamppi Chapel
Do: Stockmann – Shop for any last minute gear for Lapland
Late Lunch/Early Dinner: Pub Peräkammari – Local dishes and great Long Drink on tap
Go: Overnight Train to Rovaniemi
Day Nine: Santa Express to Apukka Resort
Arrive: Pull in to Rovaniemi station well before dawn and take a cab to Apukka.
Stay: Apukka Resort – You’ll likely need to store your bags if your room isn’t ready.
Breakfast: Restaurant Aitta – Breakfast buffet
Do: Relax in the lodge enjoying the views and the cafe drinks, and maybe play some board games
Snacks: Get some snackies at the lodge
Dinner: Restaurant Kota – 3-course, traditional Lappish dinner dreams are made of
Day Ten: Day 2 Apukka Resort
Breakfast: Restaurant Aitta – Breakfast buffet
Do: Lazy morning and naps or one of the epic sauna experiences (they’ll even bring a mobile sauna right outside your glass igloo)
Lunch: Restaurant Aitta – Lunch buffet or order off the menu
Do: Walk on the frozen lake
Do: Relax in the lodge enjoying some snacks and drinks
Dinner: Restaurant Aitta – Dinner buffet
Do: Aurora Husky Tour – late night ride on dog sled across the frozen lake
Day Eleven: Day 3 Apukka Resort & Visiting Santa
Breakfast: Restaurant Aitta – Breakfast buffet
Do: Santa’s Village – Meet with Santa and then check out his official post office
Lunch: Santa’s Salmon Place – Trust me and get the traditional cheese & cloudberry jam in addition to the salmon and potato salad plate
Do: Another walk on the frozen lake at Apukka Resort
Dinner: Restaurant Aitta – Seated dinner
Day Twelve: Apukka Resort Day 3 & Back to Helsinki
Breakfast: Restaurant Aitta – Breakfast buffet
Do: Pack up & store bags in the lodge
Lunch: Restaurant Aitta – Lunch buffet or order off the menu
Do: Relax in the lodge or take a walk
Depart: Taxi to the train station
Go: Catch the overnight train back to Helsinki
Dinner: Train dining car
Day Thirteen: Back to Helsinki
Arrive: Get to Helsinki’s station bright and early, and take the tram to the hotel
Stay: Lapland Hotels Bulevardi – Check in or store bags
Breakfast: Ekberg – Breakfast buffet
Do: Walk past Uspenskin Cathedral along the harbor through the Kauppatori
Lunch: SOUP+MORE – Salmon soup inside the gorgeous Vanha kauppahalli (Old Market Hall)
Do: Moomin Shop
Do: Wander around city center
Dinner: Pub Peräkammari – Yes it was that good that we went twice
Day Fourteen: Helsinki
Breakfast: Cafe Regatta – I recommend the blueberry pie with vanilla sauce, the cinnamon bun, the eromanga salmon-rice pastry, and the light roast coffee
Do: If you’re my husband you can get a haircut at Gents Barber; If you’re me, do some souvenir shopping at Stockmann
Do: Löyly Helsinki Sauna – Do the traditional ritual of sauna followed by a dip in the brisk, icy Baltic (it’s not as bad as it sounds after roasting in the sauna and the experience is totally worth it – promise)
Lunch: Löyly Helsinki Sauna – Order off the sauna menu and enjoy some Long Drinks (liquid courage for the Baltic dip) and sausage and chips (fries for us Americans)
Do: Löyly Helsinki – Once you’re done with the sauna, grab some drinks at the attached restaurant/bar; if you want to eat dinner there, definitely get a reservation
Dinner: Restaurant Salve – Please get the escargot with blue cheese
Day Fifteen: All Good Things Come to an End
Go: Time to head to the airport and fly home 😭
Complete Nordic & Scandinavia Itinerary Map
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