We just received this reader success story about Chelsea’s European Christmas Adventure and want to publish it now in case you’d like to do this next year! It can take some strategic earning of credit card points, some cash, and some planning to pull this off, but it sounds like an amazing trip. Thanks, Chelsea, for your story! 

 

Hey all! My name is Chelsea, and my husband, our five-year-old son, and I just got back from a six-country European Christmas adventure! After having been lucky enough to live in Italy for three years, we often long to be back in Europe over the holidays. This year, we were determined to make it happen.

 

Planning the Trip

We made 90% of the bookings in January 2024, and I booked the flights on the days they opened! We started with our main goal, which was going to the Arctic Circle in Finland. We thought Rovaniemi would be a fun experience for our son.  From there, we decided to visit Copenhagen as my husband had not yet visited this part of Denmark. Last, we tacked on Tallinn, Estonia, as it is a favorite of my husband’s, and I had never gotten to go before.

In booking our flights, we found that both international legs had long layovers, allowing us to do “pit stops” and add two more countries to our itinerary! For this reason, I love having a long layover, and it worked out well. But first, let’s get into the booking details.

 

Booking Flights to Europe

I booked flights from Miami to Copenhagen on TAP Air Portugal through Air Canada’s Aeroplan program. Three business-class seats were 210,000 points total, plus $306 CAD.  (The cash price for these three seats would have been $9868.50!)

The Miami-to-Lisbon flight took off an hour late, and boarding was a bit chaotic. We booked Row 1, and they said my son had to be in the window seat, so my husband and I were in the middle seats. It was a decent business class, but the meals were meh, and there wasn’t any sort of door or enclosure for the beds. The footwell was crazy-tiny, and the amenity kit was very basic. The service was just ok—but it was still a better seat than the economy, and we all got some sleep! It wouldn’t be my first choice, but it was still business class. 

 

We had an eight-hour layover in Lisbon, and I ended up booking a Holiday Inn for 16k points for the night/morning so we could have a place to rest. I figured we would be sleepy, and having a bed sounded nice. I had gotten 10k points for registering with IHG and then transferred a few points during a time period when they had a transfer bonus.

It was fun to explore another city, and it allowed us to get a meal, walk around, and shower! We took an Uber to save time between the airport and the hotel. Upon return, we visited the lounge, which was one of the nicest we visited on this trip!

 

Copenhagen

In Copenhagen, we stayed at the Copenhagen Marriott Hotel. I used three free-night certificates (50k each). It was an excellent location, the gym was fantastic, and there were free saunas. Kids eat breakfast free, and with my Gold status, we got a discount for breakfast.

The view over the water was very nice, and the room was spacious and comfortable. It was 5 minutes from Tivoli Gardens and only a few minutes from various public transportation options.

We purchased the Copenhagen Card and used it when we took the bus from the airport to our hotel. We also used the card to visit Rosenborg Castle, Tivoli Gardens, The Tube, the Museum of Illusions, the Home of Carlsberg, and, of course, all public transport. We paid cash for this and put it towards a minimum spend ($265 for two adults and a child).

We enjoyed Copenhagen. It is a very clean city, and although at times it was crowded, it never felt too overwhelming. Transportation was easy, and English was prevalent everywhere. Even with a child, we felt very safe. 

 

 

Tallinn, Estonia

Next, we flew from Copenhagen to Tallinn, booked via the Capital One travel portal on Air Baltic. The flight was around $300, and our card_name credit covered it. It was a short and straightforward flight.

Upon landing, we took an Uber to our hotel, Tallink City Hotel. We paid the cash rate of $128.07 per night. It was a great location and had very spacious rooms! It was a 10-minute walk from the old town.

We visited the Christmas Market and ate dinner at Olde Hansa, which is a lot of fun! (It’s a medieval-style dining experience, complete with troubadours. My husband has been to it many times and still gets excited about going. And they have vegetarian options, too.) We explored the old town, hiked up to the wall, and visited a tea shop. We only had 24 hours here, but made great use of it! We walked everywhere except the airport and to the ferry port (which we took an Uber to).

After Tallinn, we needed to get to Helsinki so we could catch the Santa Claus Express train from Helsinki to Rovaniemi. We took the Tallink Ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki. It was $81 euro for all of us. 

 

 

Travel to Helsinki

Once in Helsinki, we had 4 hours before our train would depart, so we got some awesome Nepalese food and just walked around. Then, at 7:20 pm, it was time to board our train! It was a 12.5-hour overnight train ride and cost us $360 total. We booked a sleeper cabin that had two beds and a sink. Kids under 11 are free! I chatted with them after booking, and they added my son, extra pillows, and a net for the bed.

Upon arrival, there were no extra pillows, and we were told since they sold out, they didn’t have extras, but luckily, we had a travel pillow. It was a small room, but the beds were comfy, and the movement kept us asleep most of the night. Sadly, the rooms with bathrooms were booked up, so we didn’t have an en-suite bathroom, but the bathroom for our car was nearby. This journey opened up for booking in May, which is when we booked it. It was such a fun experience! We ordered breakfast beforehand, so we ate on the train, and at around 7:30 am we arrived at Rovaniemi. 

 

 

Helsinki

We stepped outside and were greeted by negative-four-degree weather and a snow-covered landscape. We booked an Airbnb for the first two nights, and the guests before us hadn’t checked out yet, so they couldn’t accommodate us early. So, we dropped the luggage at the train station storage and got on the Santa Claus Express bus to Santa’s Village. It was 8 euro round-trip for adults, and it was very easy! We arrived before all the crowds and spent a few hours exploring.

We met Santa without waiting, had some coffee and cocoa, and walked around the grounds. Once ready, we returned to the station to get our bags, then took an Uber to the Airbnb. The Airbnb was so cute! It had one bedroom with a pull-out couch, a full kitchen, and a sauna. It was two blocks from a grocery store, which was really convenient, and the owners had even decorated for Christmas! We spent Christmas Eve, Christmas, and the day after here. It was $850 for two nights. We chose not to use the Capital One eraser for this and paid cash for it.

 

Tours Through Apukka Resort

On Christmas Eve, we went on a tour through Apukka Resort. This resort was so cute, and when we return, we will stay here. It was a night train designed to give you chances to spot the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights). But the tour was a bust. I would not recommend it. There is no rebooking even if the lights don’t show up, and essentially, you sit around a fire for two hours at night.  

On Christmas Day, we took the most magical tour—again, through Apukka, with transportation from the city center. We did the reindeer tour. It was a 30-minute ride on a sleigh, followed by cookies and juice by the fire, and we got to feed reindeer.

I did a ton of research to make sure our tour was with an organization that had humane animal treatment, and I really felt like they were a great place! It started snowing on our tour, and it was just incredibly special. Feeding the reindeer was fun, and we enjoyed hiking through the forest on the way to and from the resort. I highly recommend it! After lunch at the resort, we spent a few hours sledding before heading back to our Airbnb.

 

 

Splurging on a Hotel Stay

Before we knew it, it was time to move on to the next stay: Arctic Treehouse Hotel. This was a splurge, but I really loved the idea of a big glass window to look at the stars. We booked a double suite with a nest bed. The nest bed was essentially a cool Nook bed for my son. He loved it, and this was the star of the show.

Our room was very cute and set on a hill. The room was clean and had some fantastic details. However, as room one, we were right next to the restaurant facing a road. This meant that every morning and night, everyone would walk down from their room to the restaurant in front of our window. The big, beautiful window I was so excited about became awkward to keep open as people would stare as they walked by. It was disappointing, but I wasn’t ready to be too upset yet.

One thing to note is that the front desk controls the temperature. You have to message to make adjustments, and while we did many times, it was quite warm at night, and we didn’t get much great sleep. But before our first sleep here, it was time for our Aurora tour. It. Was. Amazing. Our guide picked us up and drove for about 45 minutes. We walked into the forest and saw a subtle glimmer—the aurora!

After such a long journey to get there, I had hoped for something brighter, but if nothing else, I was happy we saw something. Lucky for us, our guide wasn’t satisfied either. He packed us back into the car, and we drove a good bit longer and found ourselves on a frozen lake. It was about 11 pm at this time and VERY cold. But we saw more color! Within about ten minutes, bright green colors were dancing before our eyes. We couldn’t believe it!! It was so beautiful, and our guide used his camera to capture some incredible photos. It was an experience of lifetime! We stayed out for about an hour before being driven back to our hotel. Our guide’s name was Dimitar, and we went on a tour with Arktictopia. Highly recommend!! 

 

 

Arctic Treehouse Hotel

After the wonderful aurora experience, it was back to the hotel. When we came back, the hotel staff had put gingerbread cookies on our beds, which was a lovely touch. (There room also had a minibar, but nothing was included.) We slept okay (but warm) and headed for our included breakfast the next morning. The food was okay—there was variety, which was nice, but it wasn’t what I would have expected given the price of the hotel. I will say, though, that the service at the restaurant was always great!

 

 

The hotel had a hill for sledding and sleds to borrow, as well as an ice-skating rink. The rink is a decent walk away from the main hotel area, but set in beautiful scenery. The sledding hill was next to the restaurant and our room. Otherwise, there was no gym, free sauna, or other gathering place or included activities. We felt like we got very little for the price, and this felt more like a budget hotel than a resort. Given all this, we wouldn’t recommend this hotel to most people. As far as transportation off the property goes, the Santa Claus Bus stops at Santa Park and goes to town, so we took this a few times to get into town or go eat.

 

Flights Back to Helsinki

We had some more exploring, tons of sledding, and another day at Santa Park (because we had a late flight and had time to kill) and then it was time to head to Helsinki ahead of our flight home.

Flights from Rovaniemi to Helsinki were going for over $1,200 for the three of us, and the flight was only an hour long! I would not pay that, so I found the Finnair flight on Avianca. I booked the tickets for 20k points and $48. I was much happier with that price! Our flight was delayed as it was a CRAZY day at this tiny airport. Record-breaking flights! You can take the train back, but I didn’t want to give up a whole day. In the end, maybe that would have been easier, but we didn’t know it at the time.

 

Return Home

Once back in Helsinki, we needed a place to stay for the night before our early morning flight the next day. We stayed at the Hilton Helsinki Airport for 59,000 points. I had also stayed here earlier in the year on another trip. Rooms are cozy, and it is attached to the airport, only about a five-to-ten-minute walk. We were upgraded to an executive suite with lounge access. I highly recommend it for airport stays. They even have an early morning breakfast and a kid’s scavenger hunt!

 

Air France Business-Class Seats

We were sad to be leaving Europe but excited to fly Air France business class! We booked flights flying from Helsinki to Miami. It cost 137,500 points total + $911.10. The flight from Helsinki to Paris was standard European business class (i.e., not lie-flat seats) but had excellent food. The lounge was nice but nothing overly special, and the spa was closed.

We had a seven-plus-hour layover in Paris, and we arrived in Paris at 9:00 am, so we took advantage of the layover and went sightseeing. The train station at the airport had luggage storage, so we dropped it there and then hopped on the train! We had a blast exploring the city. Then we headed back to catch our flight.

 

 

For the leg from Paris to Miami, we were on the plane with Air France’s newest seat product, and we all had Row 1. Again, my son had to be at the window. The seats had super-spacious footwells (I wouldn’t even call it a footwell, it was so big), the crew served incredible vegetarian meals (usually hard to come by), we had phenomenal service, and we all slept surprisingly well.

The fully closing door reminded me of the ANA The Room, which I had flown earlier this year. Personally, I felt that this seat and experience were more comfortable. There was even a drawer for your shoes and a coat cabinet! The amenity kit had a few nice touches, like a velvet eye mask and face lotion. I would never hesitate to book this again, and I am already dreaming of ways to get back on board! 

 

 

Final Thoughts

The total cash cost of this trip would have been about $25,395.00. Instead, we paid about $5141.17 + 576,500 points. 

It wasn’t a “budget” trip, but we had an INCREDIBLE time!!  Six countries, 12 days, and a ton of fun!! I am so grateful that I found Travel Mom Squad, which taught me how to make incredible trips like this possible. Being comfortable on a flight is priceless!!

Thanks so much, Chelsea, for your reader success story all about your European Christmas adventure! You certainly took advantage of every minute and showed how much points and miles can save a family on a bucket-list trip!

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