Accessible Nature Tourism in Rovaniemi: Nature Touches You Deeply
Bright eyes sparkling with enthusiasm. A smile that always reaches her eyes. A tear that rolls down her cheek.
This sight moves me every time. Many of my clients have spent years exploring the outdoors, fishing, hunting, and picking berries—until a disability has taken them far away from their beloved pastimes and, often, completely away from nature. Now they can get back out there again, in Rovaniemi, Lapland: on a fishing trip, a reindeer safari, or a forest bath—often right on the peaceful shores of Lake Norvajärvi.
A 20-Year Dream of Salmon Fishing Comes True
One of my clients had loved salmon fishing his whole life. After becoming disabled, he hadn't been able to go fishing for 20 years—until he joined a fishing trip I organized.
With the rapids churning before him, he fished from his wheelchair on the wheelchair-accessible dock. His serious expression broke into a bright smile, laughter bubbled up from within him, and shouts of joy echoed as he cast his line into the rapids and waited for a catch.
I think even back then, tears of joy welled up in the corners of our eyes—the guides and assistants. My client still talks about this trip to his assistants every day.
This is the essence of what I love about my work. It’s seeing that suppressed happiness burst forth as joy when you get to do what you love—something you thought you’d lost from your life entirely.
A Different Journey, the Same Return to Nature
After years of living in a nursing home, an elderly reindeer herder is finally able, for the first time in a long while, to get out of his wheelchair to pet the reindeer, feed them lichen from his hand, and rest in their soothing company. Familiar and safe—and therapeutic for each of us.
Our customers who have come from far away also experience this same feeling, even though their journeys have been completely different. Going out into nature and the forest had felt daunting to them in the hustle and bustle of a city of millions—even though, in their childhood, familiarity with and a sense of security in nature had been part of everyday life. On the shores of Lake Norvajärvi, that sense of security returned: peace and a connection to nature found their way back into their minds and hearts.
Two very different lives, two very different journeys—but the same place, the same rediscovery of a connection with nature.
Why We Do This Work
These same feelings resonate with everyone who depends on the help of others—and with those who are slowly rediscovering their lost connection to nature, for example, through my forest baths on the shores of Lake Norvajärvi.
Pure joy and happiness. From nature, from connection, from animals. From the things that make your eyes light up and your heart skip a beat.
This is our most important mission: to ignite this feeling during our excursions, activities, and while we’re staying together in Rovaniemi, a haven of peace. Connection is important in everything—it builds trust, peace, and a sense of presence.
That’s why our name is “Tunne Lappi” – emotion and connection. Genuinely, deeply, and building connections.
Get in touch and tell us about your family or group—and let’s plan your very own Lapland experience together.
