It's a real shame - the hotel itself is great - the log cabins are kind of retro cool, the glass igloos amazing to spend a night in, the traditional house - well, traditional - but the hotel is let down by the management.

There seems to be no service culture at the hotel - the staff are friendly and helpful but there are so many small things that could improve a stay here. Firstly, there's no meet and greet that tells guests about the hotel, how the rooms work (we lit a fire smoked out the room and then it got so cold as the freezing air came shooting down the chimney as the fire died down), we came to see the Northern Lights but nobody told us at any point how to best view them, so much so that we asked a waitress in the restaurant who told us that they wouldn't be visible tonight as it was too light - we took it as gospel, went to bed and missed the best show of the time we were there. A bell was meant to ring to warn guests but the person in charge missed it.

As other reviewers said it is up to the guests to drag their luggage on sleds to their cabins - I don't need a bell boy but someone to come with me to show me the ropes.

One thing everyone has picked up on is the quality of the food - it is atrocious, think school dinners - if you go a la carte the food appears to be unfrozen and microwaved - don't expect good things at all.

Maybe it was our fault for not pinning someone down and asking all the right questions but when you are spending several hundred euros a night you expect some sort of service that takes instructions from a responsible management team.

All that said - I enjoyed myself - it might have been a little touristy but the cross-country skiing was great, the night-time aurora hunting snow mobile trip was a highlight, the glass igloos, the brief glimpses of the northern lights was great.

Kakslauttanen is an exercise in printing money for the owners - if only they paid a little more attention to the detail of the place and the way that guests are looked after they could make it a truly magical experience.

BTW I am the publisher of a series of global travel guides, I have spent the last decade reviewing hotels, editing guides and observing the travel industry from the inside and this is the first time I have been truly compelled to write something online and will also be voicing my thoughts to the management.

I have been to the igloo village resort with great expectation but it turned out to be a tiring and
Stressfull holiday for me.the rooms are not clean especially the showers and not hot water
Especially when it is -25 outside and not having hot water was very much Stressfull
I ended my stay there when I was told to carry the woods for the fire place myself all the way to
My cabin.Very poor service from the staff .You have to carry your luggages yourself to your
Cabin.Food quality not good and overall not worthy for the price at all....Except the staff no one saw the northern lights since they were supposed to ring the bell to alert the customers about it.i think it is a waste for that everybody would like to experience it..

Firstly believe the good reports not the bad. Cabins are spacious, evreything was in excellent working order, wonderfull warm and cosy cabins, saunas were fantastic inside the cabins,do take your tea bags, coffee, marvel powder milk etc and snacks.
Lighting is fine there are extra reading lamps at the side of the beds.
We had cabin 9 tucked away behind the trees -lovely and cabin 7 also not overlooked.
We had one night in a glass igloo - fantastic, take a mirror girls there isnt one for your morning wash cleanse moisturise routine!!!
Ice Igloos - look very very cold!!!! A bed stretches from one side to the other side and is piled high with furs to keep you warm!!!
All staff including owner very helpful and polite and excellent service in restaurant!!! The breakfast is continental very plentiful and delicious, cheese meats eggs bread jams cereals etc Evening meal is a set menu 3 courses good food, not fancy but very tasty PLEASE NOTE inform the hotel if you are vegitarian Im not but it was meat or fish with the meal each evening.
All transfers and excursions were well planned and all went to plan, Skidoos 4hrs fantastc 2hr husky ride - superb reindeer ride very sedate but it is still a great experience, all the guides were imformative and provided a warm drink and snack on the trip, !!!
Ladies take waterproof mascara, the moisture in the air causes icles to sit on your lashes and then melt your eyemake up so you end up looking like a Panda- do take hand and foot warmers they are a MUST!!!! Also do layer layer layer socks gloves clothes !!!!
Take goggles even if not skiing they are brilliant for husky ride trip!!!
Do buy alcohol at the airport or preferably pack before you can only take into Finland 70cl bottles not litre bottles
I am happy to answer any questions about my holiday

The Kakslauttanen Hotel is spread out over a large area, none of the cabins are close together so you feel really out in the wilderness. Sleds are available and used to transport luggage to and from the cabin, and are also fun for just mucking around.

We had a 5 person Large Cabin, 65 square metres, a cozy little house with 2 bedrooms, one with a king bed and a bunk room with a lower double bed and an upper single. The upper single was too small and close to the ceiling for my teenage son so he slept on the sofa no problems. There was 2 bathrooms and a sauna, all lovely and sparkling. The open fire really added to our stay, firewood was supplied and subsequent top up wood was charged for (not that much, maybe 10 euros).

We spent 4 nights at the resort and on one night we took a glass igloo for 2 of us, which the kids enjoyed very much. It was dry and warm with a very 'cool' decor, with it's own toilet. For showering there was a sauna bathhouse just across the river. While the kids were in the glass igloo, we kept the cabin and paid for only 2 persons that night, it was great that we did not have to move. We all used the sauna in the cabin and went out in the snow to cool off. the fridge did not work in our cabin, but we put the beers in the snow outside, no problem!

The food was a fairly set menu. Traditional Lappish food one night, steak another, fish another. All plentiful and choices offered if required. The food was simple and good. Breakfast was also good with the usual buffet of continental/finnish selections. Fresh fruit was nice. The bar was lovely and prices were reasonable.

We organised a snowmobiling trip at night (Unfortunately no Northern Lights), a husky safari (great fun) and airport transfers through the resort before we arrived and we were glad we did as the activities were all quite booked up. All went without a hitch and were close to the resort. The resort is out of town a bit but there are buses as well as a ski shuttle that can get you around. There are also a few taxis in town.

The reception staff seemed a bit disorganised, covering the bar, activity enquiries as well as restaurant front, but everything seemed to happen no worries and at the end of our stay, to our amazement the bill was perfectly tallied after changes in plans and cancelled trips.

My lasting impression is of a well maintained cabin resort with the most amazing interior decoration throughout, very tasteful, lovely colours and artworks around......... and the log fire. No hesitation in recommending, it is what it is, though not cheap. A good experience.