Winter events in Kiruna

5 min read Updated October 2026 Compare all tours

Kiruna has no long list of winter festivals, but a handful of dates shape the season. The Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi reopens in a new form each December. Christmas and New Year fall into the polar night and draw many visitors. At the end of January the town centre fills with snow sculptures, and a week later many people drive south for the old Sámi market in Jokkmokk. Some dates for 2026/27 are fixed already, others are not yet published.

The new Icehotel in December

The Icehotel is rebuilt every winter from ice taken out of the Torne River. Artists chosen for the next hotel meet in Jukkasjärvi in November for an art symposium, and the building takes about six weeks. The winter hotel then stays open from December to April. This season's version is called ICEHOTEL 37, and its first nights were sold as an opening package that is already sold out.

The Icehotel has not published an exact opening date for ICEHOTEL 37 so far. Its winter packages are listed from 1 December. If you plan a trip in early December, keep in mind that the year-round ICEHOTEL 365 is open in any case. More on rooms, tickets and the village is on our Icehotel page.

Christmas in the polar night

From 11 December to 1 January the sun does not rise in Kiruna, so the holidays take place in twilight and long nights. The tourist office notes that the period around Christmas and New Year brings a lot of visitors. Book rooms and tours early if your dates are fixed. Opening hours also change: the Sámi museum at Nutti Sámi Siida in Jukkasjärvi, for example, closes at 14:00 on 24 December instead of 16:00.

Explore Arctic offers Christmas evenings from Kiruna in a short and a long format. The short one lasts four hours and starts with souvas, smoked reindeer, deer and moose with vegetables, in a grill hut by the frozen river at Poikkijärvi. A guide tells about Sámi culture, and afterwards a minibus goes looking for the aurora. The long evening takes seven hours, with hotel pickup in Kiruna, a Christmas dinner at a restaurant in Abisko and an aurora search around Abisko. It is not suitable for children under 16, and you bring your own warm clothes.

The pages of these Christmas evenings give no fixed date and do not say that they run on 24 or 25 December, so check the booking calendar for the evening you have in mind.

New Year's Eve by the river or in Abisko

The New Year's Eve evening at Aurora River Camp is the only tour here with a confirmed date: it runs on 31 December 2026 only. It lasts five and a half hours, with pickup at several hotels in Kiruna and at the Icehotel. Dinner is cooked over the fire, with Arctic char, reindeer or a vegetarian dish, followed by an aurora drive in a heated minibus. At midnight there is sparkling wine or an alcohol-free version and fireworks on the river, moved to another spot in the camp if the ice is not safe. The group has at most eight guests from age 12, and a thermal overall, boots, gloves and a hat are included. The fire place has no roof, so dress for the weather.

Explore Arctic runs a seven-hour New Year's Eve trip to Abisko with dinner at a restaurant there, an aurora tour and fireworks at midnight. Like the Christmas trip to Abisko, it is for guests from 16, and warm clothing is not included.

Kiruna Snow Festival in late January

Since 1986 Kiruna has held its Snow Festival on the last weekend of January, in the town centre on Stadshustorget, the City Hall Square. The main event is the International Snow Sculpture Competition, where artists turn large cubes of snow into sculptures. Around it the programme has included street hockey, children's theatre, dog sledding, pony rides, workshops, music and Sámi culture. Entry is free.

The 2027 festival starts on 27 January. The tourist office expects to publish the programme around the end of 2026, so check back before you book. By then the polar night is over: the sun returns on 2 January, and by the end of January there are almost six hours of daylight. Our page on Kiruna town covers the new centre and how it came about.

Jokkmokk market in early February

The winter market in Jokkmokk is one of the main Sámi gatherings of the year. It traditionally begins on the first Thursday of February, and in 2027 the 422nd market runs from Thursday 4 to Saturday 6 February. The market area is open from 10:00 to 18:00 on those three days, with more events throughout the week, including evenings. People come to meet, and to buy and sell Sámi handicraft.

Jokkmokk lies south of Kiruna, a drive of about three hours. The tourist office lists a guided day trip by Scandinavian Sami Photoadventures, but also recommends staying overnight to see more. Without a car, the market organisers suggest the train to Murjek, between Boden and Gällivare, with a regional bus that connects to Jokkmokk, or a flight to Luleå or Gällivare.

Sámi National Day on 6 February

The 6th of February is a shared national day for all Sámi across Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia. It recalls the first Sámi national assembly, held in Trondheim in 1917, and has been celebrated since 1993. In 2027 it falls on the Saturday of the Jokkmokk market. Around Kiruna there are eight Sámi communities, and several Sámi hosts offer reindeer visits; our page on reindeer and Sámi culture introduces them.

For the light and weather during these weeks, read the page on the polar night, which covers the return of the sun in January.