Led by Dave Van Wylen ’80, Professor Emeritus of Biology, and Pat Van Wylen ’80, P ’10, ’11, ’16, Retired Interim and Visiting Scholar Coordinator
You’re invited to join us to enjoy all kinds of Finnish cold-weather activities and to chase the northern lights – or, if the timing is right – lie in your glass-domed cabin to watch the fire in the sky.
This itinerary is custom-designed and disinctive to St. Olaf! Here’s why you should jump at this opportunity:
- This isn’t a standard vacation; it’s an extension of a St. Olaf education. It’s the epitome of lifelong learning, a living social experiment. You’ll be discussing the philosophy of happiness while actively experiencing the culture.
- Learning in community, around cozy fires, in sauna experiences, cooking classes, and arctic adventures.
- Curated “Bucket List” Convenience: planning an Arctic trip in the dead of winter is logistically intimidating, so we’ll take that off your hands. Dog-sledding, ice-floating, snowshoeing, chasing the Northern Lights … doing these things independently requires renting specialized gear, booking remote guides, and navigating frozen roads.
- Let us handle the high-friction logistics. You just enjoy the thrill of an active Arctic adventure with none of the planning stress.
- This itinerary hits a sweet spot. We start with several days in cosmopolitan Helsinki, encountering art, architecture, and history, before transitioning to the rugged, active north. Whether you’re an urban culture seeker or an outdoor enthusiast, this itinerary seamlessly stiches what looks like two distinct vacations into one.
February above the Arctic Circle in Finland? Are we crazy? Absolutely not! It’s not just that Finland is a winter wonderland of incredible natural beauty, with vast forests and thousands of lakes. It’s also about Finnish culture; Finns embrace winter, both outdoors with snow-based activities and indoors in the coziness of fires, saunas, coffee, and relaxed mealtime conversation. And, Finland is one of the most stunning and sought after places to view the Northern Lights. Fingers crossed, we will see the magical dancing skies at some point of our arctic adventure.
Finland has topped the World Happiness Report for the past eight years (the United States was #24 in the most recent ranking). Finns, along with their love of nature, tend to trust their government and cherish public policies like free education and universal health care. We will certainly talk about “happiness” while exploring the “world’s happiest country.”
This is a program for “active” learners. We begin in Helsinki, the capital of Finland, exploring the architecture, art, history, cuisine, and cultural richness of this lovely city. Then, we head north, where we fill parts of our days with outdoor activities such as hiking, skiing, snow-shoeing, dog-sledding, snowmobiling, ice-floating, and fishing, while leaving space for personal relaxation, museums (including the Santa Claus Village), Finnish handicrafts, reindeer farms, and, of course, saunas and great meals together (some of which we may cook ourselves).
This tour had such an extensive interest list that we decided to open registration in the order that interest was received, and the tour is now full. Tour 1 is now full. We are also proceeding down the interest list in order for Tour 2. If you’re interested in joining us, add your name to the interest list.
Both tours start in Helsinki, heads north to Rovaniemi, and then even farther north into Finnish Lapland. A flight back to Helsinki is included.
Itinerary, Tour 1, February 3–15, 2027
Itinerary, Tour 2, February 16–28, 2027
Our intention with every tour we offer is to provide an itinerary that introduces you to key elements related to your destination or the educational theme, while also providing some free time for you to pursue your own interests or have some down time. The balance can vary from day to day, and from tour to tour.
You’ll get the most out of study travel if you research what to do during your free time. This allows you to reap the benefits of group travel, while also customizing the tour to your interests and activity level. Read more about How to Be an Independent Group Traveler.
Dave and Pat Van Wylen are delighted to lead another learning and activity-rich St. Olaf Alumni & Family Travel program. They are veteran group travel leaders, having led both St. Olaf student and Alumni & Family Travel programs. With students, they led semester abroad programs in Asia (1998), the Middle East (2008), and Australia (2013). Dave taught three January interims in Peru (Peruvian Medical Experience), six interims of Cardiac Surgery and Research at Emory University in Atlanta, plus a summer Tanzania Global Health experience. Pat assisted on most of these programs as well as an interim Health Care and Culture course in Hawaii/Micronesia. With Alumni & Family Travel, they have led programs in the Netherlands (2015), New Zealand (2017, 2019 and 2026), Patagonia (2022), Spain (2022 and 2026) Vietnam/Cambodia (2024), and Galapagos/Amazon (2025).
Dave (Biology) worked for 21 years at St. Olaf and then at Hope College for 9 years; he retired in May 2024. Pat worked in international studies at St. Olaf and Hope College and ran a small business assisting aging seniors.
Dave received his Ph.D. in physiology from the University of Michigan (Go Blue) and Pat has master’s degrees from the University of Michigan and the University of Virginia in health administration and exercise physiology.
Expect to be awed by the landscape, invigorated by the activities, and intrigued by the culture of Finland.
We’ll fly from Helsinki to Rovaniemi, and otherwise, movement between cities will be by private motor coach. Movement within each city and at cultural/historic sites will be on foot, requiring a lot of walking and standing, often over uneven ground.
To fully partake in this tour, you should have good balance, and be capable of walking several miles a day, climbing stairs that may not have handrails, keeping pace with an active group of travelers on long days of traveling, dealing with the emotional highs and lows that can occur when experiencing a different culture, and being a considerate member of the group (prompt, courteous and flexible). You always have the option of skipping a group activity you think will be too strenuous and remaining back at the hotel or on our private bus.
Any participant who has demonstrated an inability, in the opinion of the tour leader, of keeping up with the group or of safely participating in program activities may be prohibited from participating in certain activities.
You will be responsible for carrying your own luggage throughout the tour. Traveling lightly is highly recommended.
Hotels will be tourist class (four-star or superior rating) with private bathrooms and English-speaking staff.
You should plan on seeing your family physician or a travel doctor at least four to six weeks prior to departure, preferably earlier, to talk about routine vaccinations. For more information on travel health, visit cdc.gov or who.int.
If you’ve never traveled with a group — or spent this much on a vacation before — it’s completely normal to feel a little hesitant. But you absolutely can make this happen! Here is how we build the perfect safety net for your first big adventure: Your Tour, Your Way.
Inclusions and exclusions vary by tour, so please read the following information carefully. We try to strike a balance between nickel-and-diming you once on the tour and allowing you some freedom in your price point: including some meals and activities, for example, while making others optional or on your own. Private motor coaches throughout the tour are pricier than public transportation. Highly rated guides are essential and should command higher wages.
The tour price is $9,898 per person, based on double occupancy. A supplement of $1,199 applies for single accommodations.
Inclusions: discussions led by Dave and Pat Van Wylen, assistance by a dedicated tour manager, accommodations, breakfast daily and group meals as listed on the itinerary, admissions for group activities, ground transportation during the tour (except arrival and departure airport transfers), gratuities to group guides, drivers, and meal servers, and some limited medical coverage while overseas.
Airfare to and from Finland is not included. Participants are solely responsible for all expenses not specifically included in the tour fee. Examples of excluded expenses are: airfare between your hometown and Finland, airport transfers, any passport fees, any recommended immunizations or vaccinations, baggage insurance, trip cancellation insurance above $2,000 lifetime coverage, beverages at group meals, laundry, dry cleaning, phone charges, room service or other items of a personal nature, expenses incurred during free time or non-group activities, lunch and dinner, unless specifically included on the itinerary.
This schedule is based on payments St. Olaf must make to tour vendors to guarantee group rates. This schedule is more aggressive than our typical tour, due to the demands by the Lapland hotels, which are in high demand this time of year. We highly recommend that you purchase additional trip cancellation insurance at the time of registration to recover your payments should you need to withdraw from the tour.
Deposit due: $1,500 upon registration
Refund if you cancel: None, unless the tour is full and your place can be resold
Final payment due: October 1, 2026
Refund if you cancel: None, unless the tour is full and your place can be resold
Cancellations must be in writing.
Read each tab in the Participant Documents.
Review the latest information on recommended immunizations from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
Check your passport: ensure that it has at least 6 months’ validity past the tour end date (or your return date, if you decide to extend your stay overseas) and at least one blank page.
Look at the International Travel section of the U.S. State Department, including Before You Go, Country Information, While Abroad, and Emergencies.
Take time to Prepare for your adventure by checking out a variety of resources, including frequently asked questions, general health information, included travel insurance, a safety overview, and more.
Tour 1 is full. Use the Contact Us button above to add your name to the waitlist.
Tour 2 is a GO and has only a few spaces remaining! Registration closes November 30.
Ready to go?
You must be logged in to post a comment.