I loathe the term "bucket list," but I have one. On the tippity top of the list is to see the northern lights this winter. Do I combine that experience with an icebreaker in Norway to see the fjords, or a holiday shopping adventure in Stockholm or do a hard reset and start 2026 in Finland, the world's happiest country? 

These kinds of trips are make or break: do it right, and a trip can change your life. Do it wrong, and well, you've ruined your life. (Like the fjords, I am dramatic.)

That's why I plan on bringing in local experts to help me plan the perfect northern lights adventure. Elsewhere by Lonely Planet has Scandinavia's most plugged-in travel planners who will help make this once-in-a-lifetime trip happen. Their trips are epic, their experiences unforgettable: just look at all these incredible adventures!

Elsewhere makes it so easy. I don't want to tie myself in knots with planning or stress about the outcome. I just want it to be winter already. 

Elsewhere is Lonely Planet's premium boutique travel-planning service. It pairs you with a local expert who knows the ins and outs of a destination, to guarantee the best trip ever. Just book your flights, and Elsewhere's travel experts will do the rest. Get started by messaging an expert here.

Tour the Finnish capital, then take a ferry to a Christmas market.

Elsewhere bonus: Drive the sled on a husky safari.

Read the itinerary

See the Arctic Circle and cruise Stockholm's archipelago. 

Elsewhere bonus: Spend the night Sweden's Icehotel.

Read the itinerary

Imbibe in Oslo's culinary scene and learn to ice fish.

Elsewhere bonus: Strap on snowshoes for a hike with a local.

Read the itinerary