Getting bogged down by summer heat right about now? Located right at the edge of the wilderness, along the road to the Arctic Sea is one of the coziest and fanciest places to watch the Northern Lights. Kakslauttanen is a hotel next to the Urho Kekkonen National Park, the largest of Finland’s national parks. As the story goes, in the summer of 1973, Jussi (the founder) was on a fishing trip in Utsjoki, Finland’s northernmost village. On the drive back to central Finland, he ran out of fuel. The young man really had no choice but to set up camp where he stood, on a roadside in the middle of the wilderness. The place happened to be called Kakslauttanen. For some inexplicable reason, Jussi felt as if he had come home. He spent his first summer there in a tent. In the second year, a small chalet was erected on the site, and Jussi began to run a café to serve passers-by on their way to North Cape. Little by little, year after year, Kakslauttanen has grown to become Finland’s internationally best-known travel business. It is still being run by Jussi, with great care and attention – the way it has always been. More details and booking info here: