a road with snow on it
Photograph ©2024 by Brian Cohen.
Brian Cohen·
Experiences
··4 Comments·1 min read

I Walked 4.7 Kilometers In the Arctic To Get To The Airport.

Ironically, I needed to pick up a rental car.

I walked 4.7 kilometers in the Arctic to get to the airport because the next bus to the airport was not scheduled to arrive for at least another two hours; and I needed to pick up my rental car so that I may be on my way to my destination.

I Walked 4.7 Kilometers In the Arctic To Get To The Airport.

a sign with a digital screen
Photograph ©2024 by Brian Cohen.

At -4 degrees Celsius, the weather was actually quite mild, with no wind and not much snow on the ground in late October; so I was quite fortunate. The duration of the walk was approximately one hour.

Kiruna Airport is in the Lapplands region of northern Sweden. It is a small airport with few flights; so the only way to get there is via a two-lane road either by bus or taxi — or a motor vehicle if you already have one. No taxis were available either; so I walked to the airport.

a sign on a road
Photograph ©2024 by Brian Cohen.

Final Boarding Call

I was successful in picking up the rental car. Six minutes was all I needed to return to where I started walking, which was at the Scandic Kiruna hotel property in the heart of the new city center area of Kiruna.

See also

Perhaps the transportation options for the new city center have not yet been completely thought out and completed…?!?

All photographs ©2024 by Brian Cohen.

Related

4 Comments

  1. I recall you being in a discussion about walking to airports. So now we can add another airport to which you have walked.

    How much and what kind of luggage were you porting on your 20 minutes per mile walk with luggage for those 3 miles? In these kind of situations I have usually gone with a backpack or a duffel bag that can be ported as a backpack. The walk to/from Kiruna airport isn’t bad when there is not heavy snow or too much ice on the ground — other than if the mosquitoes like you a bit too much.

    Reply

    1. I had the luxury of leaving my bag at the Scandic Kiruna hotel property, GUWonder; so I did not carry anything other than my small camera bag on my walk to the airport.

      Believe it or not, I have not purchased any luggage in years. I usually use cheap promotional bags that I get for free — similar to a duffel bag with compartments. I find backpacks to strangely feel too hot for me to carry; but maybe I simply have not found the right one for me…

      Reply

  2. I had guessed you had stayed at the Scandic Kiruna when you mentioned the walk time/distance before I got to reading your mention of the hotel.

    Reply

    1. Actually, no, GUWonder.

      The city of Kiruna operates a free bus service between the train station near the old central part of Kiruna and the new central part of Kiruna — which is where the Scandic Kiruna hotel property is located. I was a passenger on the Norrland night train to Kiruna; and I transferred to the free bus service.

      When I arrived in the new central part of the city, I went across the street to the bus stop to see when the bus service to the airport was scheduled — but the schedule was not clear; so I asked the person behind the front desk at Scandic Kiruna when the next bus is scheduled to arrive, and I was told not for at least another two hours.

      As only two airlines operate a total of up to four flights per day — including both arriving and departing flights — at this small airport, I can see why bus service is not exactly every half hour. A taxi cab was not available at that time; so my best option was to walk to the airport to pick up the rental car and then drive on to Finland…

      Reply

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