I took my kids 1,200 miles away for 24 hours and they were back in time for school on Monday

A mum took her children on a whirlwind trip to Finland and had them back in time for school on Monday morning.

Nicole Burke and her husband Rick took their three children to Helsinki for a 24-hour trip as a cheaper alternative to visiting Lapland.

The trip was also part of their dream to visit all of the Scandinavian countries while they’re living in England, after their move from the US in January 2023.

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The parents flew with children Graham, nine, Weston, six, and Kora, three on a Saturday evening, with return flights costing £59pp.

“Finland was the last stop on our list although Lapland would have been fun, it was expensive,” Nicole, who is based near Cambridge but is originally from the US, told What’s The Jam.

“February isn’t usually an ideal time to travel, but I’ve found it’s one of my favourite months to explore.

“We visited 15 countries last year and aim to visit more this year.

The 36-year-old says that while the trip wasn’t “cheap”, it was the perfect way to make memories together without breaking the bank.

Nicole, who is a nurse and current stay-at-home mum, says her family arrived in Finland at 8pm, taking a 20-minute train journey from the airport to a nearby supermarket before heading to their Airbnb, which cost £200 for an overnight stay.

Getting up early on Sunday morning, the family set off on their Finnish adventure, taking another train and a bus to reach the Haltia stop where the beginning of the Nuuksio National Park can be found.

Nicole said: “There is a Nature Center right at the bus stop where we could have rented snowshoes or booked multiple different tours and activities, with a small cafe and toilets.

“Just a short walk across the street, we found the main map of different hiking trails.

“We followed the Päivättärenpolku Trail, noted by the pink square, a 1.4km gentle hike.

“This was a quiet, beautiful short hike around the forest.

“Our kids had a great time making and throwing snowballs, uncovering hidden tree branches, and jumping in snow piles.

“The best part of the trip for me was seeing how happy my kids were playing in the snow together.

“Where we’re from in the USA, it snows a lot, so I know they’ve been missing it.

“The kids’ favourite part was definitely throwing snowballs at each other on the hiking trail.”

The family’s next stop proved magical, the Nuuksio Reindeer Park.

Just two bus stops away, they were able to explore a snow covered park, filled with reindeer, teepees and fire pits.

Nicole added: “I found this to be quite a touristy area, but the reindeer were well cared for and the kids had a great time.

“With our tickets, we were given a bucket of lichen to break up and feed to the reindeer.

“After our bucket was empty, we went into a teepee tent around a warm fire for a Finnish cinnamon bun and a hot drink.”

Nicole says they had considered working in an Arctic Expedition Dog Sledding experience, but it had worked out too expensive.

Instead, the family headed back to Helsinki, where they explored the historic city, visited the cathedral and went shopping for souvenirs.

Nicole says the biggest challenge they faced was the cold, -10C weather that meant her kids were more than happy to head back to the airport on Sunday evening.

She added: “The only challenge for us was cold, tired kids.

“My smart watch noted almost 20,000 steps as an adult; I can only imagine how many steps the kids did.”

Despite packing their heavy snow gear into backpacks to adhere to Ryanair’s small bag policy, 10 hours in the cold Helsinki weather proved difficult.

The family arrived back in the UK around 8.30pm on Sunday evening, giving them enough time to rest before heading back to school and work the next day.

Nicole added: “The trip home was fine but everyone was exhausted, they all fell asleep in the car on the way.

“[The next morning] the boys were up and ready to go but I think Kora could have been really happy with a longer snooze.

“But they’re also used to my crazy trip planning by now!”

The family didn’t manage to spot the Northern Lights during their trip but that didn’t stop the holiday from being a huge success all-round.

Nicole said: “I would absolutely go back and definitely recommend this trip to others.
“It was a unique weekend and made for some great family memories.

“This wasn’t a cheap holiday, but worth all the memories.”

Nicole and her family are now planning a trip to Scotland during the Easter holidays, as well as another overnight trip to Legoland, in Denmark, this May.

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