Snowmobile Safari to the Levi Nature

Valid driving license classes for driving a snowmobile A1 – a light motorcycle A2 – a medium-sized motorcycle T – a tractor A – any larger motorcycles B – a car or van Driving licenses issued in EU or EEA Member States A driving license issued in EU or EEA Member State is valid in Finland for all driving categories marked on your license within the period of its validity regardless of whether you are visiting Finland as a tourist or living here permanently. Driving licenses issued in Contracting States A driving license issued in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan or a country that has ratified the Geneva or Vienna Road Traffic Convention (hereinafter “Contracting States”) is valid in Finland when visiting as a tourist until the license expires. The information on the Contracting States driving license must be written in Latin alphabet or accompanied by a translation into Finnish or Swedish, by a reliable source or an international driving license. Driving licenses issued in other nations recognized by Finland Driving licenses issued in other nations recognized by Finland, for example China, are valid for driving categories A1, A2, A or B when visiting Finland as a tourist unless the license has expired. The information on the foreign driving license must be written in a Latin alphabet or accompanied by a translation into Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, English, German or French by a reliable source. The driver must also fulfill the current age and health requirements in Finland.

You do not need any snowmobiling experience to participate on most of safaris (please see the specific information for each safari), only good physical health and a sense of adventure. The days can be long and demanding but the guide is there to help you and teach you new skills along the way. Before every safari we undertake a safety brief and give driving instructions to all participants so everyone is aware of the basic controls and procedures in regards to driving. If it will be your first time on a snowmobile, but you have a great sense of adventure, it is recommended that you choose one of the shorter safaris. When making the booking do ask questions and we will guide you, as best as possible, to the right option for you.

Riding a snowmobile is easy but you should consider your experience and skills when selecting a safari. Start with easy and short ones (skill levels are pointed out on program description) to get more experience, after which you can choose the longer and more sporty ones if you wish. The main limits for snowmobiling come from the law: you need to be minimum 15 years old and hold a valid driving license – A1, T, A or B category (please check that it is valid in Finland!). For longer safaris, you need to be at least 18 years old or travel together with a family member who is willing to take full responsibility of you during the tour. Please note that Finnish law prohibits driving a snowmobile under the influence of alcohol or any narcotic product. As responsible safari organizers, we reserve the right to change the route and duration of the safari if deemed advisable for the sake of safety and comfort of the participants. We also reserve the right to discontinue the safari if a participant is seen as a potential danger to him/herself or to others, or is in poor health.

We believe in personalized service and our groups are small compared to many other tour operators. Most of the time it is a maximum of eight snowmobiles going out with one guide. During the high season groups can also be a bit bigger. If this is the case, then another guide will join you.

During the safari the group is always traveling together.

To make sure your days on our tours are enjoyable, we will provide the following thermal outdoor clothing to be used during the tours (unless stated otherwise in the tour description). If you wish, you can wear your own clothing and boots during our tours but we strongly recommend using our special equipment.

• Thermal overall
• Balaclava mask
• Woolen socks
• Winter boots
• Scarf (if needed)
• Mittens
• Helmet

If the day tour you’re joining includes the use of thermal clothing, you’re welcome to arrive dressed in your normal clothes. However, especially on tours lasting more than two hours we would recommend considering the following clothing of your own:

• Long thermal underwear
• Sport or ski socks worn under woolen socks
• Trousers: loose-fitting, fleece, softshell or similar
• Sweater: wool, fleece or similar warm material
• Neck warmer instead of scarf if you want
• Warm hat
• Your own jacket to be worn under the overall if the temperatures are close to -15 °C or lower

If the outdoor tour you are joining does not include the use of winter clothing, please make sure to bring your own winter boots, weatherproof jacket, trousers and gloves, in addition to the equipment listed above. Wild Nordic is also happy to rent out the winter clothing for 20€/person/day.

Safety is very important on our guided safaris. Even if everything is well considered, accidents are possible, because of human mistakes. While riding a snowmobile, the vehicle itself is always covered with traffic insurance, demanded by the law. This insurance covers all the possible costs that come to the rider, passenger or possible third party persons (transportation, medical treatment, hospital, doctor, surgery) or third party vehicle (damages, broken parts, repair costs). However, this insurance does not cover the costs that occur to your own snowmobile, if you are the guilty party for the accident which occurred. Photo’s will be taken of the damaged snowmobile and passed back to our office and maintenance team who will assess the cost of the damage. They will further inspect the snowmobile once it is back at the office and evaluate the cost of the repairs. The maximum self-liability in the case of damages is 900€. The cost of the damages will be paid once back at the office after the snowmobile safari. Should the snowmobile be damaged to the extent that it cannot carry on then a new snowmobile is provided. The cost of transferring the snowmobile (or rental costs of another snowmobile from local service provider) to the location is covered by the customer. If an accident happens, the guide on the long safari will focus his/her attentions to the safety of the customers on the spot and administer first aid to the people involved if needed. After that part is clear, the guide will monitor the vehicles and customers and make the decision, for safety, whether to continue or abort the safari. If the safari needs to be cancelled for safety reasons during the safari there will be no refund made to the customers. Outside of the snowmobiling, we recommend a travel insurance that will cover other activities.

It is definitely possible. Most of our safaris are suitable for children at all ages (please see specifications under each safari). During the safari, kids (and parents if they wish) are sitting in a sledge on reindeer hides and are covered by blankets so they stay warm and comfortable. The sledge is pulled by the guide’s snowmobile – it takes some experience to do it safely and that is the reason why only the guide is allowed to pull the sledge. If the child is at least 140 cm tall, he/she can also sit on the snowmobile behind the adult. In this case he/she has to pay the price of an adult.

Snowmobile trails have official speed limits, controlled also by local police officers. Speed limits are shown with traffic signs but if there is an area without the traffic signs, the following limits will remain; max 60 km/h on the trail, max 80 km/h on ice covered water areas and max 40 km/h with a snowmobile pulling a sledge. On guided snowmobile safaris the speed is related to the maximum speed limit of the area BUT our first priority is the safety and the skill level of the group. The guide will monitor how the people in the group are riding and the speed is always related to that. Another important thing is the condition of the trail and weather conditions in general. The target on guided safaris is to provide a safe and enjoyable experience for all the participants, also for the ones with no experience at all.