Arctic circle and not a thing to wear!

Under duress ( I don't do cold) I am accompanying my mother on a northern lights trip(we hope) to Norway in February for her 70th birthday.
We will be above the Arctic circle for the full 8 days, staying on a boat, hotels and one night in an ice hotel - hypothermia is setting in just at the thought.:eek:
Can anyone advise on what sort of clothes and footwear I should take and where I can get kitted up with suitable stuff without breaking the bank.
I'm working on the lots of layers theory - thermals in small, medium, large and XL one on top of another.:rotfl:
All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.

Pedant alert - it's could have, not could of.
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Comments

  • Sus1e
    Sus1e Posts: 235 Forumite
    I am going to Tromso in Northern Norway and have gone with the layering things myself.

    I went to an outlet village and bought 3 sets of thermal undies from M+S (on 3for2 at about £8 each), several thin fleece tops which I will wear again anyway for about £15 each and a new thicker fleece top for £5. I also bought hat, and scarf on bogof for £5.

    I then went to Costco and got a set of ski trousers and ski gloves for £30 total.

    We are not going on a cruise but doing the whole thing ourselves so expect to be out walking etc a lot. So I'm also taking walking boots and thick socks.

    If I get chance, I will let you know how I went and what I used/didn't and what I should have bought!
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  • Lidl and Aldi often have offers on ski wear/thermals this time of year so may be worth a look.

    Other than that I'd wait for the sales and stock up on thermals. Or try an outlet village as Sus1e did, you can often pick up bargains.

    Also, ask the travel agent/company that you booked with to advise you on suitible clothing to take.

    x
    * Rainbow baby boy born 9th August 2016 *

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  • pboae
    pboae Posts: 2,719
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    At the Ice Hotel in Sweden they supplied us with all the clothing we needed. In other areas I had thermal socks, vests and leggings, layers of tops, a good coat and boots, and gloves. I ended up buying a thick pair of mittens when I was over there as well. They were much more effective than gloves.
    When I had my loft converted back into a loft, the neighbours came around and scoffed, and called me retro.
  • Hope you don't mind me joining in, but I am also interested in this. I'm off to Lapland, and have all the regular gear I take skiing (plus extra thermal undies).

    I was wondering about face protection! I have a hat, scarf and ear muffs, but have heard that my face will still get very cold and I might need some sort of balaclava. Anyone know if this is likely to be necessary in December?
  • Rikki
    Rikki Posts: 21,625 Forumite
    My OH put nivea on his face when he's outside all day.

    You can also get ski suntan cream, I think the last I had was soltan. Clinique also used to do cold weather protection cream.
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  • Ettenna
    Ettenna Posts: 639
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    I was looking in TKMaxx the other day at the ski wear - very reasonable for salopettes, jackets & gloves.

    I got my thermal undies (for watcing daughters playing football) from Tchibo.

    I have got all the fun of buying ski wear for my DD trip next year.
  • Rikki
    Rikki Posts: 21,625 Forumite
    www.thermalsdirect.co.uk has thermals at a good price. Choice of colour and delivery is £3 per order.
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  • BillScarab
    BillScarab Posts: 6,027 Forumite
    We went to Lapland a couple of years ago. They provded thermal overusits and boots, is anything liek this provided?

    What we wore was

    thermal top, t-shirt, micro-fleece, fleece jacket
    thermal long johns, jogging bottoms

    We then wore the thermal suit over that. Head gear was a hat or balaclava.

    On our feet we had normal socks with thick thermal socks over them and then boots.

    Hands we had gloves with big heavy mitts over them.

    EDIT try https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk they have some good offers on thermals and fleeces etc.
    It's my problem, it's my problem
    If I feel the need to hide
    And it's my problem if I have no friends
    And feel I want to die


  • 'My OH put nivea on his face when he's outside all day.

    You can also get ski suntan cream, I think the last I had was soltan. Clinique also used to do cold weather protection cream.'


    NO,NO,NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you MUST NOT put any creams on your face when going out in the arctic! they freeze on the skin and cause major problems ;) save the creams for night time when indoors,but make sure you remove them before going out.
    For outdoors you will need,non cotton base layer,it must be non cotton as the sweat doesn't stay on your skin and freeze ;) you then put on a cotton polo neck and then maybe a fleece,although I have found with a good suit,you wont need the fleece layer.We always wear a pair of tights,then thermal socks and sometimes put some boot warmers in our boots,the one thing where you need to spend the money is gloves! a good pair of scott gloves is an absolute must,a thick hat and also a face protector that covers your nose and mouth,you may find breathing difficult without this,as the hair in your nostrils freeze and no air gets through :D
    When we have been,the temp averages -34C that sounds cold,but you do get used to it and the scenery is so spectacular,you will forget about the cold.
    Best advice is to hire a thermal suit,they are very cheap to hire locally and will be better than anything you can buy here,normally made by Scott ;)

    Have a great time :D

    LIH
    Debt at highest £102k :eek:
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    Debt free october2017 :j
    Finally sleeping easy in my bed :A
  • supermum4
    supermum4 Posts: 1,433
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    Hi you can put vasaline on your face as it is not a water based cream, this is what we did last dec in lapland and it stopped our cheeks going red and sore like other peoples did, ouch. hope you have a great time.
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