Tailor made safaris are possible for a minimum of six adults for two nights according to availability at the time of the order.

Encountering the king of the forest, a bear, or a wolf or a wolverine, in the middle of the Finnish wilderness, safely from a photography and viewing hide, is an unforgettable experience and a real luxury of nature.

 The experience is suitable for people of all ages and fitness levels. Hiking is not included in the safari; the hides can be reached by car and there is only a few hundred meters to walk. Children are also welcome to the bear safari, as long as they know how to be quiet in the hide.

In a hide one sits comfortably on a chair or bench and looks at the surrounding nature from the windows. There are openable fabric holes in the hides for camera lenses and as well dry toilets. Although there are hardly any mosquitoes in the hides the use of insect repellants is possible.

The hides are located in the closed border buffer zone in Kuhmo. The animals visiting the hides are wild animals, so “bear guarantee” cannot be given, but with the exception of the early summer in June, there are usually zero no show evenings or nights later in the summer.

From the hides, you can also observe and photograph wolves, sometimes even an interaction between bears and wolves, which is very rare to happen in Northern Europe. In addition, wolverines and sea eagles, black kites and ravens are common visitors around the area.

You can stay in the hide all night or until sunset, after which you can rest and sleep in Kuikka’s room, equipped for 2-4 people with modern facilities.

Wildlife Safaris Finland, partner of the Diamond Idea Company, is Finland’s first commercial operator of a special hide photography with three decades of experience.

The majority of customers of the family business piloted by Lassi and Sami Rautiainen have traditionally been foreign professional photographers with their groups. That’s why all hides are so- called professional stalls, i.e. they are great for observing and photographing wild animals.

Every hide has a tabletop, on which a heavier camera or lens can be attached with a ball head. You can also get good photos with mobile phone cameras, because the animals are usually in a distance of 10-30 meters away from the hides, but sometimes even closer. In the silence of nature you can well hear the breath of a bear.

The bear safari starts in the afternoon at Kivikiekintie 938, Kuhmo. Everyone is expected to arrive by their own transportation from 2 p.m., when the rooms will be available. At 3 p.m., the program includes an introduction, welcome and safety instruction session, and at 4 p.m., a buffet dinner will be served, from which one can also make sandwiches and snacks for the evening and night in the hide and fill the thermos with coffee or tea.

We leave for the hides around 5 p.m. You can stay in the hide either until sunset or all night, in which case it is a good idea to take a sleeping bag with you. The hides are of different sizes, most of them for 2-3 people. Hide placement and distribution is done on site by Wildlife Safaris Finland.

There are hides in two different landscapes; in open swamp landscape and on the shore of a forest pond. On a two-night safari, one evening/night is spent in each landscape. The largest of the hides is for 6-12 people. If you want a specific hide or a (bigger) hide for your private use, it can be booked for an additional fee and arrangement in advance according to availability.

Every evening and night is a different adventure enhancing the excitement of the experience. The first animals can appear in sight half an hour after arriving at the hides, or sometimes one might have to wait for a couple of hours. During the evening you can see bears and very often wolves, and often also wolverines and sea eagles. There are usually zero no show nights, except for the mating season of early summer.

If you stay in the hide overnight, you leave at 8 am. Breakfast is served at 9 am. During the day, you can rest and enjoy the beautiful nature around Kuikka’s base camp, take a rowing boat on the lake or enjoy a sauna besides the lake or take a swimming tour.

There is no scheduled lunch, but coffee, tea, juices and fruit are available in the main building during the day. You can bring your own snacks, the accommodations are equipped with refrigerators and a microwave oven. The second evening’s program is the same as on the day of arrival. The accommodation facilities are available until 12 o’clock noontime on the day of departure.

Meals at Kuikka base camp are Finnish home style food served from a small buffet. The main course is usually meat, sometimes fish. Breakfast includes omelette, yogurt, bread and cold cuts. Coffee and tea are available from morning to evening.

Accommodation facilities are 2-4 person rooms with bunk beds. Showers and toilets are shared between a few rooms. Bed linen and towels are included in the Safari price.

For an additional fee, you can rent camera bodies and telephoto lenses, sleeping bags, binoculars and as well mountain bikes. Many people have come to the safari with the idea of ”Once in a lifetime”, but ending up booking the next summer’s Safari even before they left for home.

The price of the two-day experience is 670 euros/person and it
includes everything at Kuikka base camp:

• Accommodation, and bed linen (shared showers and toilets)
• Meals and snacks at the hide
• a special place in the hide (going up by your own car, the distance is about 10 km on a sand road)
• Päivi’s guide and tour leader services at Kuikka

Available for rent:

Camera body, telephoto lens, binoculars, sleeping bag, mountain bike 30 % discount for customers under 16 years staying in the same room with their parents.

The safari reservation is confirmed by paying the reservation fee, which is 20% of the entire safari price. The booking fee is non- refundable, but the Safari can be rescheduled according to availability. The final payment is due before the safari. Wildlife Safaris Finland will send the invoice by email.