Ivalo & Saariselkä: Gold Panning in Lapland’s Gold Rush Area｜Finland

Begin your adventure at Kafea Gufihtar café, where your guide welcomes you and shares stories about the history of gold mining in Kuttura and the Lapland gold rush. After the introduction, drive about five minutes to an authentic gold claim where the activity takes place.

At the gold site, learn how to identify gold-bearing layers in the soil and how prospectors search for promising material. Using traditional tools such as shovels, pickaxes, buckets, and gold pans, dig through different soil layers to find material that may contain gold.

Once a promising layer is found, set up a traditional gold sluice together. The guide will show how the sluice works and how gold is trapped in the special mats while lighter material washes away. Take turns feeding material into the sluice and learning how real gold prospecting works in practice.

During the final part of the experience, clean the sluice mats and carefully wash the remaining material using traditional gold pans to reveal any gold particles that may have been captured. If gold is found, receive a small glass bottle to keep your gold as a souvenir from your Lapland gold adventure.

A weather shelter tent is available at the site with drinks and light snacks during the activity, and there is also a toilet at the gold claim.