It’s crazy to think that this time last year Dan and I were busy planning our 5 month journey from our old home in Thailand to our new one in Norway. We planned to fly to Beijing and then travel overland through Mongolia and Russia into Europe, which meant that we would be spending the coldest months of winter in Mongolia and Siberia. Totally smart, right?
Actually, in retrospect our trip was timed pretty perfectly. We got to see Mongolia and Russia in their winter glory, and by springtime we were quickly heading south for some beach time in the Balkans before the summer crowds hit. That said, there are a few things I wish I had known before venturing out with my backpack into the frosty unknown.
The magic of nonslip boots or attachable grips
Perfectly crisp, powdery snow is lovely to walk in. But once the temperature rises a bit it will melt, and then probably freeze again, transforming whole cities into ice rinks. I mean, ice is still lovely, but when you’re lugging 15 kilos around on your back? It’s not the best.
My boots actually fared quite well on the ice – plus I guess it helps that I had lots of practice on ice growing up in New England – but Dan was slipping and falling all over the place.
A few weeks ago attachable ice grips started popping up in shoe stores around Trondheim, and as soon as I saw them I couldn’t believe we hadn’t thought of bringing these on our trip last year. They’re small and light and would have made all those walks through icy cities SO much more bearable. Plus they only cost around $10. Seriously, if you are headed anywhere icy this winter do yourself a favor and pack these.
I can bring tons of sweaters, but I’m just going to wear my warmest one anyway
Every time I pack for a cold weather trip I stress over fitting all my favorite sweaters into my backpack, but the truth is, when I’m dealing with arctic temperatures the only sweater I’m going to wear is that 100% wool one that my friends say makes me smell like sheep. It might sound gross to wear the same sweater everyday, but there are so many layers between it and my body that I think it’s fine (plus that whole it’s always just going to smell like sheep anyway thing). Next time I’ll save the space and only bring my warmest sweater.
Face it, I’m going to get sick
I’m usually quite healthy and (annoyingly) optimistic, which can be a dangerous combination when it comes to packing medicine, because it means I never do. Tylenol? Cough medicine? Who needs it, I’ll be fine!
So, I actually do think it’s unnecessary to lug around your drug cabinet in your backpack, as most places you’ll have pretty easy access to a pharmacy.
Until you find yourself with a high fever and unbearable cough in the middle of Mongolia, and regardless of how you pronounce Tylenol and paracetamol, no one seems to have a clue what you’re asking for. Instead you end up downing a mysterious gray powder that gives you a splitting headache.
The lesson? Maybe traveling with a few packs of cold medicine isn’t such a bad idea after all.
If I’m in the north, it’s going to be very dark
Okay, I spent enough Christmases in Norway growing up to already know this. But I’m including it here because yesterday while Christmas shopping in town (family, get excited!) I gave directions to a German girl who was thoroughly miffed at how dark Trondheim is now, especially considering how we’re still technically in southern Norway. I guess it’s easy to forget that even if you’re not in the far north, December can be pretty dark in a lot of places – Trondheim gets around 4 hours of daylight in December.
Of course the consolation is that you’ll have an even better chance of spotting the Northern Lights!
I’m not going to want to be outside for long
While backpacking, I usually spend most of my days simply walking around the places I’m visiting, which means being outside pretty much all day. This is usually great, but when you can’t step outside without your eyelashes freezing, it becomes… less great. I hadn’t realized that traveling in the winter would change my travel style so much, but I found myself constantly trying to come up with excuses to stop in at cafes, shops, puppet theaters, even museums! I know, crazy.
On particularly cold days Dan and I had to switch out our aimless wandering for more carefully planned visits to warm spots around town.
Roads might be closed
The thing about snow and ice is that they like to stick to roads. So dumb, I know!
There were a few times when Dan and I would map out a route, only to realize that the roads we were planning to take were closed for the winter. In fact, this even happened in the mountains of Montenegro – in May! We hitchhiked up a mountain and ended up having to turn around and take a much longer route to Durmitor because the roads were still closed for the winter (luckily hitchhiking in Montenegro is super easy, so we still made it to Durmitor before nightfall!).
People will be way nicer to me
Traveling off peak can help to save costs and avoid crowds, but I hadn’t realized that people would also be so surprised and pleased to see us as well! Seriously, people were SO nice to us while we traveled through Siberia in February. They seemed to think we were insane for visiting in the winter, but somehow their surprise at seeing tourists helped break the ice (oh ha ha, get it?) and we ended up making friends with lots of random locals – even with my questionable Russian skills!
So if you’re starting to feel nervous about an upcoming trip, rest assured it will be awesome! Just remember to bring those attachable ice grips for your boots…
Do you enjoying traveling in the winter? Any advice to add?
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A Beautiful Weekend in Budapest – in Spring!
Lisa says
Thank you for this article! I’m going to Norway in January and I had no idea what to expect as I’ve never traveled in winter before. The article is informative and yet fun to read! You also saw the Northern Lights, which must have been amazig! I hope to get the same chance in a month 🙂
Silvia says
Oh that’s so exciting, I hope you do spot the Northern Lights! Norway is just magical in winter, I’m sure you’ll love it 🙂
Joella says
I had no idea those shoe grip things even existed- but I definitely could have used those in the past. What a great idea! Only 4 hours of daylight is pretty harsh- but I bet the extra long summer days are lovely.
Silvia says
I think it definitely helps that the shortest days are during the Christmas season, so everything is sparkly and cozy looking!
Naomi says
Excellent blog post. Awesome recap! Any advice for electric hair after wesring a hat all day? Or advice on how to look good after having a hat on for the biggest portion of the day? 🙂 off to dublin tomorrow so might need that advice.
Silvia says
I bring lotion with me everywhere in the winter because my skin gets really dry, but dabbing your hair with a bit of lotion also helps to fix the static fly aways! Or you could carry real hair product with you, haha. And I’m a huge fan of dry shampoo, which will keep your hair from getting flat and greasy under that hat. I actually just sprinkle cornstarch in my hair, but if you have darker hair that might not work, just go for normal dry shampoo (wow I sound like such a weirdo with my fake hair products). Have fun in Dublin, it will be so beautiful now!
sabrina barbante says
Gasp! The issues of trying to look as cute as possible even in winter trips is something difficult when you are
1 – A South (deep south) Italian girl – in my city. Lecce, there are 15 degrees right now –
2 – A curly big big haired girl
3 – a dry skinned gipsy
When I went to Stockolm in mid december I looked so funny! Then I’ve learned a couple of tricks, such as jojoba oil both for dry skin and hair tops and… straightening my hair because in this way I’ll need to wash them less often and they can fit better under the wooden hat.
Very nice article, as usual. Thank you for sharing!
Silvia says
Haha that sounds like this pales Scandinavian when she ventures into hot climates – I always look a disaster when it’s hot out, while in the cold I’m much more in my element! I love the jojoba oil trick though, so smart!
Jo @ Where Did You Go Jo says
Ah this was so helpful!!! I’m traveling through Europe in January and February and have been so nervous about the cold weather and what to expect because my last time there was in May! I will definitely be picking up those ice grips, I didn’t even know those were a thing. Thanks for this post!
Silvia says
Those ice grips will save you! I really love Europe in the winter – it’s so beautiful and much quieter – so I’m sure you’ll have a lovely trip!
Patricia says
I happen to live in Sweden and every summer when it finally starts to get warm, I leave for the Arctic. I can really relate to all the pieces of advice that you list. It’s possible to travel in winter, but you have to adapt your travel style to it 🙂
Silvia says
Haha that’s awesome! I’m definitely happier in colder places as well 🙂
Michelle @ Mishfish13 says
I didn’t even know ice grips were a THING! Definitely helpful to know if I ever find myself traveling in the REALLY cold countries.
Silvia says
Haha yeah I’ve only seen them in shops in Norway, so I was excited to see that Amazon also has them for so cheap! Definitely a lifesaver.
Kaelene @Unlocking Kiki says
I really need to get a pair of shoe grips, two winters in I don’t want to spend a third slipping around!
Silvia says
Haha right? I’ve fallen on my bum in public just a few too many times.
Our Wanders says
This list is awesome, especially those shoe grips – never thought such thing exists!
If it’s winter and travel, then it should include skiing for us! And our second favorite winter activity is drinking hot chocolate while it’s snowing outside. 😀
Silvia says
You just named two of my all time favorite activities! I’m excited to get to teach Dan to ski this winter 🙂
Our Wanders says
Oh you should definitely teach him, sure you’ll have fun!
Meghan says
I am so getting a pair of ice grips. Before traveling I lived my whole life in New York/New England and I still don’t know how to walk in the winter without falling all over the place. Great list and very inspiring! I keep wanting to spend the winter in the mountains or maybe Alaska but I have been talking myself out of it. I’m bookmarking this for reference and for inspiration!
Silvia says
Ooh winter in Alaska would probably be amazing! I’ll be spending this winter up in the mountains, so you can see if I survive and plan accordingly, haha.
Bailey @ Weekends & Wanders says
I love how candid this post is! I’m right there with you on the whole warmest sweater thing. Try as I might to look cute in the winter, I just end up looking like a very fluffy marshmallow and I guess that’s ok! My winter boots are pretty slip-resistant, but I love the idea of those shoe grips!
Silvia says
I just tell myself that the pretty rosy (frostbitten) cheeks make up for the gross sweater, haha.
Bailey @ Weekends & Wanders says
Haha something like that! And there is something to be said about cold hands and warm hot chocolate 🙂
becky hutner says
A lot of this is quite pertinent to my recent move to the UK. Ok so it’s not Siberia but for me, it’s been bloody cold! Do you think hip Londoners would look at me funny if I started rocking the ice grips?
Silvia says
I’m guessing slipping all over the place will get you more funny looks than the grips, but then again those Londoners really are so hip. Maybe you can pass ice grips off as hipster though, like an ugly woolen sweater?
jennifer says
Ice grips! The most obvious invention and yet I never thought of it or that it would exist. Those would be so helpful in my neighborhood of Brooklyn where people do not shovel and the sidewalks turn to solid ice. Normally anyway. Today was 65 degrees. Something something global warming…
Silvia says
Right? My mom has some that she bought in Norway that she always wears during winter in Massachusetts, but it didn’t occur to me that they might sell them in the U.S. as well until I checked Amazon – you need to get some! Except for the whole global warming thing…
Justine says
Great timing with this post! So I’m headed somewhere REALLY cold. And given that I’ve never lived or traveled in a place with freezing weather I’m at a loss for what to pack. Do you have any recommendations on brands for leggings and coats/jackets? Thanks!!
Silvia says
I don’t think the brand matters so much, as long as everything has wool in it! Seriously, there is nothing warmer, the higher the percentage wool the better. Wool sweaters, wool tights and leggings, wool coats (or down coats if it’s a parka). Uniqlo also has some good heat tech warm underwear, though again I prefer woolen leggings. Haha obsessed! Um, pretty excited to hear where you’re headed 🙂
Jordan says
This is a great article! I’ll be heading off to Europe in February. I’m worried about the cold weather (well, it’ll be nothing like what you are describing here! It seems that the average will be the 40’s – 60’s). I plan to just wear layer upon layer. I’m from Miami, so I’m a foreigner to cold!
Silvia says
Layers will be your best friend! And at least in the 40s to 60s you’ll still be comfortable being outside a lot, as long as you have a nice coat/layers. I actually think February is an excellent time to travel in Europe because there won’t be many tourists – have fun!