The mine in Kiruna, Northern Sweden, is the world’s largest iron ore mine. It’s also where you’ll find Per Geijer, Europe’s largest known deposit of REE, rare earth elements. At this mine, the world’s most modern, they’re moving an entire city because of mining-related subsidence. The move started in 2004 and is still ongoing. The Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara AB (LKAB for short) mine has a visitor center – UNDERGROUND – and is so big that you’ll get there on a bus too! If you’re visiting Kiruna, taking a road trip around the Nordic countries, or just up here in Sweden’s northernmost province of Lapland you should consider coming on a Kiruna Mine Tour – it’s fascinating, and one of the best things to do in Kiruna!
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After our fabulous 2 days in Stockholm, which marked the start of our Nordics Road Trip we rented a car (our guide to renting a car in Sweden is here), took the Stockholm to Turku ferry, explored Helsinki, and then toured through Finland, driving all the way up to Kiruna (don’t worry we had lots of stops along the way). Our final destination is back down in Stockholm, but first, our exploration has taken us to Sweden’s most northerly City of Kiruna. And we’re here for a very good reason and it’s miles underground.
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Book a room at the Arctic Best Western in Kiruna to stay for your mine tour and explore around Kiruna
A Brief Early History of Kiruna
The region around Kiruna has been inhabited for more than 6,000 years, but the city wasn’t founded until 1900. It happened then because although the local Sami people had known there was iron ore here for centuries it wasn’t until 1878 that a process was developed that allowed for ore and the phosphorus around it to be separated. Then, in 1884 came a concession for the building of a railway on which to export the iron ore. Previous exports of ore mined in summer had been made in winter using reindeer and horses to drag sleds. It wasn’t until 1898 that the decision to extend the railway to Narvik in Norway – an ice-free port for the export of the ore. The mining company LKAB had been formed in 1890 and the railway finally made it to Kiruna on 15th October 1899.
It was the chairman and CEO of LKAB, Gustaf Broms who suggested the name of the city be Kiruna – which means rock ptarmigan in both Sámi and Finnish.
Aside from the mine, Kiruna is most well-known around the world for its ice hotel, which has been built here every winter since 1990. You can also visit during the summer months, but the ice hotel is rebuilt completely every December with blocks of ice from the Torne River. It’s about 17 kilometers (10.5 miles) from Kiruna.
What to Expect on the Kiruna Mine Tour
The mine tour in Kiruna is 100% ticket only and there are tours in both English and Swedish. If you cannot find a space on an English-speaking tour you can only join the Swedish tour if you can understand Swedish. The tour starts at the tourist information center in Kiruna where you’ll have to check in and wait for the tour guide and the bus that will transport you to the mine.
You must arrive on time. If you are not there at the departure time the bus does not wait and your ticket will be sold to someone else. I’m pretty sure that there are zero no-shows, as this tour is pretty popular. There are no refunds for no-shows.
On the English-speaking tour, you’ll get a fluent English-speaking guide, ours was incredibly engaging and knew the answer to all the questions we all had, bar one. And she radioed in, found the missing answer, and relayed it to us all before the end of the tour.
Going from the Tourist Information Center in Kiruna to the Mine
During the bus journey, your tour guide will relay a barrage of information about iron ore mining and the Kiruna mine specifically. As you pass particular landmarks they will point them out to you. As the world’s largest underground iron ore mine, the work of mining takes place, well, underground.
You’ll first of all hop onto the bus – it’s a regular-sized bus, and to be honest it doesn’t matter which side you sit on, or how near the front you get, because no one on the tour can go anywhere without the guide. You’ll drive down from the tourist information center, and across towards the mine before heading into the mine itself.
There’s a proper road inside the mine, and there are other vehicles – like normal cars – driving up and down all the time and then you’ll arrive at the visitor center. The road inside the mine is wide enough for two vehicles to pass each other. It’s just like being on a normal road!
The Kiruna Mine Visitor Center
The mine visitor center is also underground. It’s 540 meters (1771 feet) underground to be exact and the temperature here varies between 8 degrees and 12 degrees Celsius (46.4 to 53.6 Fahrenheit). This is no ordinary visitor center, as I already mentioned it is located 540 meters below the surface, but it also covers a vast 20,000 meters square (65,616 feet).
It’s also located about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) inside the mine. Once you’re all off the bus, then you’ll enter the visitor center and get to select your own safety helmet, but aside from that the only person wearing specific safety gear is the tour guide.
This is where you’ll get a safety briefing about the mine and what happens, but the basic concept of safety is 1) don’t wander off 2) do as you’re told 3) if something happens follow the tour guide, and anyone else who works at the mine.
There’s a huge auditorium and a mining display with authentic artifacts. There’s even WiFi down here. And yes. It works. And it’s free.
The guide gives a presentation on how iron ore is extracted, and what’s done with iron ore to create sponge iron. It’s called sponge iron as the resultant iron has a surface with holes on it, looking a bit like a sponge.
The visitor center also has a museum of old mining artifacts and newer mining equipment too – and some of these machines are quite simply enormous. And yes, you can climb into and onto many of the pieces of equipment. If you can’t, there’s a sign detailing that.
Mining here at Kiruna is currently done at a level of 1365 meters.
Coffee and Cookies at 540 meters Underground
Not only is there an enormous visitor center down here underground in LKAB, but there’s also a small cafeteria, where your ticket to the mine tour includes coffee, soft drinks, and cookies. There’s also a free gift of iron pellets.
The cookies are excellent and the coffee was good and strong. Also don’t miss the quirky exhibit at the back of the coffee shop, where you can see the lift for ore being moved to the surface shooting up and down rather quickly. It is quick, but I managed to catch in the video below!
After you’re done with coffee and cookies, then you’ll have a little more time to wander around the exhibits before getting back on the bus and returning to the tourist information center to end your tour.
How is iron ore mined in Kiruna?
Iron ore is mined from a mountain called Kiirunavaara here in Kiruna and it has been for more than 120 years. This is the world’s largest iron ore mine, and the seam of iron ore that remains is still considered to be the largest on earth.
The iron ore seam is more than 80 meters (262 feet) wide and down about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles). It runs at an angle of 60 degrees to the ground and is disk-shaped.
Every day they mind 76,000 tons of ore from this mine. And it’s expected to be able to continue producing, even at the level that they’re mining (1365 meters or 4478 feet) for another 20 years, or more. Once the ore is extracted it’s made into the pellets that you’ll see in the mine (and can take a sample away with you).
The pellets are then taken to Sweden’s port of Luleå (on Sweden’s east coast) and Norway’s port of Narvik where they’re shipped out.
Much of the mining here is automated, although there are still several hundred people employed by the mine. The start of the operation comes with a remotely controlled drilling rig, which drills holes into the ceilings of the drifts (tunnels). Explosive is pumped into these holes and a blast is scheduled for 02:00 every morning.
It’s one great reason for staying the night in Kiruna. Because yes, you will hear or feel it. We recommend the Best Western Arctic Eden – with its great facilities, fabulous pool, and comfortable rooms. You can check rates and book a room here.
The ore is then collected and transported to crushes, where it’s smashed into 10-centimeter (3.93-inch) pieces and then processed into pellets.
FAQs about the Kiruna Mine Tour
Here are the questions we had about the mine tour in Kiruna, and the answers that we found out. If you’ve got questions that we haven’t answered about our experience, then add a comment and we’ll add the answer in for you.
Is the Kiruna Mine Tour worth it?
Definitely. This is a fun thing to do in Kiruna. We’ve visited mines in England, Australia, and Bolivia and this is incredibly different and simply enormous. While I’m aware this is a public relations exercise from LKAB, it’s also a great way to understand more about the economics of this region and the history too.
How to book a Kiruna Mine Tour
You can book tickets inside the tourist information offices in Kiruna, or online at the Kiruna Tourism website here. I would recommend booking AS SOON AS THE TOURS BECOME AVAILABLE.
The tours only run on certain days outside the summer season and the number of tours each week differs throughout the year. You can check the booking site here.
What language do the tours of the Kiruna mine run in?
There are tours all year round, but outside of the summer season, they are run only in English. During the summer season, there are also tours in Swedish.
When can you take the Kiruna Mine Tour?
There is usually one tour a week outside of the summer, but usually during the summer season, there are two in English each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Our English-speaking tour left at 14:00 and we were back in Kiruna outside the tourist information center at 17:00.
When can you book a Kiruna Mine Tour?
The Kiruna Mine Tours aims to open booking for summer tours in 2024 at the end of April. Keep checking the link here to see when it’s live.
How much does the Kiruna Mine Tour Cost?
The cost of the Kiruna mine tour is
- 495 SEK for adults
- 395 SEK for students or 65+ seniors
- 150 SEK for children from 6 to 15 years
There’s a minimum age of 6 and a height of 110cm for attendance.
How long does the Kiruna Mine Tour Last?
The Kiruna mine tour lasts about 3 hours, from when you get onto the bus at the tourist information center in Kiruna to when you arrive back there after the tour.
Where to go to start the Kiruna Mine Tour
You’ll need to go to the Kiruna Lappland Tourist Center to start your tour. There is a big parking lot right by the tourist center. Parking is free here, but ALWAYS, in Sweden check that there is no sign indicating that you have to pay for parking. It’s about 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the train station if you’re on public transport, and there are free shuttle buses that will transport you between the two locations. There is luggage storage at the Kiruna Lappland Tourist Center if you arrive and haven’t checked into your hotel in Kiruna before your tour.
What is the temperature in the Kiruna Mine?
The temperature in the area of the mine that you will visit – the visitor center – varies between 8 and 12 degrees Celsius (46.4 and 53.61 Fahrenheit).
What to wear for the Kiruna Mine Tour
There’s no need to wear special boots or clothes, but take a fleece or jacket as it is a little chilly. You’ll be provided with a safety helmet as you enter the visitor center.
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Final Words on Taking a Kiruna Mine Tour in Northern Sweden
If you’re in this part of Northern Sweden, then this is an excellent tour to understand more about the mining of iron ore, the processes, and how it is used, as well as how it impacts the economy and the city of Kiruna. Stay a while and explore Kiruna, and perhaps visit the Ice Hotel too on your trip to Sweden.
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