Step-by-step walkthrough of picking up your rental at RVN, counter locations, wait times, hidden fees to avoid, and what to inspect before driving away.
Complete Guide: Renting a Car at Rovaniemi Airport
Rovaniemi (RVN) is the busiest rental airport in Lapland. The building is small enough that you walk past every counter on your way to baggage claim, but big enough that, on a Saturday in December, all six rental brands have queues. This guide is the version we wish we had after our first arrival.
Reserve a Rovaniemi pickup with free cancellation
All counters are in the arrivals hall on the ground floor, immediately to the right after the baggage carousel. Hertz, Avis, Sixt, Europcar and Budget run dedicated desks. There is no shuttle, vehicles are parked in the lot directly outside arrivals, 30 seconds' walk.
Counter opening hours follow the flight schedule, not a fixed clock. The last Helsinki arrival is around 23:30 in winter; counters close 30–45 minutes after that. If your flight is delayed past 01:00, call ahead, your reservation may be moved to "key in lockbox" pickup.
December 20 – January 6 (Christmas peak): 30–45 minutes is normal. Pre-register online to skip 15+ min of paperwork.
February ski weeks (Finnish school holidays): 20–30 minutes.
Late-night arrivals: usually no queue, but staff is one person handling everyone, total time per customer can still be 10 minutes.
The Lapland counter pitch script targets four upsells. You almost always do not need three of them:
Excess Waiver / Super CDW (€10–€25/day): the in-counter version is overpriced. If your travel insurance or credit card already covers the rental excess, refuse it. If not, buy it from a third-party (Questor, Insurance4carhire) for roughly half the price.
Pre-paid fuel: always decline. The "convenience" price is 15–25 % above the Neste/St1 station 5 km away. Fill the tank yourself before return.
Personal Accident Insurance (PAI): overlaps with your standard travel insurance. Decline.
Glass & Tyre cover (€5–€10/day): the one upsell worth considering for Lapland. Studded tyres flick stones; cracked windscreens are common in March-April. Take it for spring trips, optional in deep winter.
Run this 90-second check in the parking lot before you sign:
Tyres: confirm studded (nastat) for winter rentals. Walk around all four wheels.
Engine block heater cable: in the boot or front grille. You will need it if outdoor temperatures hit -25 °C.
Ice scraper and traction sand: usually in the boot. If missing, ask before leaving.
Wheel arch damage: photograph all four corners on your phone. Arctic gravel marks appear easily and disputed-on-return charges happen.
Fuel level on contract: match it to the gauge. If it says "Full" but the gauge reads 7/8, ask to amend before signing.
Windscreen chips: common on returned fleet cars. Photograph any chips so they aren't added to your bill at return.
The exit road from RVN's rental lot joins highway 78 at a roundabout. From there, city centre is 9 km / 12 minutes; Santa Claus Village is at the 8 km mark; the E75 north to Sodankylä starts at the city ring. Read more on the RVN airport page or check our winter driving guide if this is your first Arctic drive.