Gällivare sits at the gateway to some of the great wilderness of Europe. The Stora Sjöfallet and Padjelanta national parks are an hour's drive west into the mountains, with hiking routes that connect on to Sarek — Sweden's most remote and trail-less park. Jokkmokk, an hour and a half south by car or train, is the historic Sami centre of Sweden and has the excellent Ájtte museum of Sami culture and the famous February Winter Market.
To the north, Kiruna is two hours by train and is the larger, more visited mining counterpart to Gällivare — currently in the strange process of moving its entire town centre several kilometres east to escape the spreading mine.