Skiing in Lapland: Our Family Guide

Skiing in Lapland: Our Family Guide

We didn’t travel to Finnish Lapland specifically for the skiing. But as a family of four who have been skiing for years, there was no way we were going to leave our skis at home. And skiing in Levi turned out to be the perfect addition to our Arctic adventure. When you think about a family trip to Finnish Lapland, skiing probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. Huskies? Yes. Northern Lights? Hopefully. Santa? Of course. Snowmobiles, reindeer and snowshoeing? Absolutely. But skiing? For us, skiing was never really a question. We’ve been skiing as a family for years. The girls learned to ski in Val Cenis in France, and we’ve returned to the mountains together several times since. So when we started planning our Christmas trip to Finnish Lapland, we knew we wanted to keep skiing in the mix. If you’d like to read about where our girls first learned to ski, you can find our experience in [Val Cenis: skiing in France with kids]. We weren’t expecting skiing in Finland to rival the big Alpine resorts. And honestly? It didn’t need to. We already had a very full itinerary. What we wanted was a few hours on the slopes, some beautiful snowy scenery and the chance to enjoy a couple of easy runs together. And Levi was perfect for exactly that. Why we chose Levi We chose Levi as our base partly because of the ski area. But it wasn’t only about the skiing. Levi gave us somewhere to stay for the entire week without constantly moving hotels, while still being close to restaurants, excursions and the slopes. Our apartment was within walking distance of the lifts, which made skiing incredibly easy. No ski bus. No loading everyone into a car. No complicated logistics. We simply put on our ski gear, grabbed our equipment and walked to the slopes. That became one of the things we loved most about Levi. If you’re wondering what else we managed to fit into our week, our [1-Week Finnish Lapland Family Itinerary] gives you the full overview. The skiing is different from the Alps Let’s be honest: if you’re an experienced skier looking for challenging black runs, huge vertical drops and endless kilometres of pistes, Finnish Lapland probably isn’t going to replace the French Alps. The ski areas are smaller and the pistes are generally less challenging than what we’re used to in the Alps. But for us, that really didn’t matter. We weren’t there for a full-on ski holiday. We were there for Lapland. After a morning husky safari, a snowmobile tour or snowshoeing, we weren’t necessarily looking for the most challenging piste we could find. Sometimes we just wanted to clip into our skis and enjoy a beautiful descent. And that was exactly what we did. No pressure. No trying to get as many kilometres in as possible. Just skiing because we enjoy it. Sometimes one descent was enough This is probably the biggest difference between a normal ski holiday and skiing in Lapland. When we go skiing in France or Italy, skiing is one of the main reasons we’re there. We get up, have breakfast and head to the mountain. We ski most of the day, stop for lunch and then ski some more. Lapland was completely different. We might have an excursion in the morning, return to Levi for lunch and then decide: “Shall we go skiing for a couple of hours?” And sometimes the answer was yes. We’d head to the slopes, do a few runs and simply enjoy being outside. It didn’t matter if we weren’t skiing for six hours. We weren’t there to chase kilometres. We were there to enjoy the experience. And then there was the light… Or should I say, the lack of it. This was one of the strangest things about skiing in Lapland. It didn’t really matter whether we arrived at the slopes in the morning, afternoon or even at the beginning of the evening. The piste lights were already on. Because it never really got properly light. Coming from the Netherlands, where we’re used to a normal sunrise and sunset, this took some getting used to. You’d look at the clock and think, Surely it’s still early? But the sky was already dark. Or you’d realise it was only the beginning of the afternoon and the floodlights were lighting up the slopes. It gave skiing a completely different atmosphere. There was something almost surreal about standing at the top of a piste, surrounded by darkness, snow-covered trees and those bright lights illuminating the run ahead of you. And because we were there around Christmas, that darkness was simply part of everyday life. As we wrote in our 1-Week Lapland Itinerary, one of the things that surprised us most was just how little proper daylight there actually was. But after a couple of days, you stop fighting it. You simply get used to it. We rented our skis in Levi We didn’t bring all our ski equipment with us from the Netherlands. Instead, we rented our skis and ski boots in Levi. It made life much easier, particularly because we were travelling with children. There’s something quite liberating about not having to drag four sets of skis, boots and all the associated equipment through airports. We picked everything up locally and were ready to go. And because we were staying close to the slopes, we didn’t need a car or ski bus either. For a trip where you’re already juggling excursions, winter clothing and plenty of luggage, fewer logistics are always a win. Skiing was one of our cheaper activities Another advantage of skiing in Lapland was that we could enjoy something we already loved without having to book another big excursion. Lapland excursions can add up quickly. Husky safaris, snowmobiles, reindeer experiences and other Arctic adventures aren’t cheap. We knew that before we went, which is why we planned our trip carefully. Skiing was something familiar. We knew we enjoyed it, and we didn’t need someone to organise an elaborate experience for us. We could simply go to the slopes. If you’re trying to keep the overall cost of a Lapland holiday under control, our [How to Visit Finnish Lapland on a Budget] has lots of tips on how we approached the trip without booking an expensive package holiday. How we combined skiing with everything else This was probably the best thing about skiing in Levi. We didn’t have to choose. One day looked something like this: Morning: excursion Lunch: back in Levi Afternoon: skiing Dinner: somewhere warm and cosy Evening: check the Northern Lights forecast Another day might be: Morning: skiing Afternoon: another Lapland experience Evening: sauna and Northern Lights hunting And some days? We simply decided based on how everyone felt. That’s particularly important when you’re travelling with children in freezing temperatures. You can’t assume that everyone will still have energy for another activity just because it was in the original itinerary. Our [Lapland with Kids: What We Would Do Differently Next Time] talks more about this. Looking back, we learned that having a plan is useful, but being willing to change it is even more important. What should you wear skiing in Lapland? The obvious answer is: layers. Lots of them. The temperatures around Christmas were seriously cold, and while skiing keeps you moving, the cold becomes very noticeable as soon as you stop. Especially on the lifts. Or when you’re standing at the bottom waiting for the rest of the family. Because we already ski regularly, we had a lot of suitable clothing at home. We didn’t go out and buy an entire Arctic wardrobe just for this trip. Instead, we combined our normal ski gear with proper thermal layers and the additional warm clothing we needed for Lapland. If you’re wondering exactly what we packed – and what we decided wasn’t necessary – have a look at our [Complete Lapland Packing List]. That’s one thing I’d definitely recommend doing before your trip. Don’t underestimate the cold. What about skiing after an excursion? Yes. But only if everyone still has energy. This sounds obvious, but it’s worth saying because it’s very easy to look at a Lapland itinerary and think you can simply stack activities on top of each other. We did plenty of that. Husky safari followed by skiing? We did it. Snowshoeing followed by skiing? We did that too. And because skiing was familiar to us, it didn’t feel like another big organised activity. It was simply something we could do together. That made it a great way to finish some of our busier days. You can read more about our [husky safari in Lapland] if you’re wondering what one of those mornings looked like. Skiing in the Arctic darkness There’s one more thing that made skiing in Levi memorable. The atmosphere. Imagine standing at the top of a piste. It’s dark. Not late-evening dark. Proper Arctic winter dark. The piste lights illuminate the snow, the trees around you are covered in white and there is hardly anyone else around. Then you push off. For us, it was one of those moments where we stopped thinking about the itinerary and simply enjoyed where we were. This wasn’t the Alps. It wasn’t Val Cenis. It wasn’t Italy. It was Lapland. And that’s exactly why we loved it. And then there were the Northern Lights The great thing about being in Lapland during winter is that once you’re finished skiing, the day isn’t necessarily over. Quite the opposite. After dinner we’d check our Aurora app to see whether there was a chance of seeing the Northern Lights. Sometimes we’d go outside and see absolutely nothing. Other nights, we’d get lucky. Our best night was Boxing Day, when we finally saw the green lights dancing across the sky. And that combination is hard to beat: Skiing in the Arctic during the day. Northern Lights at night. If you want to know what our Northern Lights hunt was actually like, read our [Chasing the Northern Lights in Finnish Lapland]. Would we choose Lapland for a ski holiday? If you’re asking whether we’d fly to Finland purely for the skiing, probably not. If you’re asking whether we’d ski again as part of a Lapland family adventure? Absolutely. That’s the difference. The skiing in Levi isn’t necessarily what an experienced Alpine skier would travel halfway across Europe for. But that’s not the point. When you’ve spent the morning driving a snowmobile through a frozen forest or sitting behind a team of huskies, skiing a few relaxed runs in the afternoon is pretty perfect. And when you already have years of skiing experience, there’s something wonderful about being able to simply enjoy a descent. No lessons. No pressure. No need to prove anything. Just the four of us skiing together in the snow. Our Travelicious tip If your family already skis, don’t leave your skis out of your Lapland plans just because the Finnish ski areas are smaller than the Alps. Think of skiing as an extra rather than the main event. You don’t need to ski all day. You don’t even need to ski every day. Fit it around your excursions and see how everyone feels. For us, that’s exactly what made it work. We could spend the morning with huskies, go skiing for a couple of hours in the afternoon and then head out again after dinner to search for the Northern Lights. And that, for us, was the magic of Levi. We didn’t have to choose between a ski holiday and a Lapland adventure. We could have a little bit of both. And if planning all those experiences feels a little overwhelming, [I can create a personalised Lapland itinerary for your family], based on how old your children are, what you want to experience and how much time you have. Because the best Lapland itinerary isn’t the one with the most activities. It’s the one that leaves enough room to stop at the top of a snowy piste, look around and think: Wow. We’re actually skiing in Lapland.