Real advice to make your family holiday in the snow an affordable success by speaking through experience. We have essentially made the mistakes so you don’t have to.

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Unforgettable.Finland's largest ski resort and a beautiful and peaceful Lapland location.

Lapland in the tourism sense seems to heavily focus on Finnish Lapland although the true meaning of Lapland encompasses Finland, Sweden, Norway and Russia. Before we visited I did research Swedish Lapland to keep costs down but settled on Finnish Lapland with TUI mainly due to direct flights.

The capital of Finnish Lapland is Rovaniemi, with a population of 60,000 however we wanted a more authentic experience and opted for Levi with a population of 600. There are other options in Saariselkä with an even smaller population and rural location.

Levi was a beautiful location and I would not hesitate to return. It felt remote, had a good blend of eating options for lunch, activities and a big bonus for us is that Levi is home to Finland’s largest ski resort. An added bonus was the 15 minute transfer time from the airport after a 3 and a half hour flight.

When to go

Many people visit in December as part of the build up to Christmas, but be aware this is when the trip is likely to be the most expensive. In truth the first snow in Levi arrives by middle of November at the latest, with the ski season running until early May which gives you an indication of snow cover. LeviLapland on Instagram, always post when the first snow arrives and they also have some unsanitary pictures of people kissing reindeers.

We opted to go over Christmas as bizarrely, at the time, this was the cheapest option, excluding January, with regards to a package holiday, presumably due to the extra planning involved.

We went for 4 nights. I could not imagine what we’d have felt like doing it in less time. As I explain in the section below, if you have a hard journey due to the conditions then that could have an even bigger effect on a shorter trip. If you opt for the day trip, be aware that this will be tiring.

Remember that from 10th December to 3rd January Levi is in Polar Night, meaning the sun does not come up. It does get some light for up to 3 hours depending on the weather but if you get seasonal affective disorder, please bear this in mind. Also remember that the further North you go in Finland, the longer the Polar Night will be.

Getting There

Direct flights are a must. Whilst it is possible to arrange your own flights this is likely to be at a time that is not desirable.

It’s worth noting that Finland is 2 hours ahead of the UK which doesn’t sound like much but in 4 days you basically don’t adjust. Therefore, not to state the obvious but we got up around 8am which was actually 6am UK time.

Accommodation

We stayed at the Sirkantahti Hotel in Levi (see below). On first appearances it was very pleasant and only an 8 minute walk to Zero Point, which is at the bottom of a ski slope in the center, where lots of people sledge.

At times of high demand, the hotels will sub let people’s holiday apartments. Therefore we were in a separate block 4 minutes away from the Sirkantahti which meant a 12 minute walk to Zero Point.

The tip here is to check with your hotel where you are actually staying. Truly, Levi is fantastic in that there are sledges dotted around the town that are free to use. This is great in that you can use the sledges to pull the kids around town, negating any walking time.

The accommodation was an Economy apartment (see below) and therefore quite basic. It did have a sauna but be careful, lots of people have set the fire alarm off when using it which results in a fine. The steps upstairs were steep so the kids had to sleep downstairs, but they did love going upstairs as they said it felt like a treehouse. The drying cupboard was a huge plus.

n hindsight Levi Hotel and Spa, for its swimming pools, or Levi Panorama, for its remote location, would have been our preferred choices. I’ll discuss Levi Panorama in more detail in the activity section. However, we were constrained by the fact that as a family of 5, these salubrious hotels only cater for families of 4.

Eating

As stated in the previous section, we were half board as we were concerned about the cost of food in Finland. This possibly saved us a lot of money, however, be aware you are bound to meal times.

I’m always a fan of choosing where to eat on an evening. However, a breakfast option is always worth considering if you are confident this can fill you up meaning you only need a light lunch. Food and drink is more expensive in Finland. A pint was €10, a large pizza €17.

The kids wanted to try the pancake house, Pannukakkutalo Levi, however it was extremely popular as was the secret Cafe Laavu near Levi Panorama. Even the walk and mystery to find Cafe Laavu is worth it though, the start of the path is at (what 3 words) ///flattened.observance.blurry. More information on which gondola to get to reach Cafe Laavu, can be found in the activities section.

We did have a nice snack in the Cafe at Zero Point near the ski hire (the kids loved the bakery type snacks) and the pizza at Levi Panorama was fantastic. In truth, there are lots of options to eat out.

Clothing

TUI rent you snow boots and a thermal suit included in the price. This was a huge secondary reason for choosing TUI. Little did I realise that when we visited Lapland, something awoke within us a family that meant we felt drawn to snowy destinations. Had I known this at the time I would have purchased our own boots and ski pants / salopettes. That would have meant that you could put your coat on last minute and take your coat off as soon as you entered a warm building. However, there is a cost to that, not to mention the space that the kit takes up in luggage.

When we visited the temperature was colder (-25 °C) than ASDA’s freezers (-17 °C). Therefore this is what you would need to wear when out and about:

Activities

Santa’s Workshop

The main reason to visit Lapland is to see The Big Man. I can honestly say it was one of the best things we’ve ever done as a family. The kids loved, it was fascinating to watch their faces throughout the experience. This was arranged for us by TUI and included in the price to a specific site and was incredible, but you can arrange it yourself to another site.

We met Mrs Claus, visited Elf School, had a tour of the Post Office at the North Pole, met the reindeers and even had a play in the Elves Bedroom. Then we got to meet Father Christmas. The whole experience for us was expertly organised and very professional and as you would expect, highly centred around the kids and can last a good few hours. I can’t convey however, how magical it still is for the kids.

Before we went, someone gave us a huge tip to put the icing on the cake of the whole experience which if you message on Instagram I will reveal. I don't want to give anything away to any children.

Husky ride

Another draw of TUI at the time of booking was the inclusion of some taster activities. We opted not to do this as the kids were tired after the journey. Some family we travelled with did though. They said it was a short ride being pulled by huskies.

Sledging

Given that there are free sledges everywhere we opted to go sledging for free instead by Levi Panorama. You can do it onto the frozen lake by Zero Point at the bottom of the ski slopes or at Kids’ Land, they have a heated hut here for kids to warm up in if they get cold and different sledges to use for free.

To get to Levi Panorama you need to go up the far right hand gondola (Levi Express) at Zero Point which felt like an adventure for all the family. You can actually see the gondola on the Zero Point webcam. Just remember it’s the gondola, not the chair lift. Tickets are available in the Zero Point building at the counter or at the self service machine, the prices are €14 return per adult and €10.50 return for children aged 6-11. If you stay at Levi Panorama you actually get free tickets. The gondola is free 6-9pm or you can take the 700 odd stairs up. As Levi Panorama is higher up, it feels like another world, like you’ve entered a snow globe. It’s remote, quiet, beautiful and has a great view.

This is a great place to explore and as written about above there are refreshments available in Levi Panorama and Spiella Café. We found a great, medium sized slope nearby which was perfect for sledging with kids, (what 3 words) = ///requiring.rudder.downing.

Webcam

This sounds like a strange title for an activity but it’s a bit of fun. We spent longer than we should have trying to get people at home to see us on the Zero Point Webcam which the kids enjoyed.

Northern lights

I was aware that we might not see the Northern Lights but I wasn’t aware that more often than not you see them with your phone on night mode and not your eyes. We got a babysitter and booked a snowmobile trip to hunt for the lights through Get Your Guide. They pick you up from your hotel around 7pm and drop you back around 11pm and give you a small snack around a fire in a cabin. The trip was well organised. The snowmobile had heated seats and handles but it was surprisingly hard on the muscles to steer. Be aware there are no refunds if you don’t see the lights.

If you look at the sky and see slight discolouration and you get a strange feeling. Whip your phone out and take a photo on night mode. The result is below. Whilst you are more likely to see them in a remote location, the tip here is that you just need to be in the right place at the right time. We weren’t outside at night that much and so were very lucky. Obviously the more time you spend outside at night the higher your chances.

Skiing

Finally, as previously mentioned, Levi is home to Finland’s largest ski resorts. The piste map is interactive and available here, ski pass prices here, rental here. I have skied 15 years previously and really wanted to spend some time teaching the kids but there simply wasn’t time. I hired skis for 3 hours for €30 and skied down from Levi Panorama at the end of our sledging afternoon. I didn’t need a pass as I had already paid for my ticket on the Levi Express Gondola.

This was at the end of the holiday and is where this blog will end. However, that sole run was so exhilarating that it kickstarted our family holidays to snow based resorts to ski.