Levi Finland - advice for beginners

A snowHead

Hi Guys,

First family snow holiday hopefully coming up in January 2022. We are heading to Levi in Finland so was looking for any advice from people who have been there. Three kids (12,10,7) who have not been on skiis before but are excited to try. It looks like ski school is 1.5 hours a day, any idea what one does after that? do they need to have ski passes and rental skis to try it out themselves? I have boarded before and will be again, so no clue about skis, so won't be any help to them. The older two could take boarding lessons, but I think it might be better for all three to do the same thing?

It's not just a ski / board holiday as my wife doesn't really like skiing so there will be plenty of other things done too.

Just wanted to get a rough idea how the skiing with kids works in Levi. Was planning maybe 5 days of skiing and then different activities the rest of the time.

Budget is not endless so will have to be selective on some activities - for example we were in Rovaniemi two years ago and did a dog sled tour, which was brilliant but cost the same as a weeks ski pass for the whole family, so won't be doing that again.

I searched through the older threads and found some good advice, just seeing if anyone has anything extra to add.

Not sure if there is any ice skating around, google not helping much. Any other activities to do, like hikes and nice places to visit. I have a rental car booked and we are staying in a cabin on the north side of town, on the ski bus route.

Thanks all, any and all advice is appreciated.

A snowHead

I've not been and have zero kids, but I lived in Finland and skied/ snowboarded in the south. You'll find skating pretty much everywhere and anywhere. There are Jäähalli in the towns, but there were also massive "Gorky Park" style outdoor rinks in winter. Skating outdoors at night in 15cm of fresh powder is an experience not quickly forgotten.

I'm sure lessons will be high quality and taught in good English.
I reckon it'd be a brilliant place to be a kid.

Chapter 2 of this (remove space to look at it) YouTube video features Ruka (6:20 on) and looks to me to be typical of the terrain/ light/ snow conditions you're likely to find:
https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=dfg_cLwwiZc

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Thanks Philwig, I'm off to google Jaahalli now.

You need to Login to know who's really who.

sounds like a similar approach to lessons to Norway where I went when my kids were young, shortish lessons by alps standards, but high quality, no time wasted.

They had skied a few times before so in the afternoon we skied in manageable groups with another family. But there will be a nursery slope they can practice stuff by themselves / with you that they were taught in the ski lessons, when you aren't doing non skiing stuff.

you will have ski passes and rental skis for the week anyway so i don't understand that comment

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Thanks t44tomo.

Wasn't sure if skis / passes were included with lessons in general. I guess they are not! So that answers that for me.

Nursery slope sounds good for some practice.

You'll need to Register first of course.

We went to Yllas but my sister in law did Levi and the set-up sounds the same, she went with kids who learnt there and loved it.

Basically lessons in the morning, bit of skiing after that whilst it's still light enough and then most other activities from mid afternoon onwards when it's getting darker. People did cross country skiing right into late evening as the tracks were lit.

We did Skidoo trips, husky sledging and snow shoe walking. All were good fun. but the highlight was getting lucky re the Aurora. We went out on Skidoos, parked on a frozen lake had an incredible view of the northern lights. Expensive but truly magical. You probably know from your previous trip but there are Apps that forecast the strength of the Aurora so make sure you have one of them. A few times we saw a faint Aurora from our hotel room.

IIRC Lift passes were cheap and alcohol was v expensive.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Done Levi and Ruka in Finland. Levi is quite large by Scandinavian standards but good skiing to learn on. One thing is it can get very very cold. Ruka at weekend was -20 and xc racing was cancelled until later in the day. Don't underestimate this when kitting everyone out! We went on a Santa day trip from Ruka, it was -27. I remember parts of Levi being quite exposed but it's truly a winter wonderland

After all it is free

Thanks all, super advice. We were in Rovaniemi in December but got lucky with the weather, hovered around -1 to -5 with lots of cloud cover, but also lots of snow. Expecting very very cold so everyone has multiple layers that can be added as needed.

Going for two weeks in the hope of getting a window to see the aurora. half the expense is getting there so figured we may as well maximise our chances once we are there.

Anyone have any ideas on a low intermediate snow boarder looking after three beginner kids on the slopes - again, all advice greatly appreciated.

Hi,

Sadly I think there’s no ice rink inside (arena) or outside in Levi, the nearest is in the town of Kittilä about 20 mins from Levi, near the airport.

If you have a car, you could visit SnowVillage, a hotel/snow castle made of, well… snow. It’s about 30 miles / 45 km / 35 minutes from Levi towards Ylläs. We visited it last year and it was a nice activity for a half day. We all loved it, such a funny feeling being inside a large building made of snow, there’s awesome ice sculptures etc. It’s kind of in a middle of nowhere so you’ll defo need a car or pay a taxi like 150 euros for a round trip. If you’re there by car you could check out Ylläs while you’re there as well.

If you’ve done the husky safari already there’s not much point doing it again as it is expensive (both the people and the dogs need to live). But there’s a place about 15 minutes drive away north of Levi that has huskies, reindeer, wolves (actually more like 50/50 dog/wolf crossbreed), arctic foxes etc like in a petting zoo. I’ve forgotten the name of the place though (edit: it’s just called Levi Husky Park).

You could rent snowshoes which are cheap as chips, about 10 euros for a day. There’s a decent hill across a lake within a walking distance, maybe a mile from Levi, called Kätkätunturi, which you can climb on the paths or off them in the snow. Take some sausages with you and cook them in an open fire near the top where there’s a fire pit and a nice view. You might need matches but there’s wood there, or most probably someone has made a fire already.

If it’s really, really cold just go bowling or to the spa, they’re located in the same building near the centre of the village.

Edits made: fixed the name of the hill next to Levi to Kätkätunturi (was Rakkavaara which is not a hill but an area of log cottages etc.) and added the name of the husky park / zoo.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

Actually now that I think of it I might have seen an ice rink at the school’s yard next to the football field. If my memory serves me correct and there is one, it’s a part of the school’s premises and not open to everyone during the day but free to use after school hours. You’ll need your own skates though or find another place in the village that rents them.

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

Thanks Ravensburger,

Really appreciate you taking the time to reply. I've noted all of those suggesting. We have a car for the duration of our stay so will be able to check out all of those ideas.

Snowshoeing sounds great indeed. I'll google the petting farm too, the kids love a good cuddle with an animal, but maybe not the wolves!

I found the ice rink in Kittila alright thanks to the suggestion of the Finnish name from Philwig above.

snow reports

Haha, they don’t let you in that particular enclosure where they keep the wolf/dog thingies. Even feeding them was left to the personnel. But the foxes were cute!

Checked Google Maps and there is indeed an open ice rink by the school just north of Levi, between the football field and the lake.

This is super useful, as we are off to Levi for Christmas (Dec 19-26) with Crystal.

We have booked Seagrave Jnr into skischool, but we’ll need some non ski stuff to do, too - the husky park sounds like an absolute winner. Obvs we are ver excited to meet Santa (at an appropriate social distance!)

LS

You know it makes sense.

Looks like the petting zoo is closed (from my google searches anyway).

Found this useful blog about Northern Lights hunting: https://www.laplandthemagazine.com/how-to-see-aurora-borealis-in-levi-lapland/

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

A snowHead

thanks Ravensburger,

I'll fire them an email nearer the time.

A snowHead

We've been to Levi 3 time now although it's always been in February half-term which is when they open up the whole fell for skiing as the days lengthen. It is a great place to learn to ski, beautifully maintained pistes, little or no queuing, many wide and gentle slopes to really improve on, locals who speak perfect English & a fantastic landscape in which to do it. There is the possibility of seeing the Northern Lights, if you have a car a drive out of town to lie in the snow whilst they swirl above your head would make fantastic family memories. We've seen them each year to one degree or another.

We've not done much other than ski but heard rave reviews of the husky sledging, Skidoo trips etc. The spa is worth a visit, outdoor hot tubs in -20 & a blizzard is actually fun as are the other pools slides etc. Just be aware of Finnish public sauna/steamroom etiquette around clothes (or lack of them) if being naked in mixed company is an issue for you or yours. Whilst we've never used them https://www.laplandsafaris.com/en/ have always been highly spoken of. You can rent serious thermal gear from them for skiing if you need it.

TBH if you can get the kids off the skis I'd be amazed. They'll want to be showing their instructors how they've improved each day.

Downsides (not really if you are prepared) As others have mentioned it can get seriously cold & windy - we've seen -30 - but 1st year it never got below -5. There is a high % of drag lifts but they stay open when the wind shuts the chairlifts.

We've not stayed in a cabin - that was plan for 2021 Sad

- but the supermarkets are well stocked if pricey. A winebox in each hold bag has been our solution to the alcohol prices.

Hope that helps

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Thanks numbfoot, great advice.

Another question - any chance of going for a jog? Not sure if it would be possible at all, but might give it a go if it is feasible. Nice to have tracks recorded from random parts of the world. I'm pretty sure I'll have to give up the run streak as a run every day won't be a runner, but one or two would be cool.

And finally, anyone done xc skiing in Finland? Wife not overly keen on downhill but with the gentle slopes described above that may change.

Cheers

You need to Login to know who's really who.

As mentioned previously if you’ve got access to a car consider visiting Yllas. Its different to Levi and well worth the trip. Finns go out running in all weather so go for it. Have done XC skiing, suggest a lesson first to learn the technique otherwise you’ll find it frustrating. I really enjoy it but be warned very little control going downhill and even gentle hills can be terrifying.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

I've lived in Finland for ~10 years and visited many places in Lapland. Levi probably has the best lift system. The best place for beginners is the south slopes. There are some magic carpets and very easy, short runs. There is also a fast 6 man chair and a nice easy but quite long blue run from the top of that. I had one private ski lesson in Levi - the instructor was really good. The lift was included in the price of the lesson but only valid for the 1.5 hours of the lesson.

XC skiing in the main reason I visit Lapland. Loads of really well prepared tracks. Classic style is probably easier to start with the skating. Avoid hills to begin with. You can check the levi routes here: https://www.infogis.fi/levi/

Ylläs / Äkäslompolo is very different to Levi - much more like traditional Lapland and on the edge of the Ylläs - Pallas national park - https://www.nationalparks.fi/pallas-yllastunturinp

In winter they prepare snowshoe routes and fat biking routes as well as XC ski trails in and around the national park. Ylläs in my opinion is more scenic than Levi and worth a visit. Downhill skiing in Ylläs is ok but not as good as Levi. If you do go downhill skiing, start from the south / ylläsjärvi side - the gondola there is a best lift option.

As mentioned, it can be really cold. I'm in Ylläs at the moment and yesterday was -32C. However, this time last year it was ~ -5C so it can vary a lot. Bring lots of layers. Also bring thin inner gloves for under thick mitts / gloves as then you can take the outer layer off if you need to do things like adjust ski boots, unlock the door etc.

There are 2 supermarkets in Levi - K-market (bit more expensive, bit better) and S-market (bit cheaper) you can certainly find most of what you want in them. Alko is in the same building as S market. There are also supermarkets in Kittila and a really big K-market (Jounin kauppa in Äkäslompolo / north side of Ylläs).

Enjoy your trip!

You'll need to Register first of course.

Three other points:

The front slope in Levi that goes down to zero point is not beginner friendly - it has a weird fall line / camber that a lot of people struggle with.

You can also buy a Lapland superski lift pass https://laplandsuperskipass.fi/ that covers both Levi and Ylläs and two other tiny resorts (Olos and Pallas).

There are free to use kotas / laavus - basically a wooden shelter with a fire place in side that you can cook sausages etc. on. There is one just on the edge of the blue run on the south slopes and quite a few in the Ylläs - Pallas national park area. They can be really good for warming up in!

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Thanks a mill Snow promise and brovert.

Really appreciate the replies.

Have a car so will visit yllas etc too. Provided the kids are happy to spend the time in the car.

Layers, layers, layers - yep.

After all it is free

Oh, I might add regarding the kids’ skiing: if there are days when you’ve spent half a day doing other stuff and fancy to the slopes for an hour or two but don’t want to buy a ski pass for the day, the nursery slope near Zero Point might be the place to go to: they have two button lifts there that are free to use both to kids and adults alike. You can’t see the place to the parking lot but kind of have to know it’s there behind the trees. There’s also a separate, shorter slope for toboggans + a pile of toboggans free to use.

I found that nursery slope much better than the one on the south side which has a magic carpet lift and a gentler slope. So much better in fact that I spent a couple of days practicing there, together with my kids, very basic skills like edging on one ski etc when they snow ploughed the same slope (first time skiers as we all were). And I’d gladly do the same even though I’m not a beginner anymore.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

Thanks Ravensberger, great information. Really hoping we get to go, and looking good so far. Though changes seem to be happening all over the place by the day. I have fingers and toes crossed anyway!

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

is most of the area accessible by avoiding T/J/pull lifts? ie only using gondola/chairs.

snow reports

Depends upon where you’re based. I seem to remember access from the rest of the area from Zeropoint requires catching the surface lift. I’m sure you can avoid T bars or Pomma’s will be unavoidable but the inconvenience of having to use the local busses will need to be considered.

There are 3 chair lifts and 1 gondola. The rest are all T-Bars or pommels which can stay open when the winds are too strong for the others. If you are thinking of Feb half-term or earlier be aware not all of the slopes will be open although if you are avoiding drag lifts this won't be too much of an issue.

If you want to get from Levi town to the other areas then you will need to use 1 drag or take the (very good) ski bus round to the South or West chair lifts or the Gondola.

The T-Bars are all manned & run very efficiently with minimal queuing IME.

HTH

You know it makes sense.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Hi all,

Obviously, the situation all over is evolving, but I’m here in Levi until Boxing Day, and happy to have a go at answering any questions.

Pistes are beautifully smooth and groomed, and floodlit (currently dawn is c10.30am, and sunset around 2.30pm!).

I see what others have said about the funny range of angles on the front pistes and the six-man lift that only serves that section.

I have had some brilliant fun slamming down some longish reds, and the few blacks have got some steep (though short) sections. I haven’t been over to the south side of the resort but I’ll try for that tomorrow. It’s mostly blues over there, but supposed to be slightly warmer (yeah right!).

It is perishingly cold (a persistent -13 though thankfully no wind).

Epic panoramic views from the top, especially around 3pm when the very last of the sun disappears.

LS

A snowHead

What is cost of living like compared to back home?

A snowHead

That's brilliant @Lord_seagrave, Delighted that you are having a good time. We are heading on the 31st so fingers crossed for no changes.
Any restaurant / take-away recommendations?
Have you found somewhere for an antigen test before returning home?
Any sign of the Aurora?

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

You need to Login to know who's really who.

I see we now need an antigen test for travel to finland from the 28th of December. That is not too bad. Restaurants closed at 6pm as @Mr Egg has said but we have booked a self catering cabin and restaurant visits would have been minimal anyway. Hopefully there's a decent take away open to get me out of making dinner some evenings.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

At least when we visited last year the restaurants did have an option for take away.

We did takeaway to our cabin from King Crab House: their mussels in different sauces and different side dishes we did tapas-style were most excellent, although the king crab we also shared was not quite worth the price (about 120 euros). Nothing wrong with it per se, maybe it’s just us who can’t appreciate it enough.

There are also a couple of steak houses that are good eat - but again quite expensive (you’re easily looking at a bill of +200 euros for 2 adults + 2 kids for a 3-course meal and a couple of beers/glasses of wine). But a steak house + takeaway doesn’t work very well anyhow so maybe you’ll pass those.

Lastly, there are a couple of pizza places (Kotipizza, Classic Pizza) that do takeaway of course. They’re okay.

You'll need to Register first of course.

Thanks Ravensburger,
King crab house sounds like a nightmare - no seafood fans here wink

Pizza however, that's my thing. If I could bring my ooni I would Laughing

We found Rovaniemi about the same price as home (Ireland) for eating out two years ago but we don't tend to drink with meals when away as i usually have to drive and wifey doesn't drink much at all. Sounds like Levi will be a bit more expensive.

Still can't wait though.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

After all it is free

Generally, the food and drink costs are high. Beers are €7-9 in eateries, and will set you back €2-3 even for small cans in the supermarket.

We’ve had good pizza at Kotipizza (even better than the pizza is the kebab tortilla roll thing which is like a burrito and with the heft of a housebrick). About €12 each.

Pasta at Ristorante Renna was good, at about €25 each for mains.

We ate at Raventola Asia this evening. The food wasn’t too bad (it’s a very local take on what Asian food might be like) and €25-30 for a main.

We’ve pre-booked Christmas Eve dinner at the Spa Hotel (€52pp) and Christmas Day at Sokos Hotel (where we are staying anyway).

No complaints at all about the hotel - location relative to the slopes is great (3-minute walk down the street), breakfast selection is vast, and the sauna (5pm-9pm) is hot and very clean.

Great stuff Lord_seagrave.

I'll defo check out the kebab tortilla roll.

Cheers

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

Another good restaurant in Levi which is reasonably priced is Levi Panimo. https://levinpanimo.fi/menu/ its right next to the k-market / levi market. Downstairs is a restaurant (enter from the opposite side to k market) and upstairs is a pub. I don't know if they do take away. (p.s Panimo translates to Brewery - they do good beer)

Best pizza in Lapland is in Ylläs / Äkäslompolo - https://viatribunali.fi/en/restaurants/akaslompolo/ They were doing take away last winter but were mega busy so quite a wait.

Antigen tests - 9lives are doing test at Kittila airport: https://korona.9lives.fi/en/product/antigen-test/#esitietolomake They are a reliable company. I've used them before.

There are at least 2 private health care clinics in the centre of Levi (can't remember the names - one is in the Spa hotel I think?) but I'm sure they will be doing covid tests.

If you want a heads up on the covid situation in Finland, the national broadcaster YLE (equivalent to the BBC) has a good page here https://yle.fi/news/3-11863045 and general news in English here https://yle.fi/news

Help!!

Levi Finland - advice for beginners

snowHeads Forum Index >>> Resort Reviews and Trip Reports