Ski Sweden
Skiing & snowboarding in Sweden offers unique snow experiences that are underrated by most, but not us. Ski Sweden and get loads of snow, the most northerly ski resort in the world, midnight sun skiing, aurora borealis viewing (ooohh, aahhhh!!), huge freeride terrain plus superb helicopter & backcountry skiing, making it a Powderhounds bucket list essential.
For families, Swedish ski resorts are some of the best in the world and worth a visit for something completely different. Lovers of alcoholic beverages will need to be cashed up or drink in moderation. Alcohol is seriously expensive in Sweden, so prepare to lose and arm or leg or just enjoy the purity of the Swedish air and water!
Swedish Skiing & Snowboarding
Ski resorts in Sweden are typically Scandinavian - relatively low elevation, extremely cold and delightfully snowy. There are allegedly over 100 ski resorts in Sweden, but let us face it, most of them are best described as 'small & crap'. Several notable exceptions exist and provide the basis for some tasty ski experiences.
Åre ski resort, with a respectable vertical drop of nearly 900m, 41 lifts and 111km of piste trails, is Sweden's largest by a far margin. The closest ski resorts of note to the capital Stockholm are clustered around the town of Salen. Six smallish ski resorts with skiable verticals of less than 400m are spread along the 50-odd km between Stoten and Klappen. Between Åre & Salen, the medium-sized Idre Fjall has over 40km of trails, albeit on only 300m of skiable vertical.
Up north above the arctic circle, Riksgransen provides some of the best skiing in the world. Together with the relatively nearby ski resort of Bjorkliden and the off-piste lifted ski area of Abisko, endless freeride terrain is the main draw card. Riksgransen often has perfect powder and as much backcountry adventure as you can handle. When it warms up in May, the lifts turn at midnight for a truly unique ski experience. Due to the long hours of darkness during the northern winter above the arctic circle, Riksgransen doesn't open until late February but stays open until June if conditions are good.
North of Aare, but south of Riksgransen, the resorts of Hemavan & Tärnaby provide reliable snow cover on interesting terrain in a region suited to the more adventurous ski traveller.
An outlying ski hill with an interesting freeride pedigree is Svanstein on the border with Finland. Svanstein has one of the world's most creative trail maps, giving a clear insight into its ethos.
Where are Swedish Ski Resorts?
Sweden's ski resorts are spread south to north along 1,400km of highlands and mountains near the western border with Norway. Ski resorts (we use the term loosely!) to the south are small hills of less than 200m vertical. The real ski resorts start near Salen, about 335km northwest of Stockholm. Åre is over 600km northwest of Stockholm and is directly accessible via a 7 to 10hr long train ride from Stockholm Central Railway Station.
The northern ski resort of Riksgransen is a delightful 18hr overnight train ride from Stockholm, over 1000km north as the ptarmigan flies. Abisko and Bjorkliden are on the same train line and have their own railway stations. Unless you absolutely love overnight train travel, each is best accessed via Narvik in Norway (the other end of the railway line!) or Kiruna in Sweden. The small ski resort of Svanstein is over 850km northeast of Stockholm.
Gateway airports for skiing in Sweden are Stockholm (ARN) (35km north of central Stockholm and connected by an 18min train ride) and Kiruna (KRN) (for the 3 main Swedish Lapland ski areas), plus a host of smaller airports closer to the ski resorts (like Åre Östersund (OSD)). Airports near Trondheim & Narvik in Nora=way can also be used to access some Swedish ski resorts.
Reasons to Ski & Snowboard Sweden
Sweden is still untamed in winter. Skiing and snowboarding can be done well into June during days of 24hr sunlight. In the depths of winter, snow is cold and stable - perfect for backcountry skiing and adventure. Sweden also has many opportunities for heli-skiing, something the Powderhounds intend to research as often as possible. And really, who wants to die without observing the amazing Aurora Borealis firsthand? Ski Sweden.
Reviews
More information on skiing and snowboarding in Sweden is coming as soon as we finally ski there ........... hopefully next season.
See how the European ski resorts compare on the Europe ski resort ratings page.
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