The World Ski Resort Guide

Sweden Snowsure from December to May

Unspoilt, beautiful landscape
Uncrowded pistes and lifts
Vibrant après-ski and nightlife scene
Good range of non-skiing activities
Limited challenging downhill terrain
Small areas by Alpine standards
Lacks the dramatic peaks and vista of the Alps
Short days during the early season

Sweden’s landscape of forests and lakes and miles of unspoiled wilderness is entirely different from the Alps’ grandeur and traffic-choked roads. Standards of accommodation, food and service are good and the people welcoming, lively and friendly. There are plenty of off-slope activities but most of its downhill areas are limited in size and challenge. Sweden is likely to appeal most to those who want an all-round winter holiday in a different environment and culture from a normal Alpine resort. Don’t be put off by the myths that Sweden is expensive, dark and cold see below.

Holidaying in Sweden is a completely different experience, culturally as well as physically, from a holiday in the Alps. The language is generally incompre-hensible to us and, although virtually everyone speaks good English, the menus and signs are often written only in Swedish. The food is delightful, especially if you like fish and venison.

One of the myths about Sweden is that it is expensive for British pockets. Sweden is significantly cheaper than neighbouring Norway, especially for alcohol, and prices are pretty much on a par with the main Alpine countries.

Another myth is that it is dark. It is true that the days are very short in the mid-winter of December and early January. But from early February the lifts generally work from 9am to 4.30pm and by March it is light until 8.30pm. And most resorts have floodlit pistes for night skiing.

On the down side, downhill slopes are generally limited in both challenge and extent and the lift systems tend to be dominated by T-bars. But there is lots of cross-country and back-country skiing. Snowboarding is also popular, with parks and pipes in most resorts.

There is plenty to do off the slopes: snowmobile safaris onto deserted plateaux, ice fishing, ice climbing, dog-sled rides, and of course saunas galore as well as visiting a local Sami (the PC name for Lapp) village. And resorts are very family-friendly.
The main resort with the most varied terrain is Ã…re (see separate chapter).

Salen is Scandinavia’s largest resort and is really six resorts and four sets of slopes with 144km of piste and a well-developed lift system. Most slopes are very gentle, suiting beginners and early or timid intermediates best. There are 31 black runs listed, including the locally notorious ‘Wall’ in Hundfjället.

Vemdalen has two separate areas of slopes 18km apart by road. Björnrike is great for families, beginners and early intermediates, with 8 lifts and 15km of mainly gentle pistes. The Country Club hotel is right on the slopes and built in modern Scandinavian style. Vemdalsskalet has more advanced intermediate terrain, served by 10 lifts and 13km of pistes. The Högfjällshotell at the base is large, dates from 1936 and prides itself on its lively après-ski.

Riksgransen, 250km north of the Arctic Circle, is an area of jagged mountain peaks and narrow fjords. The season starts in mid-February and ends in June when you can be on the slopes under the midnight sun. There are only six lifts and 21km of piste. But there is some good off-piste and midnight heli-skiing.

Björkliden, also above the Arctic Circle, is famous for its subterranean skiing inside Scandinavia’s largest cave system. You need to go with a guide.

Storlien is tiny, with 16km of gentle pistes and seven T-bars. But there is excellent cross-country and snowmobiling on a high plateau amid grazing reindeer. The main hotel is the huge Högfjällshotel, which when we visited was rather run-down.

See also Mamili National Park is a national park in Namibia.

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