0 Family Ski Holiday in Lapland

You know how it is when you take the family away, if the children are happy, everyone's happy, right? This is why it is so important to choose a family friendly resort. The ski resort of Ruka in Finnish Lapland, close to the Arctic Circle, is the perfect place for a family ski holiday.

1. Free Lift Passes - As long as they are accompanied by an adult and wear a helmet, children under the age of 7 get to use the ski lifts in Ruka for free.

2. Children's Ski Lessons - Ruka ski school, the longest running ski school in Finland, runs children-only ski lessons for all levels of ability from beginner to expert, meaning the children get to mix with other kids and are taught in a way that is designed for children and not adults.

3. Safe Ski Areas -Three, free to use, cordoned off ski areas next to the main slopes with drag lifts and magic carpet lifts that are quiet, safe places for children to learn without having to worry about other skiers on the Ruka ski slopes.

4. Safe Sledging Area - A giant, friendly snowman, as tall as a two story building, watches over the Ruka children's sledging area that is next to the main slopes but sectioned off with a snow wall to keep them safe.

5. Children's indoor and outdoor play areas and nursery. Whatever the weather there is somewhere for the kids to play either accompanied by parents or in the care of a child minder at the nursery.

6. Children's Adventure Ski Slope - A special ski run dotted with activities and things to discover designed especially for the kids on Ruka ski slopes. There is even a mini reindeer park half way down so you can stop and watch the reindeer.

7. Children's Play Areas in Restaurants - Finland is a very child friendly place and most restaurants in Ruka offer not only a good section of children's meals but a play area in the restaurant so they can enjoy themselves whilst mum and dad relax at nearby tables.

8. Husky Sled Safaris - What's more appealing in life than a bunch of excited husky puppies all wanting to play? There are several husky farms that run husky sled trips around Ruka and they almost always have a selection of friendly puppies to coo over and play with.

9. Reindeer Sleigh rides - Want to know how it feels to travel like Santa? Not a problem, you can take your choice of a long reindeer sleigh ride through the pristine wilderness wrapped up in a sheepskin blanket or a visit to a reindeer farm to meet lots of lovely reindeer, learn more about them and take a short sleigh ride.

10. Visit Santa At Home - how many children can say they've been to Santa's real house? Baked cookies with Mrs. Claus or sat on Santa's knee in on his rocking chair whilst the cookies bake? A visit to Santa's actual house, close to the ski resort of Ruka, is something memories are made of.

And that's not to mention all the great things to do for the adults and big kids too. Things like snowmobiling, ice cart racing, snowshoeing, visits to Russia, horse riding, driving on ice, golf and fishing, to name a few as well as the 29 groomed ski slopes, a snowboard park and street, half pipe, skiing and snowboarding competitions and 800kms of cross country ski tracks.

Flying not guaranteed.

Heather Sunderland writes the ultimate travel guide to Ruka and Kuusamo combining her experience working as a ski guide in the area with her local knowledge obtained by living there for over 5 years, to bring you a comprehensive guide to Ruka and Kuusamo with an expats eye to detail.

Detail: Family Ski Holiday in Lapland

0 Lapan winters Travel

Lapland is immense. It covers an area larger than the whole of Portugal, but the concept of Lapland is even larger. Many tourists think that they have reached Lapland when they have barely got halfway up Finland. The further north you go, the better you can understand the true meaning of Lapland.

In the fells you can see for miles

As you travel further north along the outstretched “arm” of north-west Finland, the coniferous forest gradually vanishes from the landscape and the birch trees shrink to a meter in height; the fells begin to rise around you in every direction and you find a silence unlike anywhere else on earth. You can see for miles but all you will hear is your own breathing and the snow crunching under your boots. Visit Kilpisjärvi, a small village in Enontekiö, and it’s easy to discover why tourists return year after year.

“The city is no place for a person”

Sami Nils-Matti Vasara has lived in Kilpisjärvi all his life – his roots go back 12 generations. Nils-Matti has been to southern Finland only a couple of times and even then not entirely voluntarily. As he sees it, Kilpisjärvi has everything anyone could want in life. Most importantly is the impressive natural landscape from which his family has derived their livelihood for centuries.

Even though the Lapland summer is beautiful, winter is a special time for Nils-Matti. Summer and autumn tend to just go by, resting and awaiting the first snow. It is only after the fells are finally covered in a white blanket that the normal course of life resumes. It is the moment you dig the snowmobile out of the garage to make it easier to travel across the fells.

The light of winter

To visitors from the south, Lapland is the perfect place to rest and relax. Whatever your reason to “escape”, there is no better place to recharge your batteries than the wide open spaces in the far north. Under the spring sun on top of the fells, you’re fine in nothing but a sweater, as the glistening snow reflects the light like a mirror. Until darkness falls, the world is like a blue and white silent movie and then the sky is filled with color. On a clear night, the Northern Lights blaze, lighting the fells as if it were day.

Detail: Lapan winters Travel