It is possibly a sign of the ongoing recovery in the UK ski travel market, or possibly just a trend, but interest in winter sports holidays to northern Finland continues to grow again, with leading operator Crystal (crystalski.co.uk) announcing a new destination option, and a new flight route from Manchester, so that fewer people in the north will need to travel south to London in order to fly north to Lapland next winter.
The new choice of Salla in eastern Lapland close to the Arctic Circle is not new, in the sense that this was one of 10 Finnish destinations offered by the UK’s leading tour operators during a growth in interest from 2000up until the financial crash of 2008 – after which Finland was pretty much removed from the brochures. Fortunately, since then most of the old Finnish destinations have been returning to the brochures, with Salla being the latest.
Crystal now offer Ruka, Salla, and Iso-Syöte, while Inghams has Ylläs, Pyhä, Levi and Saariselkä, giving seven choices between the UK’s two biggest ski operators.
As it is dark for much of the day in midwinter, although the slopes are floodlit and if you’re lucky the Northern Lights may shine overhead, ski holidays to Finland are much more multi-activity than for ski areas in the Alps.
Besides downhill skiing you can try snowmobile safaris, husky dog sledding, ice fishing, and cross-country skiing. In addition to this, the original people of Lapland, the Sami, bring a timeless touch to the place. They have carved out simple lives in the Arctic wilderness for centuries. Step into an age-old world of reindeer herding, husky farms and ”kotas” – tepee-shaped huts – a warm welcome will be extended to you with blazing log fires and hot berry juice. Santa is, of course, also based here.
Salla is home to over 10,000 reindeer, and situated in the middle of an unspoilt wilderness with frozen rivers, lakes, and fells. Activities include a Northern Lights reindeer safari, and a snowmobile excursion to the Russian border, only 20km away.
Accommodation is predominantly in cosy wooden cabins dotted around in forests surrounding the ski slopes. An example is the Sallainen Cabins, with prices from £429pp for 7 nights (based on four sharing) including flights from Manchester and transfers.
The season starts on 21 December, and the last departure from Manchester to Kuusamo is on 15 February 2015.
