Levi with children – the children's slopes, the polar night and how to dress children in Lapland

Levi is on Levitunturi in Kittilä municipality, about 170 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle. The village is actually called Sirkka, but everyone says Levi. It is Finland's largest ski resort, with just over 40 runs, around 25 lifts and a vertical drop of 325 metres. Everything is gathered around the fell, and the airport is only 15 kilometres away. For a family with children aged two to ten, though, Levi is less about the slopes than about two other things: the light and the cold.

Leevilandia – where the youngest spend the week

The Leevilandia family area is on the South Slopes, by the South Point building. There are two covered magic carpets of 50 and 122 metres, button lifts for those who have made some progress, a sledging hill by the entrance and a long tubing hill next to the longer magic carpet. You borrow the tubes at the bottom of the hill. Up by the short magic carpet there is a fire pit where you can grill sausages, and indoors there is Leevi’s playground, a playroom with a balance course, an obstacle course and toilets. Almost every day, Leevi, a shy wolverine who is the area's mascot, comes by.

Leevilandia is included with a lift pass. If you're only going to be in the children's area, you can buy an area pass, and children under four get in free with an adult who has one. Leevilandia closes when the South lift is stopped, which can happen on a windy day.

If you're staying right in the village, there is a magic carpet at Levi Glacier on Front Slopes and a button lift higher up. On the South Slopes there is also Mini Park, a snow park for children with small jumps. Once the children can manage blue runs, Utsuvaara, Sammu and the South slope are the families' favourites. In total, Levi has ten children's slopes.

Lift passes and ski school

Children under six ski free if they wear a helmet and ski with an adult who has a lift pass. Children aged six to eleven ski on a child pass, and from age twelve the adult price applies. If two adults buy a pass for seven days or more, children under 18 get a family discount. Parents with small children can share a parent pass for a day and take turns on the slopes. It is only sold at the lift pass office on site. The ski bus is included in all lift passes.

Levi Ski School has two bases, Zero Point in the village and South Point by Leevilandia. The children's lessons are called Werneri:

• 40-minute private lessons for children from age four.
• Mini Snow Werneri for five- and six-year-olds, the youngest group lesson.
• Snow Werneri for children aged seven to eleven.

The lessons are held in Finnish and English. There is no separate lesson for three-year-olds, but a family lesson where everyone tries together works well as a start.

Kaamos – the Christmas holidays without sun

Around Christmas, the sun doesn't rise in Kittilä, roughly from 14 to 29 December. It is called kaamos, the polar night, and it coincides almost exactly with the Swedish Christmas school holidays. Even so, it isn't dark around the clock. In the middle of the day the sky turns blue and pink for a few hours, and the snow reflects what little light there is. The photo at the top was taken one afternoon in mid-January, when the sun had just come back.

Plan the day around the light. Ski between about ten and two, when it is at its lightest, and save sledging, swimming and rest for the afternoon. Many of the slopes are floodlit, and Front Slopes has LED lighting in a daylight colour, so you can ski even when it is dark. With children under five, February and March are easier. The days are long and the cold milder then – check when the Swedish school holidays, sportlov 2027 (Swedish February ski break) or easter break 2027, fall in your municipality.

How cold does it get, and how should you dress the children?

In January the average temperature is around minus 13 degrees, with night-time lows around minus 18. Cold spells can be considerably colder than that – Finland's record low of minus 51.5 degrees was measured in Kittilä. The lifts close when it is minus 25 at the top station. It can be considerably colder down in the village than at the top, as the cold air settles in the valley.

Dress the children in layers: wool next to the skin, a warm mid-layer and a windproof outer layer. A thin balaclava under the helmet protects the cheeks, which are the first thing to get cold. Keep the sessions on the slopes short and warm up indoors every 30 to 45 minutes. Keep an eye on the children's cheeks and noses – white patches are a sign of frostbite, and then it's time to go inside. The full list is in the ski trip packing list.

Christmas in Levi and Santa

In December, the Christmas market is held right in the village, by the Front Slopes and Zero Point. It is open every day from ten until six, with different times on 24–26 December, and it closes when it is extremely cold. On Christmas Eve at three o'clock, the Declaration of Christmas Peace is read out at Zero Point, in Finnish, Sami and Swedish among other languages. Leevilandia has its own Christmas programme with a Christmas trail and an outdoor disco.

Santa is called Joulupukki in Finnish, and in Levi you can meet him for real. Local safari companies have a hideaway in the forest a quarter of an hour from the village, where Santa tells a story by the fire and every child gets to talk to him. In December and January you bake gingerbread biscuits with Mrs Claus afterwards. These are group tours, and they get fully booked in the run-up to Christmas. Reindeer sleigh rides and husky safaris are other popular excursions. There are more ideas for Christmas in christmas with kids.

Cross-country trails

Around Levi there are roughly 230 kilometres of groomed trails, 28 kilometres of which are floodlit. The floodlit loops closest to the village are good for a short outing with the children, even during kaamos. The trail cafés along the way are mostly open in spring. In April, the 70-kilometre Ylläs–Levi ski race runs through the national park between the fells.

How to get to Levi from Sweden

• By air: Finnair flies between Helsinki and Kittilä every day, several times a day in high season. From Stockholm, you change in Helsinki. Kittilä airport is 15 kilometres from Levi, and the airport bus meets all scheduled flights.
• Night train: VR's night train runs from Helsinki to Kolari every day until 20 April. There is also a car-carrier train from Pasila. From Kolari it is 80 kilometres to Levi, and the connecting bus takes about an hour and a quarter.
• By car: cross the border at Haparanda–Tornio and then head north through the Torne Valley. From Tornio it is about 270 kilometres to Levi. Check the winter road conditions beforehand, and fill up when you can.

Remember that Finland is an hour ahead of Sweden. Change your clocks straight away, so you aren't late for ski school on the first morning.

Levi or its neighbours?

Levi suits families who want everything in one place: a children's area, restaurants, a Christmas market and an airport close by. If you want longer runs and two quieter villages, Ylläs in neighbouring Kolari municipality is a good alternative. On the Swedish side there is Riksgränsen, where the season lasts right up to Midsummer, and Hemavan and Tärnaby, with an airport in the middle of the village. If it's the children's first ski trip, there are more tips in first ski trip with kids.