Pistes and lifts
What you can ski here
AlpineSnowboardFreerideSnowparkSki touring
Run counts and piste kilometres are indicative. Green runs only exist in France, Spain, Andorra, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Japan, the United States, Morocco, Algeria, Lesotho, South Africa, Egypt, Canada, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and Chile; Italy, Austria, Switzerland and Germany start at blue. Indicative average snow depth near the top of the resort, in cm.
Get to know the resort
The Yllästunturi is broad, rounded and treeless on top, with pistes funnelling down both sides through silver birch and old-growth pine into the lakeside villages. Äkäslompolo, on the lake of the same name, has the prettier setting and the deeper Sami and reindeer-husbandry culture; Ylläsjärvi is quieter and more residential. A single lift pass and a free ski-bus link the two, but most visitors pick a side and explore from there. The cross-country network out into the national park is the real treasure: 330 km of groomed track, a handful of wilderness kotas where you can grill sausages over an open fire, and elk and reindeer crossings every few kilometres. Aurora viewing is excellent thanks to the absence of light pollution in any direction.
Good to know
- The terrain is well balanced: 12 green, 28 blue, 20 red and 10 black runs, which suits a mixed group skiing together at different levels.
- The base sits at 280 m and the top reaches 718 m, a profile that holds snow well across a normal winter (score 80/100).
- With 70 km of piste on 27 lifts, it is a mid-size area, easy to get to know in a long weekend.
- The lifts typically turn for about 25 weeks a season, planning around late January to late February tends to land the most reliable cover.