Fingers crossed as Lapland ski resorts in Finland gear up for new season

The skiing season in Finnish Lapland is set to begin next week, with operators hoping for better weather this winter than last.

On Thursday, two days after the first snowfall in Lapland, the Levi Ski Resort north of the municipality Kittilä began snowmaking operations. It promises to open its first slalom slope and cross-country track next week, by Friday at the latest.

The resort is operating 130 snow cannons for its slopes and 60 for its cross-country routes.

Last year Levi was able to start its snow cannons nearly a month earlier. In general, though, the ski season got off to a slow start due to mild weather. As of the start of this year, only 27 of the country’s 75 downhill skiing resorts were open.

Levi is scheduled to host a FIS Ski World Cup event beginning November 9. Last year the opening event of the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup, which was planned for Levi in mid-November, had to be cancelled as Levi’s competition pistes were snowless.

More snow is forecast for Lapland on Thursday night, with rain in most of the rest of the country.

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