Saariselkä, Finland

Saariselkä is Europe’s northernmost holiday resort and situated 250 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle. Because of its location, the cross country skiing season lasts from October till May, starting on artificial snow and ending with spring snow. There are 200 kms of cross-country ski tracks which delve into the national park of Urho Kekkonen, and Kunspaa and Ahopaat Fells. 34 kms of these are illuminated.

Getting to Saariselkä by Air


Ivalo airport is a half hour drive away from Saariselkä.   Finnair has a daily flight connection from Helsinki. Norwegian Airlines flies from Helsinki 3 times a week.

Transfer from Ivalo Airport by Bus



The airport bus connects with every Finnair and Norwegian fight, and leave for departing flights 2 hours before the flight departure. Here is the Saariselkä  airport bus timetable

Taxi Transfers from Ivalo


Example prices are here   and bookings can be made -

• by phone: +358-16-5540 500

• by e-mail: booking@saariselka.com

but must be made by 4pm on the day before.

General Taxis


Saariselkä taxi station - +358(0)100 84644

Ivalo taxi station +358(0)100 87 888

In resort the taxi company is located behind/under the Kukkelli supermarket.

Transfer by Train to Rovaniemi train station and Bus to Saariselkä


The VR State Railway trains operate a number of services between Helsinki and Rovaniemi every day. You then catch a bus connection from Rovaniemi Station, however it is 270K!   There are direct bus connections for each train arrival. You you can take your car on the train too, and drive the final stretch from Rovaniemi.


Schedules and bus prices

Ski bus information/timetable


Ski buses run from Ivalo to the centre of the Saariselkä ski resort and then onwards to Laanila and Kakslauttanen.  It stops in several places in the town, one of which is directly outside Holiday Club Saariselkä. You can also catch it to the downhill area of Ski Saariselkä (or back), if you don't want to ski up the hill, or wish to cut off a few kilometres  The timetable isn't available at this time as services stopped on 23/3/2020 because of the coronavirus.

Cross country ski map of Saariselkä

Note that the illuminated tracks are marked on the map in yellow with a small dashed red line on either side, and look more like a walking track rather than a cross country ski route. The wilderness tracks or nature trails, which are in classic only, and not always groomed, are on the map as blue and red dashed lines.

Saariselkä resort map

Road layout of the village
Cross Country Ski Tracks Maintenance in Saariselkä

This is the real time track grooming information.The conditions on the route maps translated from Finnish are:

 

  • hyvä = very good
  • tyydyttävä = pretty good 
  • pohjattu = track made with snowmobile
  • huono sää = bad weather
  • varo = be careful

 

Saariselkä Cross Country Ski Routes
  • Saariselkä – Kaunispää – Luttojoki - 9 km - Blue/Red

    This is a nice warm up to get the ski legs working. Start from the main cross country ski track in Saariselkä and turn to the left. The route goes immediately downhill and then you decide which way around you want to ski.

    • Left goes on the red, through some twists and turns thorugh housing working up to the viewpoint at Kaunispään Huippu where you can have a coffee then onwards and down to Palo-oja and back along the lit blue dog trail and a climb back to the start.
    • Right takes you down to the bottom of two downhill slopes and through along the dog trail to complete the circuit above anticlockwise.

    Take care when crossing the bottom of the slopes as the tracks are scuffed over and it is quite busy. Similarly the dog trail can also have a few people around.

  • Saariskelkä – Kaunispää – Palo-oja - 8 km - Red

    Follow the route for Luttojoki takeing the left hand turn to follow the red to Palo-oja and return on the same route.

  • Koiralatu: Saariselkä – Luttotupa – Moitakuru – Palo-oja -20K - Blue/Red

    If you wish to extend either of the two routes above you can add in the additional loop of Moitakuru to your day.

  • Saariselkä - Mehtäbaari – Laanila - 3km - Blue

    From the main track start take the right hand ski track which is an easy blue to Laanila. On the way you will pass Mehtäbaari - known as the Husky Bar. It is situated on the left on a fast running section downhill, so take care to slow if you are stopping here for refreshments and see the dogs.

    At Laanila there is also a restaurant  and a busstop nearby to cut short or vary routes.

  • Laanila – Kilopää – Kakslauttanen – Tievatupa - 20 km - Blue/Red

    There are several routes from Laanila and this one takes you around a fell which rises to 400 metres on a red route. It is quite exposed so should only be tackled in good weather when you will also get the best views.


    You can catch the bus back from Kaklauttanen or ski back along the illuminated yellow trail past the Rönkönlampi shelter. 

  • Kiilopää - Luulampi – Rumankuru - 11 km - Red/Blue

    You can catch the bus from Saariselkä to Kiilopää, or to Kaklauttenan and ski on. There is a cafe there and toilets. You will need some energy for the climb up and over Kiilopää Fell which reached 546m. The descent is slightly less steep, although still challenging and is over 3K long so care is needed.


    You will get a rewarding sop at Luulampi before your return along the blue track which passed Rumakuru for another shelter.

  • Kiilopää - Niilanpää - Tievatupa - Kakslauttanen - 13 K - Blue/Wilderness Blue

    If you want to try some of the wilderness tracks this is easiest one. When you are skiing the trail it is marked at intervals on either side by a blue cross (red for a red wilderness route). Tracks might not be maintained so the going is fairly difficult and it can be very exposed and wind blow. However, it is interesting to experience on a day of fairly good weather when you will not see anyone else around. For this reason, take care with your provisions and clothing for the trip and study the weather forecast.

  • Saariskelä - Toloskoki - Laanila - Saariskelä - 29K - Red/Black Wilderness Trail

    For those with the stamina you can try the wilderness trail that leaves town towards Tolosjoki. This is the right direction of travel and you will need to tackle a stretch of black as the trail follows on to Kulmakaru.


    It isn't a route I have personally done, but I would imagine it is pretty tough, especially if the track is not cut.


    Take extreme care!

Cafés/Restaurants on Cross Country Routes 

 

  • Husky Bar ”Mehtäbaari”  -  +358 (0)16 667 776
  • Kakslauttanen Café   
  • Kaunispään huippu – Summit of Kaunispää - info!kaunispaanhuippu.fi
  • Kiilopää - killapaa@suomenlatu.fi
  • Laanihovi -  +358 (0)16 68 111, saariselka@santashotels.fi
  • Laanilan Kievari –  +358 400 239 868, info@laanilankievari.fi -  Sometimes called the Dancing Bar. It serves good food and drinks and supplies comfortable fleecy blankets if you need to sit out some bad weather.
  • Luulampi Cafe -  Open daily at 10:00-16:00 from 11 March - end of April
  • Moitakuru Cafe
  • Neste Oil  Saariselkä – Mon-Sat 08.00 - 20.00 Sun 09.00 - 19.00 -  +358 (0)16-668 691, jari.tiainen@nestesaariselka.fi
  • Porotupa Cafe in the market of Saariselkä
  • Piispanoja – A trackside hut to the west of Laanila on the illuminated track, which offers a welcoming fire and a place to cook your sausages
  • Savottakahvila Cafe -   +358 (0)400 603 903, savotta@kahvila.inet.fi - Open daily 9:00-17:00
  • Sport Bistro Pilkku -   +358 (0)400-885 591  Open daily 10:00-17:00 - In the service centre of Ski lifts
  • Tievatupa Cafe -  +358 (0)40 8207 110, tievatupa@ptk.fi

 

Weather


This is the weather forecast for the area.

Because of its location some ski trails in the Saariselkä area are in the real wilderness. Take extra care in these northerly extremities and check the weather before you embark on any route. Temperatures can be very low, especially with a wind chill factor, and it's not recommended to stand around for two long. Always carry a fully charge mobile phone for emergencies.

Cross Country Ski Races


The Vaskoolihiihto is a ski marathon ski organized in Saariselkä every year on Good Friday.


The Gold Bottle Games is always the last ski race in Finland each season and it is usually organised during the last weekend in April.


You will find more information on these events from the Inarin Yritys club website.

Cross Country Ski Rental/Retailers


Ski rental is available at:

 

 

Supermarket


Kuukkeli is the main supermarket and it open 09.00 - 21.00 daily. There is a separate Alko store where you can buy wines and spirits which is open 09.00 - 18.00 but closed on Sunday. These are situated on the main road of the village. There is also a small supermarket which is open 09.00 - 20.00 in the Siula building where the tourist information is also located.  Empty bottles, cans and newspaper  recycling  is located at both supermarkets, and you place cans/bottles in the machine in the lobby and redeem the deposit from your shopping at the till.

Where to Stay

There are many options for places to stay in Saariselkä from self catering to hotels. The Tourist office has a good selection of these online and one of the booking websites has various options. If you are looking to book a package, take a look under Holiday Companies.



  • Holiday Club Spa Hotel - This hotel is centrally located on the main town road with good access to supermarket, bars and the start of the cross country ski tracks are a 5 minute walk away. It does have a large pool which is mainly children's play and so it gets rather busy during times when the children are off school.
  • Lapland Hotels Riekonlinna
Tour Companies who feature Saariselkä
Other Attractions


There are plenty of other things to do in Saariselkä if you want a break from skiing, such as the dog sledding and fat biking. Not to forget night trips out to watch the northern lights, sometimes this just means a visit to the local hostelry!

Tourist Office | Resort Information | Twitter | Facebook


The Saariselkä tourist office is situated in the Yellow "Siula" building at the entrance to the village. It's open 09.00 - 17.00 and Saturday/Sunday 10.00 - 16.00.