Levi: the back story

About Levi: the back story

By the ULTIMATE Ski Resorts Editorial Team

Editor-in-Chief: Jai Michael

Levi’s story begins in the 1930s, when the village of Sirkka welcomed its first winter tourists, who climbed the fell under their own power. The first lift came in 1964; today Levi is Finland’s largest ski resort, the opening venue of the Alpine World Cup slalom season and an Olympic Training Center.

Sirkka and the fell

Levi’s story begins in the 1930s, when the village of Sirkka, at the foot of Levi fell in Kittilä, attracted its first winter tourists. There were no lifts; visitors climbed the fell on their own. By the 1950s Sirkan Matkailumaja was welcoming guests from as far away as Canada and Japan, though tourism remained modest.

The first lifts

Skiing proper began in 1964, when the municipality of Kittilä built a small T-bar on the north slope, today’s Front Slopes. Levin Loma built its first log cabins in 1975, Levi Hissit was founded in 1976, and the season then ran from February to May Day. In 1981 Levi’s first hotel, Hotelli Levitunturi, opened, and in 1982 civilian flights began at Kittilä Airport, with Finnair launching weekly flights from Helsinki the following year.

A fell in Lapland that visitors once climbed on foot, now the busiest mountain in Finland.

Finland’s largest

In 1992 the South and Summit lifts opened and the Ski Bus began; in 2000 Finland’s first gondola lift was inaugurated, with a World Cup slope and floodlighting for television, and from the 2000–2001 season Levi has been Finland’s largest ski resort. Since November 2006 it has opened both the women’s and men’s Slalom World Cup seasons, and in 2026 the races are on 14–15 November. Levi was named an Olympic Training Center in 2025.

Snow from last winter

Snow preservation began here in 2016, after a cancelled race, with the first stored snow piles on the Levi Black slope. Today tens of thousands of cubic metres are kept under covers through the summer, so skiing opens in early October: the 2026–2027 season began on 2 October at the Front Slopes. Preserved snow on the Front Slopes even freezes into what the resort calls Finland’s first glacier.

Lapland beyond the slopes

Late autumn and early winter are among the best times to see the northern lights in Levi, Visit Levi says, so check the sky on cloudless evenings. Husky and reindeer safaris, snowmobile trails and 230 km of cross-country tracks lead into the forests and fells, and restaurants such as Kammi and Ämmilä cook the traditions of Lapland, from slow-cooked reindeer to almond potatoes.

Our advice: book lift passes online at least 14 days ahead for 5 per cent off, start beginners on the gentle South Slopes, and keep an evening clear for the sky. If you fly in through Helsinki, stay a night or two in the capital first.

Levi in brief

From Levi Ski Resort and Visit Levi (levi.fi), October 2026.

Opening hours, prices and seasonal openings change, so please check with Levi: the back story before you go.