Levi Lapland Travel Guide: Finland’s Ultimate Winter Wonderland

Where to Stay in Levi

Levi is a small little ski town filled with accommodations, and the more remote area around Levi is also home to some stunning resorts filled with glass igloos, cabins, on reindeer farms and more. You can view all options here, or see my top recommendations below. I loved all of these stays!

Hotel Levi Panorama

Luxury – Ski In & Out Levi

This hotel was unreal! Located on slope of Levi Ski Resort this is the perfect stay whether or not you’re planning to ski! The hotel is accessible via car, but to access Levi town (the cute town at the base of Levi Ski Resort) you can take the gondola up and down (it runs outside of regular ski hours)

I loved this stay! My room had 2 bedrooms, a living room, slopeside views out of all windows, a private sauna & an enclosed deck. This hotel really was incredible; the rooftop bar is a highlight and the onsite restaurant + easy access to all the restaurants in Levi town were so convenient. I paid $1100 for 3 nights in early March (still close to peak season) I booked kind of late, so the 2 bedroom suite was all thar was left, but I didn’t need that much space and likely could have saved booking sooner!

Northern Lights Ranch

Luxury – 8 Miles from Levi

For a remote, luxury getaway where you still have access (driving) to a town for groceries, restaurants, excursions, etc. Northern Lights Ranch is the perfect stay. These square glass cabins offer the perfect Lapland views & ideal Northern Lights viewing options. It’s the perfect getaway. The on-site sauna, hot tub, bar and restaurant mean you really never have to leave if you don’t want to!

Best Things to do in Levi

Go Husky Sledding

A Lapland bucket list experience is to try husky sledding and learn about husky farms! You get to be a sled passenger and drive on most tours, it sounds scary but it was SO fun to drive. When booking a tour I’d keep an eye on how long the sledding portion is, some are longer than others. I did this one in Levi and the sled part was short (10-15 minutes) half you were passenger and half driving. This was plenty long enough for me!

This track was about 2K, some of the tours say 10KM, and 5X longer than this probably wouldn’t have been necessary IMO!

This tour was also combined with a visit to a reindeer farm & a sleigh ride (see more on that below) The combo was perfect because you didn’t need to dedicate 2 days or squeeze 2 tours into one day. I felt like we had plenty of time at each! This tour was 3 hours and cost $260 per person (fairly standard for Lapland pricing!) Book this in advance as they do sell out!

Visit Levi Foxfires Arctic Spa

This was something I had seen on Instagram and knew I had to do. Levi Foxfires is a unique, private arctic spa. You rent the spa for 2 and a half hours and it’s all yours. It includes an outdoor hot tub, an indoor sauna with changing room in the most picturesque settings covered in snow and featuring all the twinkle lights you could ever desire. I was booking late so only midday slots were available but I highly recommend visiting at sunset/into the evening it looks so stunning in the dusk lighting!

This is not cheap and was definitely a splurge (honestly all of Lapland was!) It’s 375 euro for the two and a half hour block. You could split this with 4-6 people likely! Website here!

Ski & Apres

If you ski or snowboard, I recommend hitting the slopes at Levi! Firstly, lift tickets in Finland are so affordable compared to the US, like 58 euro for a day pass for adults. I’ve been paying voer $200 in the US tihs year. The mountain is small, and good for families, beginners, or those just looking to take in the scenery!

Some of the highlights of Levi are you can ski down all four sides of the mountains, so there’s a base on each side! Trail map here! Highlights include

• Front slopes – the main slopes heading right into Levi Town. Start at Zero Point, this is also the best place to end your day if you want to apres
  • Hotel Levi Panorma is right at the top of the front slopes as well!
• West Slopes – from the front slopes head west (this is also how you get towards the peak of the mountain. The West slopes are home to some of the steepest trails & to Santa’s Cabin. Which you can find off the open trails from the Levi West chairlift. To get to the more challenging terrain stick to the Gondola, on the West Slopes vs. the Levi West chairlift, which has more accessible terrain. Both bases have lodges at the bottom! Also, my favorite on-mountain bar Ravintola Palovartija is at the top of the Gondola here for the best drinks with views!
• South Slopes – best for families & kids, The South Base is large and this area has tons of blues (easiest trails in Levi)
• North east – Picturesque, moderate terrain. You can ski down towards the lake here, I liked doing a few afternoon runs here.

Sunset tip – head to Ravintola Horizont at the end of the day for sunset. It’s so stunning and you’re right at the top of Front Slopes and can easily ski down from there even if the liftis closed!

For apres, head into Levi Town itself. There are a bunch of bars. The funnest apres I went to was at Ravintola V’inkkari! They had a DJ, everyone was dancing outside (despite the freezing temps) It was a vibe!

Reindeer Farm Visit

Learning about the importance of reindeer in Lapland and the history of the native Sami’s in Lapland is another bucket list winter activity. Make sure to visit a traditional reindeer farm run by the Sami. We learned all about the reindeer <> Sami relationship and their importance to one another.

You can try the combined husky + reindeer farm experience I recommended above

If you want to skip the more physical husky sledding (you need to drive) you can just visit the reindeer farm with a tour like the one below. $147 per person!

Explore Lapland via Snowmobile (go at Night for Northern Lights)

Levi is absolutely stunning and touring it by snowmobile allows you to experience more of it’s remote landscape not accessible by car. This tour allows you to explore Levi Fell, if you’re lucky you may see wild reindeer in addition to the stunning arctic wildnerness. One thing to note is that it’s a per person cost, but 2 people to snowmobile. If your’e a solo traveler you’ll need to upgrade!

Chase the Northern Lights

Levi is pretty remote, but if you’re staying in town you might want to drive a way from the lights a bit. I was on the mountain at Hotel Panorama Levi & despite the lights of the town you could still easily see the Northern Lights from here and they came out all 3 nights!

Lapland Finland Travel Map

Planning a Lapland Winter Adventure?

Check out all of my Lapland Finland guides anhd recommendations below

• Lapland Winter Itinerary
• Guide to Skiing in Finnish Lapland
• Ultimate Lapland Travel Guide
  • Rovaniemi Travel Guide – Lapland’s capitol & Santa’s home – not my favorite, but worth a stop for the highlights!
  • Ruka Travel Guide – gateway to Lapland’s dreamiest national parks + skiing
  • Saariselkä Travel Guide – quiet, remote boutique stays + Northern Lights haven in Lapland’s most remote area