Lapland Ski Resort Ounasvaara has been selected as the local ski resort of the year

Press release | Tue May 09 08:55:00 2023

At its annual meeting, the Finnish Ski Area Association selected the 2023 local ski resort, the ski resort of the year, the ski school of the year and, for the first time, the Patrol Centre of the year. The Ounasvaara ski resort in Rovaniemi was awarded as the best local ski resort and for its systematic development of operations.

The award-winning ski resorts were selected by a jury chaired by Kristiina Hietasaari (Visit Finland – Business Finland), which included representatives of tourism, the media and the sports federation. The results of a survey conducted on the Ski.fi website for consumers were a significant help to the jury. The survey was answered by more than 4,000 skiers.

According to the jury, Lapland Ski Resort Ounasvaara is a true local centre, as it offers various sports enthusiasts great hobby places right next to the city. In addition to local skiers, Ounasvaara serves a large number of foreign customers, and, although the equation is not easy, Ounasvaara has succeeded in this. The jury expressed its thanks above all to the Ounasvaara personnel.

– Although no visible investments have been made in the ski resort, Ounasvaara's personnel have systematically developed the centre's operations year by year. All of the now awarded destinations have worked unselfishly to meet the wishes of skiers and snowboarders, explains Hietasaari about the selection criteria of the jury.

Listening to customers’ wishes as the top priority

Lapland Ski Resort Ounasvaara's Ski Resort Director Juhani Roininen has felt thankful for the centre's Local Ski Resort of the Year award and for the attention given to the development measures.

– It feels great when the long-term work to build a high-quality and versatile ski resort in Rovaniemi generates such praise. The prize is of great importance to those of us who work here. It shows that we have made the right decisions and that we have succeeded in putting them into practice.

According to Roininen, customer satisfaction and listening to the customer have been the most important things in the development of the ski resort. Ounasvaara has also been able to increase the number of permanent staff as year-round operations have grown. New employees have been trained, for example, as lift managers and ski patrollers. With the Bikepark, it has also been possible to invest more in the summer than before. A good example of special expertise is the parking team, whose management of the snowpark has received a lot of praise from skiing enthusiasts.

– Our friendly and professional serviceis always appreciated, especially by international customers. The future also looks very positive. The popularity of downhill skiing has increased, and in addition, there are more than ten direct scheduled flights from all over Europe to Rovaniemi in winter. We actually have a “positive problem” in our hands, as the service points of the small ski resort are becoming cramped, especially during popular holiday periods and on weekends, says Roininen.

In addition to Ounasvaara, the Finnish Ski Area Association awarded Levi as the ski resort of the year and the Swiss Ski School as the ski school of the year. Tahko Mountain was awarded as the first Patrol Centre in history. The “Achievement of the year” prize was awarded to the organisers of the Interski Congress. The awards were presented at the spring meeting of the Finnish Ski Area Association in Himos on 4 May 2023.

In Ounasvaara, Rovaniemi, skiing activities started as early as in 1943. Ounasvaara Ski Resort Ltd was founded in 2005. The resort has been owned by Lapland Hotels since 2017.

For further information and interview requests, please contact:

Juhani Roininen
Ski Resort Director
Lapland Ski Resort Ounasvaara
+358 400 629321
juhani.roininen@laplandhotels.com

Travel enterprise Lapland Hotels & Safaris offers Northern experiences for all senses. It consists of Finland’s largest private hotel chain, Lapland Hotels, the largest experience service company in the Nordic countries, Lapland Safaris Group Oy, and Lapland Ski Resorts. The group has approximately 1,700 employees in total.

Lapland Hotels has 19 hotels, more than 2,400 rooms and apartments as well as over 10,000 restaurant seats around Finland: in Ylläs, Levi, Saariselkä, Rovaniemi, Olos, Luosto, Kilpisjärvi, Pallas, Hetta, Helsinki, Tampere, Oulu and Kuopio.

Lapland Safaris offers unique outdoor activities in eight destinations in Lapland: Rovaniemi, Ylläs, Saariselkä, Levi, Luosto, Olos, Hetta and Kilpisjärvi.

Lapland Ski Resorts comprises five ski centres located in Ylläs, Luosto, Olos, Pallas and Rovaniemi. www.laplandhotels.com, www.laplandsafaris.com