How big is Sälen compared with Sweden’s other ski resorts?

Among Sweden’s largest ski resorts, size is measured in two completely different ways, and the answer depends on which one you choose. In terms of vertical drop, Åre is the largest by a considerable margin – Åreskutan offers a vertical drop that no other Swedish resort comes close to. Measured by the number of lifts, runs and the size of the interconnected ski area, Sälenfjällen is the largest, as four resorts are linked under a single lift pass.

Here, we systematically compare the resorts and explain why the figures are often misunderstood. If you want to get the most out of your skiing each day, the location is more important than the overall figures – accommodation right in the heart of the ski resort provides more journeys than an extra lift anywhere else in the system.

Size chart: Sweden’s largest ski resorts by number of lifts, runs and vertical drop

Approximate figures. Facilities are undergoing refurbishment and use different calculation methods – always check the current figures on the respective facility’s own website:

• Sälenfjällen (Lindvallen, Högfjället, Tandådalen, Hundfjället): The most lifts and runs in the country, well over a hundred runs covered by a single lift pass. A vertical drop of around 300 metres.
• Åre: around a hundred runs and by far the greatest vertical drop in Sweden, in the region of 900 metres from the summit of Åreskutan.
• Vemdalen: three sub-areas with a total of around fifty runs, with a vertical drop of around 300 metres.
• Idre Fjäll: around forty runs, with a vertical drop of around 350 metres.
• Riksgränsen and Tärnaby: Few runs, but with steep terrain and extensive off-piste areas.

Why is Sälen counted as four sites in one?

The Sälenfjällens area is based on four separate mountains – Lindvallen, Högfjället, Tandådalen and Hundfjället – being linked by lifts and runs so that, in practice, they function as a single system. You buy a single pass and can travel between them without having to get in the car. This is the key difference compared with, for example, Vemdalen, where three sub-areas share a single lift pass but require travel by car between them. The valley also includes Stöten and Kläppen, which are standalone resorts with their own lift passes – so they aren’t included in the Sälenfjällens figures, even though they’re nearby. We’ll go through how it all fits together during the ski resorts and how they are connected.

Height versus width – two ways to be big

Vertical drop is the difference in altitude between the top and the bottom, and it determines how long the runs can be. Width refers to the number of different runs, levels of difficulty and areas available. Åre is exceptional in the first respect: a single run from the summit is longer than any run in the Dalafjällen mountains. Sälen is exceptional in the second: more runs, more areas and a wider range between the easiest and most difficult runs. Which is ”bigger” therefore depends entirely on how you ski. A seasoned skier looking for long runs with significant vertical drop will choose vertical drop; a group with varying skill levels wanting to ski together all week will choose variety. We describe how high Sälenfjällen is above sea level in how high Sälen is.

Åre: Sweden’s highest vertical drop

Åre deserves its special status. The Åreskutan rises some nine hundred metres above the village and offers runs that are in a league of their own compared to anywhere else in Sweden – long, varied runs where your legs actually give out before you reach the lift. Above the tree line, there is also open mountain terrain and plenty of off-piste skiing, and the summit chalet offers an alpine atmosphere that no resort further south can match. If that’s the experience you’re looking for, there’s no reason to choose anywhere else. The trade-off is the journey time – seven to eight hours from Stockholm compared with four and a half to five hours to Sälen – as well as higher prices for both accommodation and lift passes.

That’s actually how much you can manage to see in a week

Here, the overall figures are misleading. A typical day’s skiing involves between fifteen and twenty-five runs for an experienced skier, and considerably fewer when accompanied by children. Over the course of a week, this amounts to around a hundred runs. No resort in Sweden is so small that you’d end up on the same run every time – but the difference between forty and a hundred runs only becomes noticeable from day three or four, when you start to find your way around. For families with children, where you tend to stick to a couple of areas and ski the same green runs over and over again, the size is almost irrelevant. That’s why a smaller resort often feels ”big enough”, even though the figures suggest otherwise.

Size versus queues and lift capacity

A large ski area with an old lift network can result in longer queues than a small area with modern six-seater chairlifts. What actually determines how much you ski is the lift capacity in relation to the number of visitors, plus how effectively the system distributes people across the different areas. Sälenfjällen has the advantage of being able to spread the flow of skiers across four mountains, which means you can move on when it gets crowded at one – an option that a single resort lacks. During the winter half-term and at Easter, all Swedish resorts get crowded, but in a large resort there’s always a lift where the queue is shorter. We’ll go through how many lifts Sälen has in how many lifts there are in Sälen.

When a smaller resort offers more skiing per day

It’s entirely possible to ski more in a small resort than in a large one, and that’s worth stating quite plainly. At a compact resort such as Kläppen, Branäs or Lofsdalen, you can get from your accommodation to the lift in five minutes, you never have to queue, and you avoid having to travel between different areas. In practice, this means more runs per day than at a large resort, where a third of your time is spent travelling. With young children, the benefit is even more obvious. Size only really pays off when you’re experienced skiers who genuinely want to explore, when you’re staying for a whole week, or when your group has such varied skill levels that everyone needs their own part of the mountain.

Summary – among Sweden’s largest ski resorts, size is rarely the deciding factor

Sälenfjällen is the largest in Sweden in terms of the number of lifts and runs covered by a single pass; Åre is the largest in terms of vertical drop and is the obvious choice for anyone looking for long, steep runs. But size is rarely what determines how good your week will be. The location of your accommodation, the mix of people in your group, the queues and how many days you actually spend skiing matter more. Use the figures to understand what a resort has to offer – not to rank them. If you want to stay right in the heart of the largest ski area, there is holiday cottages in Lindvallen just a short walk from the lift.