Skiers at the Are Ski Area in Sweden are stylish and polite. Photo / Supplied
Skiers at the Are Ski Area in Sweden are stylish and polite. Photo / Supplied
Fiona Knight and family opt for the serene style of the Scandinavian ski scene.
Mention you've been skiing in Sweden and everyone is interested. "What's that like?" they ask with sceptical raised eyebrows.
Questions range from whether there were mountains (yes), if we skied in the dark most of the day (no, it stayed light until 8pm) and how handsome were the Nordic ski instructors (as you would imagine, extremely).
The truth about skiing in Sweden is that it is completely and effortlessly cool. It is different from skiing in the better-known mountains of Europe because it is so laid-back and seemingly lacking in any effort to be what it actually is, artlessly chic.
Our family of six visited Are (pronounced "aura"), Sweden's largest and premier winter resort, for a week's stay. In our party were two adults of intermediate ability and four children aged from 11 to 16 of mixed skiing ability, including a diehard snowboarder.
In recent years, we've become used to the frenzy of better known resorts in the French and Italian Alps. I find it can all be a bit "jostly". Whether it is ski hire, lunch or queues for the lifts, people can be pushy. Not so in Sweden.
Are is a resort that works totally efficiently and calmly. Every Swede we met spoke embarrassingly perfect English and was polite, helpful and good-humoured, an attitude that also extended to the way the Swedish skied.
It is almost certainly true that for most of the native skiers, the sport was mastered at about the same age as they learned to walk. There's nothing showy about the way they bomb down the slopes but it is highly stylish.
Not for the Swedes the bling of fancy clothing and flash ski gear. It took a couple of days for me to work out that the accessory du jour - a rucksack with a rolled-up reindeer-skin rug attached - contained all the components for a slope-side picnic in a dugout snow hole. The smell of sausages cooked on foldaway Primus stoves will remain my personal Swedish smell-bite.
The main skiing area of Are is big enough to cater for every level of skier, although those of an advanced standard will probably get most thrills from the off-piste guiding available.
As intermediates, we found the pistes suited us fine. Beginners and younger children tend to stay at Are's smaller Duved resort, reached by bus.
The 100km of interlinked slopes and the further 180km for cross-country skiers are, without exception, Christmas-card beautiful.
Sunset at the Are ski resort. Photo / Getty Images
Although Are doesn't have the neck-craning peaks of the Alps, it still has Mt Areskutan at 1420m, reached by a number of open-seated ski lifts and closed bubble cars.
Many extreme freestyle skiers base themselves here each season and freestyle jumping by beanie-wearing youngsters is a frequent sight to behold.
The size of most of the pistes seemed extra large. You can traverse for seemingly ages before you need to make a turn, although that's not necessarily to be advised. Swedish skiers expect you to keep to a tight parallel track.
At the top of the mountain are a number of black runs and challenging reds, which eventually lead down to gentle blue ski paths lined by snow-frosted pine trees. The ski base overlooks the wonderful dominant landscape of the giant frozen Lake Aresjon, on which helicopters land, cars drive and cross-country skiers walk.
Slope-side, we lunched at the most fabulous hotel and restaurant, Buustamons Fjallgard, which looked like an old converted barn and provided animal skins in which to wrap yourself while on the sunny terrace. The children's favourite was the 720 Food Station, which served big portions of pasta or the more traditional meatballs with mash and lingonberry jam.
Prices are high, although arguably no more so than at comparable restaurants in the Alps. If the high prices are a downer for Swedish skiing, there are plenty more ups. Are may not have mountains as high as the Alps, but snow is guaranteed there until the middle of May. When we were there in April, it snowed mostly overnight, making every run powder-soft.
In the winter months of December and January, the days are very short and cold. But a sophisticated floodlight system ensures you can ski until late afternoon. By the end of the season, in May, it stays light throughout the day and most of the night.
Non-skiers also get a good deal. Popular attractions in the area include husky dog-sledding, tobogganing, paragliding and Skidoo trips across the frozen lake.
So, to the last question most people ask when we wax lyrical about our newfound Scandi ski passion: would we go again?
An unequivocal yes. Sweden is expensive but it is a fantastic option for winter sports enthusiasts looking for something away from the usual ski crowd. When it comes to skiing, cool Swedish style has never been so fiercely hot.
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Getting there:Emirates connects to Stockholm via its hub in Dubai.
