SAS launches direct flight from London to the ski slopes of Norway and Sweden

New route opens up SkiStar's twin resorts of Sälen and Trysil to the UK market

Scandinavian skiing opens up to the UK market from December 28th with the introduction of an SAS direct flight from London to the new Scandinavian Mountains Airport on the Swedish-Norwegian border. With a two hour flight time, a 10 minute transfer to Hundfjället, the closest skiing area in Sälen in Sweden, and 40 minutes to Trysil in Norway, British skiers can be in resort three hours after taking off from Heathrow.

The twin skiing areas of Sälen and Trysil are the largest ski resorts in Scandinavia. Already firm favourites with the domestic and Northern European markets, they are growing in popularity with international skiers looking for an alternative to the busy slopes of the Alps. The completion of Scandinavian Mountains Airport and ongoing development of the resorts – including an investment of more than £86million in Hundfjället and Tandålen in Sälen – gives Scandinavia a truly world-class destination with incredible access.

Karl Sandlund, Executive Vice President Commercial, SAS, says: “We are delighted that SAS is able to offer the first international flights to the new airport. Short journey times, attractive timetables, combined with fantastic opportunities for skiing and other winter activities in the Swedish and Norwegian mountains are what a lot of people are looking for. We are going to continue to develop our collaboration with SkiStar in order to improve the services we can offer our passengers and make it a whole lot easier to enjoy the Scandinavian winter experience."

Mathias Lindström, Sales and Marketing Director at SkiStar, says: “We’ve already seen a year-on-year booking increase of 23% from the UK to our ski resorts in Norway and Sweden, so it’s extremely exciting to be able to offer a direct route from London to Sälen and Trysil. With such easy access to Sweden and Norway's largest ski resorts, even more British skiers can choose ski holidays in Scandinavia.”

The new flight will run on Saturdays throughout the ski season, commencing on December 28th 2019. For further details, visit skistar.com

Fast facts about Scandinavian Mountains Airport Sälen-Trysil

• The airport is located on the border with Norway and is the first to be built in Sweden in 20 years.
• The airport is fully privately owned by 33 companies.
• The terminal building has four promenades offering cafés and shopping, including tax-free shopping.
• The airport will provide international access to Sweden's largest ski area, Sälen, and Norway's largest ski resort, Trysil.
• Trysil had 1,150,000 skier days and Sälen had 1,670,000 skier days in the past season.
• The transfer time to the nearest ski area in Sälen is 10 minutes and Trysil is 40 away.
• The region is Scandinavia's largest winter destination. There are four ski resorts with more than 100,000 beds in hotels, apartments and cottages.
• The number of overnight stays is over 7 million during the winter season.
• The area offers 250 pistes and a huge variety of restaurants, entertainment, shopping and activities.
• Over 30,000 children attend ski school and childcare in Sälen and Trysil each season.