STARS ON THE SLOPES: Måns Zelmerlöw and British actress wife Ciara board the first SAS flight from London to the new airport in Sälen

The first flight from London to the new Scandinavian Mountains Airport departs from Heathrow on December 28 with Swedish star Måns Zelmerlöw, British actress wife Ciara Zelmerlöw and their children among the passengers ready to see in the New Year on the slopes of Sälen and Trysil.

The British public got to know pop star and presenter Måns when he triumphed in the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest with Heroes, then returned to present Eurovision 2016 alongside Petra Mede in Stockholm. This year, he joined Mel Giedroyc to co-host the UK’s search of a Eurovision entry, ‘You Decide’. Måns lives in Surrey with actress wife Ciara Zelmerlöw (known to Brits as Hollyoaks star Ciara Janson), their son Albie, 19 months, and Ciara’s son Archie, five. The family will be boarding the first flight to Scandinavian Mountains Airport to join the New Year’s celebrations in Sälen and enjoy a family ski holiday, Scandi-style.

Måns says: “We spent New Year 2017 in Sälen and are really looking forward to going back for the 2020 celebrations with Albie. We had our first ski trip as a family of four earlier this year when Ciara and I took the boys to SkiStar Åre. They really loved it, especially Archie! Skiing the Scandinavian way is so relaxed and family-friendly – Swedish kids learn to ski as soon as they can walk and the ski schools are fantastic. Life is always busy but I want to share all the wonderful things about a Swedish childhood with the boys – even though we’re based near London, the new airport means we can fly direct from Heathrow and be out on the slopes the same day.”

NEW DIRECT SAS FLIGHT FROM HEATHROW TO SCANDINAVIAN MOUNTAINS AIRPORT

• The new Scandinavian Mountains Airport opens on December 22 and welcomes the first direct SAS flight from London Heathrow on December 28
• The weekly direct flight runs throughout the ski season on Saturdays
• The airport is in Sweden close to the Norwegian border, located between the twin ski resorts of Sälen in Sweden and Trysil in Norway
• Transfers from the airport to the nearest ski area in Sälen take 10 minutes while transfers to Trysil take from 40 minutes
• SAS flights to Heathrow via Copenhagen are also available during the week
• Adult return tickets start from £155