The skiing treasure trove of the Sognefjord

Fjords and glaciers ensure a snow-rich climate, a long winter season and many days of powder snow. The area attracts all kinds of freeskiers, which creates a lively local ski environment. Those of us who head for Sogndal with our skis, meet all types: the woodland cruisers, long-haired splitboarders, couples on avalanche courses or locals looking for newly fallen snow with headlights at seven o’clock in the evening on a Thursday.

They come to experience the snow each in their own way, and so can you. The ski centres in Sogn offer some of Norway's best lift-based skiing and there are many safe routes nearby. For those looking to explore further afield, great guides are at hand to show you the best skiing terrain. The guides at Breogfjell are based here and are specialists in skiing in Sogn.

Effective altitude metres

With so much to offer, you will always find a mountainside with plenty of snow on your doorstep. When you set off by car from the centre of Quality hotel Sogndal at 8 o’clock in the morning, you're at an altitude of 0 metres. By 08.15, you're already 440 metres above sea level. You will have climbed Togga (1,320 metres above sea level) at a leisurely pace by 11 o’clock, ready for the day's highlight: the descent on one of Sogndal's classic ski tours.

Togga is the most famous mountains in Sogndal, because you are guaranteed snow there and it provides effective altitude metres. From the car park in Brandhaugnadn beside the Rv 5 road, you can make tracks along the ridge, which is the most common of many ways of getting back down.

From the top, you can see a range of fantastic alpine mountain trips in Skjerdingane or across Frudalshesten, from where, you can look down at the Fjærlandsfjord. Frudalshesten is one of approximately twenty ski tours you can do.

Near the top, the road tunnel runs 1,000 metres under you. One kilometre of mountains and several metres of snow separate your skis and the cars below. The cars from Sogndal are on their way to the magical ice kingdom on the other side, called Fjærland, which is well worth a trip.

Glacier valley

This may seem like a typical drive along Norwegian fjords, with tunnel after tunnel, and beautiful landscape in between. However, the landscape in Fjærland makes it hard to keep your eyes on the road, with two huge glacier arms from the Jostedalsbreen glacier plunging into the valley.

People have been coming here to see glaciers since the 19th century. This led to the Norwegian Glacier Museum being built here, and the valley's 300 inhabitants in the valley are known for their hospitality. Fjærland Fjordstove Hotel is a member of Historic Hotels and Restaurants and has been up and running for over 80 years. They offer local produce, comfy beds and drying facilities where you can hang your climbing skins before enjoying the dinner served by Fjordstova's excellent kitchen.

Fjordstova is a perfect starting point for many ski tours, and it could become your exclusive basecamp if you join the guides from "Bre og fjell" on the ‘Sognefjord All Inclusive’ tour. During the season, you and your friends can spend 7 days all-inclusive in Fjærland with your own personal guide on four of those days, with a tailored schedule adapted to your skills. Whether you want the best skiing tips or to hunt for virgin snow, this is the real deal!

Superlatives in the ski centres

The main attractions when it comes to ski centres in Sogndal are Sogndal ski centre Hodlekve and Sogn ski centre. If you travel up the Lustrafjord towards Hafslo, a quarter of an hour from Sogndalsfjøra, you will find Norway’s longest poma lift and almost 700 altitude metres of freeriding terrain.

Sogn ski centre is also known as Heggemyrane and has enough terrain to fill up many days in your skiing calendar. We recommend staying a night in Hafslo to add to the experience BesteBakken. This is a charming boutique hotel in an old farm with 15 beds that serves tasty traditional fare, often from their own garden. It is located five minutes from Sogn ski centre.

The locals love to debate whether the best ski centre in town is Hodlekve or Sogn, and those who swear by Hodlekve will tell you that it has the best woodland ski terrain in the world. Hodlekveskogen is a large, well-known north-facing mountainside with all types of terrain imaginable and with the maximum wow-factor possible when it comes to powder snow. You drive north into the neighbouring valley, away from the lifts, but the ski centre will collect you at the bottom of the valley by the main road in their 'powder bus'!

A culture of sharing

The bus is operated on days with good snow conditions and during the festival season, which often coincide in February. The Fjellsportfestivalen in Sogndal is a mountain sports festival in which skiing enthusiasts gather for fun in the mountains during the day and in the centre of town later on. Quality hotel Sogndal puts on a special menu throughout the weekend of delicious pizza, burgers, steaks and gin at the hotel’s three restaurants.

Sogndal has a winter climate, which they are happy to share with everyone, not only skiers. At the ski centre in Hafslo, there is kilometre-upon-kilometre of cross-country tracks, and the company FjordHusky in Sogndal can take you on a day trip across the mountains from the ski centre and back to Leikanger, where the guide can teach you how to steer the dogs if you would like to try your hand at it!

The Sognefjord is a winter paradise for skiers, where the hosts know how to make the most out of every centimetre of snow.