Skiing in Lillehammer
The winter wonderland we expected when we moved to Norway
The opening ceremonies of the 2026 Winter Olympics were this past weekend and what better place to visit than the site of the 1994 Winter Olympics - Lillehammer, Norway. Located 200km (~124 miles) north of Oslo, it was an easy 4 hours and 35 minutes train ride from Trondheim. We spent the weekend skiing and enjoying time in the mountains.
We made the trip with two other families and rented a large, cozy cabin in the mountains. Anticipating being tired after our ski days, we decided to trade off cooking breakfasts and dinners at the cabin rather than heading out into town for dinner at restaurants in town. Therefore, we didn’t see much of Lillehammer itself, but skiing at Hafjell Ski Resort gave us plenty to do.
For about half of the group, it was the first time skiing or snowboarding. We took it easy and set up camp at the bunny hill both days, which was conveniently located next to one of the lodges. Everyone caught onto skiing or snowboarding really quickly. Those of us who had skied or snowboarded before were impressed with the progress. It was also our almost three-year-old’s first time getting to ski. He did so well! He did a little skiing on his own but went fast down the mountain between mom or dad’s legs.
The rest of us took turns doing longer runs down the full mountain. According to the ski rental website, the week we were in Lillehammer was the busiest of the season. Knowing what that means in the US, we were nervous the mountain would be extra crowded and the lift lines would be long. This ended up not being the case. It still felt like we had plenty of room on the runs, and we hardly had to wait in line for any of the lifts. Skiing in Europe is definitely a different experience.
Not only was the mountain not as crowded as we were expecting, but the cost of the weekend was cheaper than we were expecting as well. Our 2-day ski equipment rental and 2-day lift passes for all three of us ended up being just over $500 (US dollars) which is far less than we would have paid at the ski resorts in the US. For comparison, an adult one-day lift pass at Hafjell Ski Resort for this Saturday costs about $62 (USD), but the adult one-day lift pass at Snowbasin Ski Resort, where we skied in Utah, for this Saturday costs $229 (USD). Other US resorts can cost up to $350 for an adult one-day weekend ski lift pass. In some instances, it could be cheaper to fly to Europe from the US for a ski trip than stay inside the United States for a ski weekend.
But, back to our fun-filled weekend. It was cold in the Lillehammer area, like temperatures in the low teens with real feel temperatures reaching 0 degrees. Needless to say, we did not spend all day out on the mountain. Our son made two or three runs down the bunny hill each day, and we made about the same number of runs down the long runs before we were too frozen to keep going.
Shorter days on the mountain meant longer afternoons in the lodge. Gaiastova was the lodge next to the Hafjell bunny hill where we spent the majority of our afternoons. The food and drinks were pretty good. Our favorite food option was the steak sandwich and our favorite drink option was either the Irish coffee or Hot Kakao with Fireball. I was a little unsure of the hot chocolate and Fireball combination at first, but after a cold morning of skiing, the drink really warmed you from the inside out. There was also live music to enjoy Saturday afternoon.
Lillehammer is not just a winter destination, the summer season offers a lot of fun activities as well. Not only do the mountains offer adventures ranging from hiking to mountain biking, but the town offers great experiences as well. There is Garmo stave church at the open-air museum, Maihaugen, Hunderfossen Adventure Park open in both winter and summer, Lilleputthammer park designed for younger children up to 8-years-old, the Olympic bobsled and luge track, and an Olympic museum. Unfortunately we did not have enough time this trip to visit any of these locations, but my hope is that we are able to take another weekend trip to Lillehammer this summer.
