Norway is best known for cross-country skiing, but there are also some very good alpine skiing resorts.

Norway's spectacular and wild landscape has enabled the country to become a pioneer of the skiing world. Norway gets fantastic fantastic snow without being particular high - thanks to its proximity to the Arctic Circle. Of the around 20 ski resorts in Norway, most of them can barely manage more than 1,000 meters, but with some resorts based barely above sea level, there is still plenty of vertical to go around. Once the snow arrives it stays for quite a long time, this means that in Norway you can go skiing or snowboarding for nearly half a year - from mid-November to April. The low level snow line makes Norway one of the best destinations for cross country skiing anywhere in the world. There are trails at most of the major resorts, but hut to hut ski touring is also hugely popular.

There are some 30,000 km of wonderful cross country skiing trails all over Norway. At winter it gets dark early in Norway, around 2,500 tracks are therefore usually well illuminated. Even beautiful ski trails in the woods are usually lit up during nighttime. In daytime the Norwegian winter landscapes are magnificent. Some of the best areas for cross country skiing include Golsfjellet, Valdres, Nordseter and nearby Sjusjoen, Venabu and Havringen.

Alpine skiing and snowboarding has become increasingly popular in Norway, and many ski resorts provide well equipped facilities. Among the most popular ski resorts for Alpine skiing are: Lillehammer, host to the 1995 Winter Olympics, which includes 5 ski centers and has a total of 88 slopes with 43 lifts; Geilo, located between the imposing Hallingskarvet and Hardangervidda halfway between Oslo and Bergen, features 5 different ski centers with a total of 18 lifts; Voss, located in the heart of the fjord country surrounded by glaciers and mountains about and hour from Bergen, features 40 km of alpine slopes; Hemsedal; and Trysil.