Skiing Under The Northern Lights Tops Brits’ Ski Bucket List

New research from ski holiday company Heidi reveals that skiing under the Northern Lights is the number one bucket list experience for UK skiers - by a clear margin 

Respondents were asked to rate 30 bucket list ski experiences they’d most like to do at least once in their lifetime. Across all age groups, skiing under the Northern Lights came out on top - scoring almost twice as high in appeal as the average experience. * 

In second place was night skiing under the stars, followed by skiing the world’s longest on-piste run - the 22km Klein Matterhorn to Valtournenche route in the Zermatt-Cervinia ski area, crossing the Swiss-Italian border.  

Interestingly, skiers aged 46-65 were the most eager to experience the Northern Lights, while night skiing held similar appeal across all generations. 

The allure of the Northern Lights partly lies in their unpredictability, which makes seeing them all the more special. Luckily, the second most popular bucket list experience - night skiing under the stars - can be enjoyed reliably across dozens of European resorts, including Sölden and Zell am See in Austria, Courchevel in France, Trysil in Norway and Zermatt in Switzerland. 

Natural beauty and scenery-led experiences dominated the top five, with skiing the stunning Sella Ronda circuit in the UNESCO Dolomites and the fjords in Norway taking fourth and sixth place overall. 

Top 10 UK ski bucket list experiences: 

1. Ski under the Northern Lights
2. Go night skiing under the stars 
3. Ski the longest on-piste run in the world - the 22km Klein Matterhorn to Valtournenche 
4. Ski the stunning Sella Ronda circuit in the UNESCO Dolomites 
5. Stay at the highest hotel in the French Alps - Le Refuge de Solaise (2,551m) 
6. Ski the fjords in Norway 
7. Ski three countries in a single day – Austria, Italy, and Switzerland
8. Eat at the highest restaurant in Europe - Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, in Zermatt
9. Ski the longest off-piste run in the world - the 23km Vallée Blanche in Chamonix 
10.  Ski all of the Three Valleys in one day 

 Check out the full 30 list here - how many have you ticked off?  

For those determined to chase the Northern Lights on their ski holiday, the best chances lie (unsurprisingly!) further north - including the following resorts, all available with Heidi: 

• Riksgränsen, Sweden - the northernmost ski resort in the world, above the Arctic Circle.
• Levi and Ylläs, Finland - famed for long, dark nights and reliable aurora sightings.
• Narvik, Norway - where fjord views and Northern Lights can combine for a double bucket-list experience. 

Marcus Blunt, Co-founder of Heidi, comments: “Ski holidays offer a unique mix of experiences you can’t find anywhere else. Heidi's purpose is to help people find their freedom in the mountains, so we wanted to ask UK skiers what they dream about experiencing the most. Whether that’s chasing the Northern Lights in Scandinavia or night skiing in the Alps, Heidi makes it easy to book your bucket list ski holiday. We offer fully customisable packages to more than 350 resorts across Europe, so skiers can tailor their trip around the experiences that matter most to them.” 

Whatever’s on your ski bucket list, Heidi has a customisable ski holiday package to suit, including these live examples:* 

• Northern Lights in Finland?  £1,326pp for 5 nights in Ylläs (Saturday 24th - Thursday 29th January 2026), staying at the 4-star Lapland Hotels Saaga, two sharing. Includes breakfast, return London Stansted - Rovaniemi flights, and private airport transfers. 

• Night skiing in Norway? £816pp for 7 nights in Trysil (Saturday 3rd - Saturday 10th January 2026), staying at the 4-star Radisson Blu Resort Trysil, two sharing. Includes breakfast, return London Gatwick - Scandinavian Mountains Airport flights, and airport transfers.
• Ski the longest on-piste run in the world - the 22km Klein Matterhorn to Valtournenche?  £990pp for 7 nights in Cervinia (Friday 12th - Weds 17th December 2025), staying at the 4-star White Angel Hotel, two sharing. Includes breakfast, return London Stansted - Turin, and airport transfers. 

 Heidi blog on some of the best resorts for night skiing: heidi.com/ski/blog/where-to-head-for-the-best-night-skiing-on-the-mountain   

Heidi was launched in 2018, formally known as Ski Zoom. Its millennial founders, Marcus and Alexander Blunt, are half-Norwegian brothers who love the mountains - and were lucky to have snow and skiing as part of their daily life growing up. Heidi was born out of their desire to change the lack of flexibility in the ski holiday market, and enable more people to easily access and enjoy the mountains.  

The company’s proprietary travel tech has revolutionised today’s ski holiday market, offering an unprecedented sweet spot between the customisation of a DIY holiday and the convenience and security of an ATOL-protected package. Heidi provides all the elements of a winter sports holiday in one place, plus expert 24/7 customer support. 

Heidi has seen exponential growth over the past few years - jumping from £8.8 million in the year to April 2022 to £58 million in the year to April 2025. It is the UK’s third largest ski holiday operator, carrying over 52,000 passengers in the 2024/2025 season - and has an average ‘Excellent’ rating of 4.7 out of 5 on Trustpilot.  

Heidi ranked 63rd in the 2024 Sunday Times 100 list of the UK’s fastest-growing private companies, and shortly after secured £5.6 million investment. The company has also been ranked 28th in the 2025 FEBE 100 list of fastest-growing founder-led companies in the UK.   

Heidi gives customers the freedom to build their perfect ski break in minutes from thousands of options across 300+ resorts, and add extras like lift passes, lessons and equipment hire to their booking. Whether it’s a family looking for a budget-friendly Feb half term trip, or a group of friends after a quick mid-week getaway with tons of après ski, Heidi also offers a low-deposit booking option and payment plans. Everything is organised and covered by Heidi, so customers can focus on enjoying the freedom of the mountains. As of 2025, this freedom is now extended to flexible summer and autumn mountain holidays.

*These are real-time prices on 13^th October 2025. Pricing is dynamic and subject to change. 

* The survey was conducted in September 2025 by Boxclever on behalf of Heidi, polling 450 UK skiers. Scores represent an index relative to the average appeal (100 = average, 200 = twice as appealing). 

Age groups in the study: 18-25, 26-35, 36-45, 46-55, 56-65, and 66+