Vasaloppet: The World's Biggest Ski Race

Every March thousands of skiers leave Sälen at dawn and ski 90 km to Mora. This guide covers the 2027 dates, how entry and start groups work for a foreign skier, the shorter races, getting to the start, finding a bed and watching from the course.

When you need this

You’re wondering whether to ski Vasaloppet, try one of the shorter races, or simply watch. Maybe you’re entering from abroad and the fee steps, start groups and “seeding” make no sense yet. Or you need a bed in Mora or Sälen in early March, a way to reach the start before dawn, or a plan for following a friend along the course.

Vasaloppet 2027 at a glance

Vasaloppet has run from Berga by in Sälen to Mora in Dalarna since 1922, and its organiser bills it as the world’s biggest long-distance ski race. It honors Gustav Vasa’s flight through Dalarna in the winter of 1520–21. Since 1948 it has been held on the first Sunday of March every year except 2015.

Elite skiers and amateurs share the course. You get about 12 hours in total. At each of the seven checkpoints (kontroller) you get drinks, food, grip-wax help, toilets and medical staff. Each checkpoint also has a cut-off time (reptid), and you must leave within ten minutes of it. Miss one and your race ends there, and the organiser buses you to Mora.

The winter week: which race is for you

The main race closes a ten-day winter week (Vasaloppets vintervecka) of 14 races, from Friday 26 February to Sunday 7 March 2027. In 2026 the week drew 63,384 entries. Two old names still show up in searches: Halvvasan has been Vasaloppet 45 since 2020, and Kortvasan became Vasaloppet 30 the same year.

Öppet Spår (“open track”) is the full distance, timed but not ranked. Öppet Spår söndag uses the same classic course in waves from 06:50, and it is the calmer way to ski the 90 km. Children aged about 3–10 can ski the free Barnens Vasalopp in Sälen on 27 February and in Mora on 6 March, with registration on site.

Entering: fees, rules and no refunds

Entry goes only through the organiser’s website, vasaloppet.se, where you create a personal account. You can pay by card, so a foreign card works; the other options are Swish, which visitors usually cannot use (see why visitors can’t use Swish), and invoice. International skiers need not join a Swedish ski club. Swedes entering Vasaloppet or Tjejvasan’s competitive class must.

The fee rises in steps, so the earliest entry is the cheapest. Entry for 2027 opened on 19 February 2026 at 2,460 kr for Vasaloppet. It is 2,685 kr until 5 November 2026, 2,735 kr until 24 February 2027 and 2,985 kr in race week. The other races follow the same ladder; see Practical information.

Read the terms before you pay:

• Entry is binding. The fee is not refunded and cannot be moved to next year. The organiser’s terms say the Swedish right of withdrawal for distance purchases does not apply to sports events.
• Weather cancellation: if a race is cancelled for lack of snow or extreme cold, you get 50% back. For other force majeure you get nothing.
• You can sell your place through your account for a 320 kr transfer fee. The organiser runs no marketplace and stays out of the payment. It warns that dishonest sellers exist, so buy only from people you know.
• Waxes with fluorine are banned in all the organiser’s ski races since 2024.

Start groups and seeding

The start in Berga by has eleven start groups (startled): elite at the front, then groups 1 to 10. If you have no earlier result, you start in group 10 at the back of the field. That costs time in the first kilometers.

To move up, finish a seeding race (seedningslopp) of at least 40 km. Any accepted seeding race puts you in group 9 or better, and faster times move you further forward. Accepted races exist in 14 countries; send a foreign result by e-mail with your Vasa-ID. Results stay valid for three years but drop one group each year.

The organiser’s own races count too. Tjejvasan, Öppet Spår söndag and Vasaloppet 45 seed you fully, while the free-technique Öppet Spår måndag and Nattvasan races can lift you only as far as group 2. Buying a place second-hand does not buy a start group: in Vasaloppet your group follows your own results.

Race day: the start bus, cut-offs and the finish

Collect your bib and chip at the race offices in Mora or Sälen in the days before. Uncollected bibs wait at the start, but picking yours up early gives you a calmer morning. Office hours for 2027 appear at the end of January.

The organiser recommends its start buses from Mora for every participant. Tickets for the winter races go on sale at the end of November 2026, seats are limited, and tickets are not refunded. By car, Mora to the Sälen start can take about 2.5 hours or more in race traffic, plus time to park and walk. Group 10’s pen opens at 05:00 and groups 1–9 at 05:30, and everyone must be in place by 07:45.

Classic means classic: skating can get you disqualified, and skis come off only on downhills. Drop rubbish only at checkpoint bins, in marked litter zones or with your own support crew, or you get a 15-minute penalty. The organiser suggests a head torch if you expect to be out after 17:00; see cold safety in Sweden and packing for a Swedish winter.

After the 340-meter home straight in Mora, you hand in your skis and take a free bus to the showers, where your bag waits. Then ride back for your skis and a free diploma.

Beds, trains and why 2027 is tight

The organiser does not broker accommodation. It refers you to the regional tourist board, Visit Dalarna, and tells you to book early. There are hotels, cabins, camping and motorhome sites along the course.

Book as soon as you have entered, because 2027 is an unusually crowded fortnight. The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships run in Falun, also in Dalarna, from 24 February to 7 March 2027. Stockholm’s school winter break (sportlov) is 1–5 March. Mora itself counted over 50,000 visitors during the 2026 week, and Sälen is also a busy lift-resort area in the school-holiday weeks (see skiing in Sweden).

Getting there without a car is possible:

Check connections in Resrobot. In Mora, several central streets close for the whole winter week and parking bans apply, so plan to walk or use the town buses.

Watching the race

The finish in Mora is where most of the atmosphere is. Along the course, the checkpoints at Mångsbodarna, Evertsberg, Oxberg and Hökberg have parking. You cannot drive into Smågan or Eldris, and elsewhere along Vasaloppsvägen, the road beside the course, parking is very limited and traffic slow. Between Mångsbodarna and Mora the trail runs fairly close to the road.

The start buses carry skiers only, so spectators need their own transport. The organiser’s app sends split times from every checkpoint for up to 25 skiers (45 kr to unlock), every race streams on Vasaloppet.TV, and SVT has broadcast Vasaloppet live every year since 1992.

Vasaloppet in summer

In August the same course hosts a summer week. In 2027 the Cykelvasan mountain-bike races run on 13–14 August, up to 92 km from Sälen. The running races, Ultravasan (92 km), Trailvasan and a ten-leg relay, follow on 20–21 August. Outside race weeks the 90 km Vasaloppsleden trail is open for hiking and cycling. It has nine overnight huts on eight sites that cannot be booked and cost 100 kr per bed and night, free for under-17s. Parts of the trail cross private land.

Practical information

FAQ

When is Vasaloppet 2027?

Sunday 7 March 2027, the 103rd race. The start is at 08:00 in Berga by, Sälen, and the course runs 90 km in classic technique to Mora. It closes a winter week of 14 races from Friday 26 February, including Tjejvasan on 27 February and Öppet Spår söndag on 28 February. Vasaloppet has been held on the first Sunday of March since 1948.

How do you enter Vasaloppet from abroad?

Only through the organiser’s website, vasaloppet.se, where you create a personal account and pay by card, Swish or invoice. Entry is binding and non-refundable. International skiers do not need to join a Swedish ski club. You must turn 17 during the race year. The fee rises in steps, so entering early is cheaper.

How much does Vasaloppet cost to enter?

For 2027 the adult fee is 2,685 kr if you enter by 5 November 2026, then 2,735 kr until 24 February 2027 and 2,985 kr in race week. It opened at 2,460 kr in February 2026. Start buses, accommodation and travel come on top. Shorter races cost less, from 265 kr for Ungdomsvasan.

What are the start groups in Vasaloppet?

The start has eleven groups: elite at the front, then groups 1 to 10. First-timers without a result start in group 10, at the back. Finishing an accepted seeding race of at least 40 km, in Sweden or abroad, lifts you to group 9 or better; faster times move you further forward. Results count for three years.

How do you get to the Vasaloppet start in Sälen?

Take the organiser’s start bus from Mora. It recommends the bus for every participant, and tickets go on sale at the end of November 2026 in limited numbers. By car, allow about 2.5 hours from Mora on race morning, plus time to park and walk. The pens close at 07:45.

Where can you watch Vasaloppet?

At the finish in Mora, or at checkpoints along the course. Parking is available at Mångsbodarna, Evertsberg, Oxberg and Hökberg. You cannot drive into Smågan or Eldris, and the organiser’s buses carry skiers only. Traffic on the road beside the course is slow, so plan one or two stops and leave time for Mora. SVT broadcasts the race live.

Is Halvvasan still held?

Not under that name. The 45 km race from Oxberg to Mora has been called Vasaloppet 45 since 2020, and Kortvasan became Vasaloppet 30 the same year. In 2027 Vasaloppet 45 runs on Tuesday 2 March and Vasaloppet 30 on Friday 26 February, both classic, with starting waves from 09:00.

Is there a summer Vasaloppet?

Yes. The organiser runs a summer week on the same course. In 2027 Cykelvasan, a mountain-bike race of up to 92 km from Sälen, is on 13–14 August, and the running races, including the 92 km Ultravasan and a ten-leg relay, are on 20–21 August. The course is also a hiking and cycling trail.

Related guides

• Cross-country skiing in Sweden — track etiquette, classic vs skate, and free tracks to train on first
• Dalarna — the region around Mora and Sälen
• Skiing in Sweden — Sälen’s lift resorts and the sportlov weeks that fill them
• Cold safety in Sweden — frostbite and hypothermia before a long day outdoors
• Packing for a Swedish winter — layers for skiing and for standing at a checkpoint

Facts verified 2026-09-25. Sources: Vasaloppet (Vasaloppsföreningen Sälen-Mora), Mora kommun, Visit Dalarna, Stockholms stad, Trafikverket and the rail and coach operators — full register in this topic’s source file. Found something outdated? Tell us and we’ll fix it.