A low pressure front will bring freezing rain and snow blizzards to many parts of the country on Friday and into Saturday, just as schools in the south begin their week-long ski holiday.
The annual mid-term break, known as hiihtoloma in Finnish, sees daycares, schools and third-level institutions close their doors for one week sometime between mid-February and mid-March — depending on the region.
The tradition began in the 1920s as a means of breaking up the long spring semester between January and June, but also to encourage young people to hone their winter sporting skills.
The beginning of the holiday tends to lead to a mass exodus from the capital region to ski centres further north, with Finland's transport information agency Fintraffic noting that Friday and Saturday will be the busiest days on the nation's roads.
Yle meteorologist Matti Huutonen however warned motorists of hazardous driving conditions caused by the arrival of a low pressure front on Friday afternoon.
"There is going to be some pretty nasty weather," Huutonen said, adding that he has never previously seen "so much freezing rain" in the forecast.
The Finnish Meteorological Institute has also issued a warning of "very bad road conditions" due to freezing rain and snow or sleet for almost the entire country on Friday and Saturday.
Aside from the freezing rain, the outlook suggests that about 20 centimetres of snow will fall in central areas by Saturday evening.
Sunday is expected to be sunny but cold, with temperatures hovering around -7 degrees Celsius. This will make conditions slippery throughout the country — ideal for skiers but not for motorists and pedestrians.
Yle News explained Finland's ski holiday' tradition in this video from 2019.
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