A follow up to the above ⤴
Confirmed the son and I are booked to go back to Isola 2000 in our Feb half term (14th-21st) 🥳
My wife and daughter are ignoring us this year and organised a rival trip elsewhere in protest of the pain and general awkwardness of ski equipment - entirely fair to be honest.
It will be our 3rd visit to Isola 2000. Love it. A small French 70s purpose-built resort. Some of the older lifts are a bit agricultural and the button lifts to the red runs can be rather aggressive (no problem for the youths wearing French national ski team kit who always seem to have a training camp the same week) but the ski area feels massive for the relative size of the resort village. Busy at the weekend with Côte d'Azur day-trippers helicoptering up but always feels quiet during the week (compared to Les Trois Vallees during British half terms anyway - hate it - never going back). Easy ski bus directly over the road from the BA arrivals area at Nice airport too and when it comes to skiing I am a sucker for repeat logistics.
Anyone who happens to be in Isola 2000 that week and fancies a beer/hot choc and bike/ski chat, or even just any Qs about the resort before going, then feel free to drop me a message.
Anyone watching webcams already and silently shedding a tear that they aren't out in the alps this week? Looks like the season is off to a snowy start!
Don't forget that UCPA do family and family plus weeks. They're an absolute bargain and great fun to be in a hotel full of other families.
Family plus weeks will take kids from 3 and will have piou piou lessons in the morning or afternoon, then there's a (free!) kids club if you want for the other half of the day.
3 square meals a day and we'd meet up with our kids at lunch and ask what they wanted to do for the afternoon and 9/10 times they'd want to go to kids club. It was only last year that our 10 year old wanted to start skiing with us in the other half of the day, and his brother was still happy to kids club it up.
It's our first year on just a family week at christmas so will see how they 7 year old does with a full day skiing or messing about making snowmen
I mentioned earlier in the thread that my daughter landed a ski rep job with Crystal in Andorra. She is now confirmed to be based in Pal - Arinsal so we've booked a week there in January. Looks quite family friendly (blue heavy) so perhaps not first choice of resort if we were not going to visit her, but still seems to be plenty to keep us entertained for a week. Webcam showing awesome snow already.
Well, I never thought I'd be contributing to this thread, but just booked two weeks (business class LOL - a long story) to visit family in Utah and planning on getting some skiing/boarding in whilst we are there. Should be guaranteed nice powder conditions.
I think you need to get your priorities right and that should read “planning on fitting in a family visit whilst we are skiing there”!
I’m heading to Val d’Isere on Sunday and it appears as though most of the resort is going to be open from Day 1 after some of the best early snow of the last 20 years. Can’t wait.
Turns out I’m not working over Christmas so we’ve just booked to go out early. Means changing apartments after a week but that’s no big deal
I think you need to get your priorities right and that should read “planning on fitting in a family visit whilst we are skiing there”!
Yeah, probably, but we have a wide range of age (some now simply too old to ski, but won't want to be left by themselves) as well as experience, so dawn until dusk skiing every day won't be an option unfortunately.
If you’re doing Utah make sure you buy your passes as far ahead as possible. The price of day tickets for walk up now is eye watering across most of the US. I’m still envious mind, some great places to ski and board in Utah (apart from Snowbasin where I fractured my spine).
^ Yes, I have seen the prices – some of the prices are mad.
I’m sure you don’t need educating, but Ikon Pass is the way to go if possible. More reciprocal arrangements with European resorts might help lower the cost per day if the excuse can be found to use them.
Puy Saint Vincent this year.
Booked for a few days.
Wow, love this thread, awesome. If I wasn't riding I would be skiing (given the time). Booked for Norway in Jan, never been but my other half hasn't skied for years so needed somewhere not as huge as the usual places I go but snow sure. Very small resort but they also offer snow shoeing and fat biking, so if her love for skiing doesn't reappear, we have options.
Booked a couple of trips today
Week in Passo Tonale with the better half in March. 3rd year going there and she feels really comfortable there and it's helping her progression
Also booked a week in Les Deux Alpes for me and my mates at Easter
Might try and squeeze a wee short weekend somewhere in January
Avoriaz is opening a few lifts and pistes this weekend, gonna head up there early tomorrow...loads of snow late last week and earlier this week
Quick report from Val d’Isere - best start of season snow in 30 years according to the locals, bluebird skies, bearably cold and next to no one on the slopes! Weather on the turn and modest snow top up expected. Courchevel has reportedly done best out of the recent dump and conditions said to be best in 70 (!) years.
Puy Saint Vincent this year.
Booked for a few days.
Snowbizz? I've been there a couple of times with them (and wife and son) and they were lovely. The night skiing is a fun thing to do too.
Peisey X-C this afternoon in nice weather. It officially opens on Saturday but there was 10cm of fresh on groomed piste for those of us who took a chance.
Skinned up to the top of la Marquise at Sainte Foy on itinéraire balisé #3 then down the groomed pistes. Lovely at the top, less so at the bottom but I'm sure they'll improve it for the opening weekend. Went up in a T-shirt hoping to maintain tbe cyclist tan.
The forecast snow turned ou to be a few flakes above 1850m. Despite the lack of new snow the pistes in the Tarentaise remain skiable. Off piste though is a crusted refrozen mess - not fun. Sorry, forgot to take pics this morning
Thanks for the update.
Despite the lack of new snow the pistes in the Tarentaise remain skiable
We spent three weeks in Ste Foy in 2022 and had only one fall of snow in that time, 5cm of snow laden with saharan sand. We skiied La Plagne, Tignes and Les Arcs as well as SF over that period and honestly the pistes in SF were LEAGUES better maintaned than the other areas - probalby due to the significantly lower skiier numbers
Sainte Foy isn't particularly high but gets very little sun at this time of the year so the snow stays quite good Early today on piste was fine, good even in the shaded areas. I skinned up through the boulders below the Marquise arrival,. started down the same way but after about 20 turns scuttled off to the red (Camp Filleul) to preserve my knees.
No, staying in à hôtel .
So none of the forecast snow has fallen in theTarentaise so we're still skiing on nearly month old snow. We paid a reduced entry for X-C today because there's only partial opening and the snow there is is now crap after a few mild days. In the alpine resorts it's OK high up but increasingly crap low down. Good news is that it's snowed in the Pyrénées.
After the initial big snowfall I was hoping to see more, but it's been like a drought ever since. Hope you find somewhere to enjoy what's left of the snow Educator. Also, really hoping for some more regular refreshes to fall through January.
Well we're in resort and I've been out every day. Mrs NBT is unwell, huge coughing fits (possibly COVID as she has no symptoms to suggest a cold or anything) so has mostly been in bed. Pistes are suffering due to the lack of snowfall, they're getting very hard packed with traffic and the freeze thaw cycle, mostly you're skiing in rock hard pistes with a layer of stuff scraped off the top, but there are no lift queues at least. Better than being in the office though!
We’re in Utah (30 mins from Snowbasin resort). Over the last few days we’ve been watching what little snow there was on the mountains slowly melting. It was meant to be our first day today but they cancelled lessons at the last minute (our kids needed them) so all lesson fees, hire and lift passes being refunded.
Ordinarily there should be perfect conditions by now, but it’s been around 16degC day / 8degC at night so they can’t even make snow! Fortunately it isn’t a ‘ski holiday’ as such, we were just getting a few days in, but this really is crap.
That’s proper rubbish johndoh. Go and watch the Jazz / NBA, on tomorrow
Feedback from around the Tarentaise says that it's icy and the wind has blown the loose snow off so it's really not good except in sheltered bowls. I made the most of the good early season conditions but haven't been up the last couple of days. Time to head to the Pyrenees where the web cams tell me conditions are pretty good.
Some Americans in the saying it's cheaper to ski in France in better conditions without the queues. There's something of a controversy around Vail resorts hiking day pass prices to 300 dollars and poor service. Google it.
Thanks @scuttler - it actually appears to be tonight at Salt Lake City (and again on 30th). The family seem quite interested. 👍
Ah yeah it was 230am on the 27th so timezone messing with me. I went to NBA when I skied in Cottonwood Canyons and really enjoyed it after a day out. Hope it bucks up…
Sorted! £100 for four tickets. My daughters are big netball players/fans so they’ll really enjoy. Thank you!
That was fun! Utah were drawing 129-129 with Detroit with 2.1 seconds to go, then scored! Scenes!
But 2hrs 30mins for just 48 minutes playing time (plus foul throws) is bonkers!
Feedback from around the Tarentaise says that it's icy and the wind has blown the loose snow off so it's really not good except in sheltered bowls. I made the most of the good early season conditions but haven't been up the last couple of days. Time to head to the Pyrenees where the web cams tell me conditions are pretty good.
Some Americans in the saying it's cheaper to ski in France in better conditions without the queues. There's something of a controversy around Vail resorts hiking day pass prices to 300 dollars and poor service. Google it.
Funnily on the one evening we've had a drink in the village (a swift hot chocolate white we waited for the laundry to finish) we ended up chatting to a couple who've come over from America because it's so much cheaper to ski here: and the conditions are better, even though they're not great here.
Been a bad few days though with avalanches and other incidents leading to multiple skiiers injured and some fatalities in La Plagne, Les Karellis and other resorts in the French alps
First day of a week on Serre Che today. Alarmingly little snow in the town. All of the runs to the bottom are closed - although people are getting down them.
Snow at the top was a pleasant suprise. Really good cover and condition. Holding up well through the day so I think it will be fine all week. Not a pow week but far far better than we feared. 
Keep us posted through the week! Heading to Serre Che for the first time ( staying in monetier) on the 10th. Think my wife is as excited about the spa as the skiing to be honest!
currently snow forecast after new year but we will see….
All beginners lessons in Snowbasin, Utah cancelled until after we leave. FFS.
One month Saturday till I head out, at the moment most of the red pistes and pretty much all the black runs are closed. I'm praying for a snowy January. It looks like there is some coming on Friday evening so hopefully this is first of several!
@johndoh - Having done lessons on a low resort in Austria once I can totally understand the cancellations, learning in hard packed or absent snow conditions isn't fun, I think it took months for hips to recover from the bumps and bashes on the glassy piste.
Junior went into les urgences in BSM on an erand for the boss, nbt. It was more than a little bit busy with lots of skiers/boarders in various states of disrepair. The helicopter overhead on its way to the landing pad on the hospital roof became familiar sight on the last few days of our stay. Take care those of you who don't have the luxury of only skiing when weather and snow conditions appeal.
Every single day that we've been in St Foy the forecast says snow in 6 days, meaning the goalposts keep moving. Snow is forecast in 4/5 days, but I'll believe it when it actually happens. Nice to have blue skies for many, but for most skiers we need some snow, pretty please.
Managed to get a day in yesterday at a different resort in Utah (Powder Mountain). They only had two runs open (a green and a blue, which was patchy). Cost? Almost £1,200 for 2 x full day lessons, 4 x single day lift passes and 4 x equipment hire. WTF!
Edit: It was a successful day though - it was the first time for both my 16 yr old girls and they were flying down by the end of the day, and I managed not to fall much despite it being about 18 years since I was last on a mountain boarding and I only have a total of two weeks experience.
Wow! Our week on Serre Che won't have cost much more than that all in! Madness.
