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Am looking for the following;
Very good beginnners and intermediate skiing, along with a little bit of off piste playtime. Would be good to have some leisurely blues down to the village/resort as well, in case of large lunches!
Good snow in late January
Quiet(ish) resort, not full of lager louts pretending that getting hammered and vomiting = "Apres ski"
Stuff to do away from the piste, such as an ice rink, cross-country or toboggans etc.
Nice location, not some prefab monstrosity
So, your suggestions please!
portes du soleil is my favourite (a mate of mine I once had to arrange a H evac off a ridge for has a couple of apartments there which are at my disposal woohoo!)
http://www.morzine-avoriaz.com/
Morzine for a more fun vibe, or the smaller villages around like Chatel, St Jean d'Aulps, or Montriond. All the little villages have at least one bar/restaurant for easy evening fodder. Most of the eateries in town are a bit touristy although there's a few specials ones like the clin: http://www.restaurant-leclin.com/ although it's changed hands since I last went - fingers crossed it's still a great little restaurant and bar.
Huge area with varied pistes. Plenty to do in the area - check out the activités sportives on the site for details.
easy to get to and some of the smaller villages are bargins if you have transport.
Tignes? Not sure about the extra stuff to do away from piste.
Les Arcs is a vast area, runs to cater for all abilities and great off piste opps higher up. Last year the conditions were fantastic in late Jan and we have booked again for this year we enjoyed it so much. Loads of good restaurants and bars but its seems to be an older crowd in general so no groms causing mischief.
If you go week commencing 31st Jan you could even meet me for a beer! How are things any how? I'm back up North now, I couldn't resist the pull of 'proper' riding any longer!
Norway. Some gentler slops, better suited to XC ski-ing, but absolutely perfect for beginners, plus XC ski-ing is really good fun. I found it easy to gain a lot of confidence in just a short time, and there's not the 'oh shit how do I stop' terror.
Spensive mjnd. But definitely something a bit different to the average ski-ing holiday I'd imagine. Probbly a lot quieter too. Plus the Norwegians seem to be really into snowboarding and that too. The Winter culture is a lot less touristy, as it's just daily life for most people there.
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I'm hopefully going to be negotiating the use of a place near Perpignan for MTB and ski-ing holidays, very reasonable rates to STWers. 😉 I'll keep you posted...
Montgenevre is a very nice little resort. Big skiing area which can get busy during the french/italian holidays but it remains lager lout free. Good off piste stuff and the lift pass gives access to Sestriere and Serre Chevalier as well. Montgenevre village sits at 1850m with top lift somewhere around the 3000m I think. Quite a nice little village, especially as they have now put in a tunnel moving all the passing traffic underground. There are a few ski in/out hotels/chalets available.
St Martin de Bellville is also worth a look. Quite a nice little village and you can get access to everything up the Belleville valley which means lots of variety both on and off piste. St Martin is low, 1300 I think, but Val Thorens village is at 2000m
Tignes is almost the complete opposite of what you have asked for!
I'd consider La Clusaz.
Resort altitude 1110m - 1110m
Highest lift 2477m
Lowest lift 1110m
kms of piste 130km²
Black pistes 7%
Red pistes 20%
Blue pistes 23%
Green pistes 22%
Snow parks 2
Glacier No
Snowmaking Yes
With the caveat that at 1110m you are not guaranteed good snow in a bad year.
Nor would I go to Norway in January, the sun doesn't come up 🙂
Stoner, noted, thanks.
DarkSide, blast from the past! How the hell are you? Already done Les Arcs and liked it a lot. Didn't like the long transfer, though!
Creg, skied some of Montgenevre last year, as well as much of the Via Lattea. Great area!
Keep 'em coming!
Saalbach / hinterglem
zell em see/ kaprun
all 1 hour transfer from salzburg etc..
Nor would I go to Norway in January, the sun doesn't come up
A fair point actually. The sun does come up, if you're below the Arctic Circle, but not for long, and it can be propperly bastard cold. Late January/early Feb wouldn't be too bad, and there's a better guarantee of snow than some other places.
Definitely a 'different' experience mind. And there are some pretty remote places if you chose to be adventurous.
Just an idea.
Vallandry. Nice little village at the bottom of tree lined runs connected directly to Les Arcs also connected by CC to La Plange. Enough skiing for weeks, great in January as the trees give it shelter so you can ski in a white out. Never any queues on the lifts and a great place to learn as it has some nice easy blues and reds. However it also has some full on off piste and blacks as does Les Arcs.
Breckenridge CO. Plenty of great beginner runs nice and long but flat and wide (off of Peak 9) Great intermediate blues on peak 8 and 9. And good expert runs. Apres is good in January there's less people as it's outside of spring break and other holiday times over here.
Ice rink 5 mins walk from base of peak 9, dog sledding on the outside of town. Free bus service to keystone for tubing or to Frisco for tubing if they finish the building work.
Best of all I work as an instructor there so you can borrow me for guiding!!
Two cross country centres on the free bus route as well. One is a short way from Peak 8 base.
We went to livignon last feb and it was great, loads of snow as well, plus loads to do when your not skiing, some good snowbird and ski jump comps to watch in the day, and it wasn't full of berks either,
I must add that all the people I went with are decent skiers while I am not,
I slide down things in abject terror until I crash at the bottom! But I enjoyed it immensely anyway.
Anyone been to Ischgl or Galtür? Looks pretty ideal so far.
Livignon and Vallandry look good too, thanks!
Courmayeur. Picture box village, great skiing, off piste in the trees if the snow's good, possibility of doing the Vallée Blanche (without the terrifying arete entrance) if conditions permit. The only bit it fails on is skiing down to the village, it'a a gondola ride up and down - but the restaurant on the mountain are fabulous anyway, it's in italy
Livignon and Vallandry look good too, thanks!
If you mean Livigno and you're aiming to avoid 'vomiting lager louts' you should think again.
I'd consider La Clusaz.
Consider also Le Grand Bornand next door.
edit: NBT's right about Courmayeur too. Off piste options include the Vallee Blanche and going over the back to La Thuile.
Dear god, if you thought les arcs was a long transfer then avoid Livigno. Les arcs is circa 2.5 hrs from geneva, livigno is a 5 hour transfer!
Thanks re Livigno, both.
Sainte Foy
Yep - avoid Livigno as it also has a 5 hour tfr.
La Clusaz, Montgenevre, La Tania, are all great, Kaprun when it has snow on the local lifts without going all the way up to the glacier every day is also great fun as would Kirchdorf and lots of other Austrian resorts which are much better value than they used to be, with greatly improved/modernised lift systems.
la clusaz / grand bornard is a good choice
short xfer from GVA , tree skiing, classic french charm, other posters have commented on it being lower but in Jan that shouldnt be an issue
done morzene and would suggest other resorts
Montgenevre / Serre Che gets a big thumbs up too
la plagne doesnt have huge nightlife but very good skiing in jan
breckenridge +1 its the only place I have returned to, best holidays of my life
You have in my opinion just described Flaine in France, just rebooked for 3 rd consecutive holiday,Wife and kids all learned there and can`t get enough now.Not a lager lout in sight.Have fun.
Folgarida - Dolomites, Italy
Val De Sol mtb races were held there a few months ago.
It's a lovely little resort, with enough to keep your group happy.
Good Pizza restaurants, not too noisy or wild.
There is the opportunity to ski over to Madonna de campiglio and back in a day, a very posh village, where the woman still parade around in their fur coats.
Only one tour operator has acommodation from the U.K. So book early.
You have in my opinion just described Flaine in France, just rebooked for 3 rd consecutive holiday,Wife and kids all learned there and can`t get enough now.Not a lager lout in sight.Have fun.
Tis a bit of a concrete monstrosity though.
Agree on the slopes though, simply brilliant resort. Loved the Serpentine run back down to the resort...huge grin factor for that 😀 Some fantastic off piste stuff as well. I liked being ready for first lift and heading down to Les Carroz, runs so long if felt like they were never going to end. Many happy memories from my season there
What about Schladming? I personally have never been but have friends who have worked seasons there and they say it is simply brilliant. Good range of runs and a very nice village.
Been to Mongenevre a few times and the snow reliabiltiy isn't always good.
However I would second Flaine, its downside though, is the awful 1960.s purpose built village. It's worth putting up with that for the skiing.
Anyone been to Ischgl or Galtür? Looks pretty ideal so far.
I looked at that but ended up with Igles; smaller, nice and high and very austrian tyrol looking.
Not millions of miles of pistes but doubt I'll cover what's there in 1 week anyway!
No mention of it in the OP but if childcare is an issue, I can further recommend Le Grand Bornand.
We've used their "Mom'en Ski" service twice a year for the last three years now and they're superb - drop the kids off at 9:30 and they take them to ski school. Then they pick them up from ski school, feed them (well) and let them play 'til about 2pm when we pick them up and ski with them a bit more.
p.s. Flaine - some really good skiing but not a pretty town - I've only been there for day trips so I don't know what it's like at night. Based on the skiing, I'd happily spend a week there.
Breckenridge again - went there on honeymoon and it was fantastic. Not much more expensive than France/etc either once you add in all the costs once there.
Plus other resorts nearby if you're there for two weeks and fancy a change. And the Pearl Izumi (cycling) outlet store nearby 🙂
10 - we stayed in a rented house in Frisco in the mid 1990's. It was a real cowboy town then. Guys wearing chaps, stetsons and everything.
RE: flaine
Agree on the slopes though, simply brilliant resort. Loved the Serpentine run back down to the resort...huge grin factor for that Some fantastic off piste stuff as well.
Flaine is a resort on a massive limestone escarpment. There are potholes there that would swallow a bus. You should treat it like a glacier. If you;d ski off piste on a glacier, fine, but otherwise take the appropriate precautions
I'm loving this, El Fred offering the captain advice on where to go skiing.
😆
+1 for les arcs, plenty of through the woods blues and reds but has the high altitude open runs too. Some very long, easy blues with great views too.
+1 for Les Arcs. So much variation and even when its busy once you are out of the villages it quietens out a lot plus the wide pistes make it ideal for learners.
Second DavidB, Sainte Foy is pretty much ideal for what you've asked for. Pretty village (all wood/stone, no concrete!) quiet, immaculately-groomed pistes, epic off-piste. All funnels back to the village, so easy to meet up for lunch/hard to get lost! 1550m altitude and snow-making on the lower runs, so very snow-sure.
Drop me a line if you want any advice. We're pretty full already for late Jan, but might be able to sort something out depending on dates, etc.
La Clusaz and Grand Bornand of those listed above are closest to meeting your requirements (that I've been to anyway), but both are very low. I personally don't like Les Arcs much for skiing/snowboarding (better for mountain biking!).
Nice location, not some prefab monstrosity
You have in my opinion just described Flaine in France,
Flaine has to be the worst prefab monstrosity in France. Only place I've been back to and regretted it. Some reasonable skiing but that doesn't make up for the resort making your local Asda look like an architectural gem. Also no apre-ski to speak of.
Some of the Austrian resorts are greatly improved recently. Have you thought about St Anton (not nearly as bad for lager louts as you might think - they all go to Solden) or Lech/Zurs which share the same ski area? Or Obergurgl - small but very pretty and with a ski area out of proportion to the size of the village hence uncrowded slopes and untracked off-piste.
If you want a nice village most Austrian and Swiss fit the mould. Exchange rates ith Swiss franc are not good so I reckon Austria. It's where I will be going this season. There is lots of choice for intermediates. Drunk austrians are not like drunk Brits. They are quite safe, even fun.
Frisco in the mid 1990's. It was a real cowboy town then. Guys wearing chaps, stetsons and everything.
BH - It still has it's moments. The BBQ festival had a fair number of cowboys as you'd expect!! Without doubt my favourite thing about being here is the Texans and their skiing in jeans and starter jackets!
Avoid Livigno, skiing is limited, resort is *livley*, landscape is barren. Good for a day trip to St Moritz though.
America is great if you like good snow, good food and good beer. I've been to Brekenridge and Stowe Vermont. Stowe had some superb value spa hotels and great micro brews but the snow is a bit manmade.
La Plagne / Les Arcs fit the bill in terms of offering all things to all skiiers but the drinks are expensive and nightlife is a bit dull.
If I was going skiing this winter, which I'm not :-(, then it would be to Port du Soliel, especially if they get a good dump, or the states again, I'd like to try California
I would certainly avoid Livigno due to the length of transfer and the annoying local bus service.
Beginners will find it difficult to walk any distance carrying skis, so ideally look for somewhere close to the slopes.
I WOULDN'T necessarily recommend Morzine, although Les Gets and Avoriaz could be OK. Not many treelined runs at Avoriaz if the weather is bad though...
Alpe D'huez has no trees either, but ticks every other box.
Serre Chevalier would be an excellent choice. Montgenevre or Claviere are good for what you're looking for too, but perhaps don't offer the same extent of 'Apres' activity - great bars/villages though.
I'd be tempted to avoid the super massive resorts, although La Plagne has good cruisey pistes.
You don't mention how you plan to travel. If Self drive you have an excellent choice of resorts that don't tend to feature in the brochures. Grand Bornand and La Clusaz would be good. As would Les Sept Laux and Chamrousse which are both a stones-throw from Grenoble. Easy to do on a self drive or fly-drive basis.
Not France!!
What's on the piste map and what's on the ground are too much divorced from reality - routes marked blue that hadn't been pisted and were more like blacks. Not good for beginner / intermediate confidence.
Italy, on the other hand is fab. Well groomed runs, big lunches and laid back skiing.
Would particularly recommend Cervinia for the intermediate end and Pila for beginner to intermediate.
Cervinia is high, and in January might be cold, exposed and windy.
Pila has a lot of runs in the trees, so isn't as exposed - well worth a look.
[url= http://pilaski.co.uk/ ]more info here[/url]
[url= http://www.pila.it/homepage.asp?l=e ]and here[/url]
Pila is surprisingly good, ski-wise, but you do need to hunt around a bit - not that that is a bad thing.
Down to Aosta for the roman baths etc for the non skiers.
My choice though would be Brekenridge
I used to live in Breck and count it as my third home (behind UK and now Australia). It fits the bill, but is quite typically American. Having said that, at least its a town with a ski resort, not a ski resort that has built a town, so it is somewhat prettier than many places in that regard (it was a gold rush settlement originally many of which are listed/protected). Factor in a day at A-Basin, then the night at Keystone, a day at Vail, Beaver Creek or Copper and, if you have a car, Loveland, and there is as much variety as anywhere in Europe, just not linked by lifts.
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10 - I'm betting we have a number of mutual friends, or possibly know each other even... I was there, 00-03 and 05-06 and worked P8 lifts
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