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Resort: Ovindoli (in Abruzzo nr Rome)
Country: Italy
Domain: None
Author: Gilberts Fridge
Date: 21 Dec 07
Our holiday: Living in Rome for the moment which has allowed me to look at these small resorts on day trips. As I work shifts I am able to avoid the weekends.
Website : http://www.ovindolimagnola.it/
Basics : Ovindoli is one of the small resorts in the Abruzzo /Lazio regions of Italy about 90 min drive from Rome. Left home about 7:15 and got there about 8:45 after a very nice drive (Italian driving excepted)up through the hills. Pretty quickly once you are through the Roma Est toll you are in the mountains, it still suprises me how mountainous a country Italy is. The Auto Strada is 2 lane and windy all the way,who said the Romans built straight roads.
Lift system : One Gondela, 3 Fixed grip 3 man chairs and One 2 man. Couple of drags on the nursery slopes and one for the snow park. Also a covered magic carpet lift for the nursery slope.
The terrain It’s a pretty small area of about 40 kms of marked trails. Spent most of the morning skiing from top to bottom using the Gondella with the Anfiteatro and CappanaBrinn chairs. Had hoped to have some fun in the bumps but there were none to be found.In the afternoon the 2 man Montefrredo chair opened but only to access the Panoramica red, The long Pistone black run was kept closed, I guess to keep it in good condition for the week end.
The run grading was on the generous side, the reds were not that challenging and neither was the one black I skied. Overall Id skied out what was open(about 2/3rds) by the end of the morning. The lifts were slow and the runs short but I had great time.
The snow : The pistes were well groomed but did have a little bit of ice around. Because most of the skiing is in a narrow valley a lot was in the shade due to the height of the sun at this time of year.
Off-piste : Off piste is not my thing yet but most of the slope side was already tracked. Did see a couple of Ski tourers about as well.
The resort : The ski area is a little from the main town, which is a living town not a resort. I did not get any time to explore it though.
At the bottom of the lifts there are about 6 or 7 hire shops, nothing too flash and they all tend to only stock one manufacturer so you get the Head shop, the Rossignol shop etc.
Food : A little disappointing only one of the two mountain restaurants was open plus a self service cafe at the base. I’d promised myself a good lunch but sad to say didn’t get it. The Staff were all very friendly
Accommodation : As this was a day trip I can’t say much about accommodation
Costs: Tolls from Rome, €8. Ski Hire €25. Lift ticket €21 plus €3 for hands free card
Conclusion: I enjoyed my day out a lot, not the most challenging resort ever but it’s still skiing. Ovindoli is not somewhere you go for a week or base a holiday around but if you are in the Rome area and have a spare day then check the conditions, hire a car and give it a go. I will be taking my kids there(5 and 7) just for a pootle around.

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