 Poster: A snowHead
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Just back from our trip to San Cassiano with Mountainsun.Having stayed at their place in Tignes,which was excellent,expectations were pretty high.Many on here know of Mountainsun,and have also stayed at Tignes,so will know where I'm coming from.What can I say....we were not disappointed  The whole package met our expectations,and then some.
The Chalet....has a cracking position.Just above the gondola,for the outward....and at the end of either a red or blue for the inward.True ski in/out.On the edge of the village for evening walks and a bit of shop browsing.Warm and comfortable,with a very obliging crew.Nothing seemed too much trouble.Meals were good to excellent,with curry night truly outstanding.My youngest daughter was on the earlier kids option,and was kept well fed and watered all week...not an easy task 
We found our room a little cramped(esp with a teenage son bunked in it!)However,I did book fairly late,so not too many options were left.We coped well enough so,as always,the motto remains....get in early.
Overall,no problems with chalet or staff,who were a credit to MS.
The Area....is MASSIVE!! I believe it to be the biggest linked area in Europe?Probably is?It would take many,many trips to see most/all of it.Super challenging runs are few and far between,but there are loads of good,long reds to keep you busy...with loads of tree cruising to recover on! There is an excellent park at Gardena which the kids loved(and the jumps etc are well maintained)We did the Sella Ronda(Orange route)which was great fun,with some good runs to be had,esp off the Marmaloda.There is a cracking Black GS run at La Ville,which we did too many times for my knees,esp on twin tips.Of interest was the amount of off piste that could be available.No such luck on our week,mostly frozen crud(bit like skiing over a corrugated tin roof),but given a fresh dump,their's loads.Once again,the Marmaloda comes to mind....but their's also acres of it through the trees.
The lift system is excellent,and no queues.The only queue we found was the Marmaloda gondola,and that cleared in no time.Looked to me like lots of chairs had been upgraded/replaced.And,given the amount of accessible skiing,outstanding liftpass value.
Was I impressed....stupid question  Have to say the whole experience has revitalized my skiing.Having got a bit fed up with the mega French stations,their humungous queues and eye popping resto prices;for the first time my keenness to go skiing was subdued.By day two,I was gagging for it!!
I put off going to Italy for far too long.Don't you go making the same mistake.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Sounds great, having just returned from that area myself I have to agree, its a fantastic place 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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snowskisnow, I love the area but next time try Selva, superb place and has good apres ski, not that I can take too much of it these days!! Although if you want peace and quiet just up the road from you Armenterola is the "bees knees"!
We also had unbearable queues at the 3 stage Marmolada glacier! But have never ever eperienced lift queues anywhere in the world as bad as Marmolada! AMOF the mega resorts in France have been better than those in the Sella Ronda! That said, in most cases it did not bother me too much as the views of the Dolomites are just breathtaking and did not mind looking at their majesty!
Another convert! Beautiful spot!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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That 3 stage gondola scared the pants off me 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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It sounds a wonderful place to ski. Glad the trip was such a success. However, to avoid the inevitable arguments, it should be possible to extol one ski area without slagging off another. I don't ski much in French mega resorts, or like them terribly, but areas such as the Espace Killy have tremendously efficient lift systems which rarely have big queues outside a few peak holiday weeks, at peak times and peak places. All ski areas have their own special strengths and weaknesses. I doubt, in mid April, whether there were any significant queues anywhere.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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pam w,Sorry, didn't think I was really slagging anywhere off as such,if so I would have named and shamed No,just stating it as I found it.As I am often only able to go skiing in peak weeks(kids hols)I have endured some massive queuing for the entire holiday.Sort of takes the edge off it,don't you think?Having said that,I have had some memorable holidays in places like deux Alpes,Les Arc etc,so I cant condemn them,and will visit again.However,I was struck by the sheer size of the Dolomiti area....it would take an awful lot of skiers to fill that!Clearly,at busy times,the main uplifts will get busy(esp the Marmaloda),but once 'up there',there is an awful lot of acreage to play on
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Sort of takes the edge off it,don't you think?
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Absolutely. I wouldn't dream of going skiing in the kids school holidays if I had any choice. When my kids were little I took them out of school. But Easter is always a better bet - much less crowded, usually good snow and nice long light days. But some SHs who did go to places like the 3Valleys this last half term reported that they were able to avoid big queues - and my son, who spent a couple of seasons in Val D'Isere, said the same - just a few bottlenecks to avoid.
Statements like "big French resorts have humungeous lift queues" or "the Dolomites ski area is just a series of artificial snow strips surrounded by grass" are sometimes true, though....
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snowskisnow, Sounds like you had a great time. You were missed in the other place too
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Colin B, That's nice of you.Best wishes to Nat-see you both at some point I'm sure
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snowskisnow,
Kronplatz, Cortina Ampezzo and Civetta are other 3 out of the 12 skiing areas of Dolomites which are closed to San Cassiano, itself part of the Sella Ronda linked by Alta Badia, Selva, Canazei and Arabba.
You can take a bus to Kronplatz at Pedraces (near La Villa). It is a marked and permanent link with the Sella Ronda circuit. Part of Cortina and Civetta can be enjoyed by the First World War tour. It is an ideal circuit to start at San Cassiano. You ski to Marmolada (no need to go to the peak) and ski down to Malga Ciapela. There is a bus link take you to Alleghe of Civetta. You ski two runs in Civetta to Pescul to take a bus to Fedare. From Fedare you ski to Lagazuoi to take the Hidden Valley back to San Cassiano. The two buses are both 15km or less than 10 miles long. Most of the First World War tour information appears in Civetta pist map.
Cortina is a another fantastic area waiting to be explore but its 4-5 areas are unlinked.
Dolomites has 1200km piste but it is well spread out so skiers like to travel on skis or snowboards will find it a paradise. Those interested mainly in the apres will find little attraction from the Italian resorts.
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