 Poster: A snowHead
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Having decided to go to Ischgl, and booked flights and apartment, we made a mistake and lost our apartment in Ischgl. However now back on booking.com looking at apartments in the area and have found a nice one in Kappl, a quiet area with it's own little resort. For those of you who know Ischgl, do you know does the one ski pass cover both areas? what is the ski ing like in Kappl, would it be a good idea to get ski school there for our girls, ( brave 8 and 10) and not bother to drive to ischgl, or do ski school in ischgl and then drive back for easier ski ing in the afternoon with the girls. ( both good on reds, little slow on blacks) Just asking advice really as I haven't a clue about the area, suppose it will depend on snow conditions and it would be handy if the lift pass covered both areas. Also does anyone know what the village of kappl is like, are there a few bars we could wander to for an evening beer rather than a rowdy après ski in ischgl?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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You will love Kappl. Have been there twice with the family. Although the area is small the runs are nice and long. Surprisingly good après in the Schafstall and at the foot of the slopes (can't remember the name of the place). If you can, stay at the Gasthof Alpenfrieden - superb value and right beside the piste. Ischgl only a 10 min ride away in taxi for some fantastic skiing. Ski school etc mid mountain in Kappl. Only used a private instructor for a morning for our youngest just to get him sorted.
You can buy a Kappl only pass, a Kappl plus Ischgl for 2 days or a whole area pass from memory. First time we went we bought the area pass, second time round we did the Kappl plus 2 days in Ischgl pass - as we were there with friends who hadn't skied in years and there daughter had only had lessons in Glasgow.
Would go back in a minute if the flights from Scotland to Innsbruck weren't so fecking expensive.
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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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boabski, thanks a million, we are at the stage where we have skied for years without children, then had two children, ( who are now 28, and 22) and did everywhere , then left a gap and had two more children, ( no we are not over fifty yet) however from years of doing stuff with kids, it seems a bit wiser to keep to the slopes in kappl which suit , ie less crowds, less people fancying t eselves as pro skiers and failing badly on steep ice, etc. think your advice of two days ischgl will suit this trip better, had thought ischgel was suitable, but combine kids just getting their good ski legs, and a stupid run home on an easy red with lots of eejits, ( Irishism for idiots) cutting them off........... mmmmm think the fates were at work sending us to this resort, hadn't even noticed it on the search.. Beware though I may pick your brain to the point of pain for the next few months. Question 1, what are the blacks like? any good raise the hair on the back of your neck ones? or are they just steep? my girls did an icy Kandahar last year, it was so icy it was like skiing on a cheese grater, they are young though so need to just ski for themselves , and the folks down the mountain and not worry about idiots out of control above them. ( nobody should worry about those up the mountain, but bad skiers and boarders have taught me, certain places have those sort who shouldn't be on the slope are there to use you as brakes when they lose the plot) we are flyihg Dublin memmingen, by the way, so any tips on the journey by car is appreciated. ( I love Ryanair, crystal were charging us €600 each to get there with crap apartments, . We are getting a week thanks to Ryanair, flights, car hire, and apartment, for €1250 way hey.............. love it.
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biddpyat,
We have been skiing Ischgl/Kappl now for about six or seven years en famille though did not go this year for the first time.
I would echo a lot of what boabski, says but there are a few things to be aware about.
A lot of the accommodation that is advertised as Kappl is a long way from the main bit of the village much of it is very pleasant though with very few bars, however some is down on the main road through the valley which in winter gets very little sun but does get quite a lot of noisy traffic. Look at the actual position on the map if you want a few bars or if you want to avoid the main road.
Kappl is a very pleasant varied but fairly compact area, the biggest potential drawback is the vast majority of the skiing is south facing, if you are going late in the season or if there has been a period without recent snow, piste conditions may be much less pleasant than in Ischgl due to either ice or slush. I have seen both when Ischgl conditions have been excellent. Generally though the slopes are very pleasant and uncrowded. The black runs are not particularly testing in normal snow conditions. Must say we usually ski the Ischgl area for most of the holiday, driving between Ischgl and Kappl is straight forward, There is free parking reasonably close to the slopes at Ischgl if you get there early (high season), cheapish underground parking again fairly close that has never been full n our visits and if you dont want to pay there is free parking a bit of a walk away if you arrive late.
If you get the full area pass a day up at Galtur is very pleasant, it has always had excellent snow on our visits though being North facing at the head of the valley it can get very cold.
We have driven every time from Munich, the roads have always been kept clear though traffic can be very slow indeed through Garmisch and over the pass. Not sure how this will compare from Memmingen, you have to remember to get the pass for the motorways in Austria although you only use them for a short period. Watch your speed when driving as there is at least one fixed camera and often a mobile one.
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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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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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One thing we liked about Kappl was the fact that from the top of the main lifts you had a black, red and blue option - all of which met up mid mountain. So if you fancy doing a black (not too difficult to be honest - my 8 year old coped with them and his bigger sister and brother did too) but the kids don't, then you can split up and meet within minutes.
One of the times we did Kappl, we flew to Munich but back from Memmingem. Munich took 5 hours and Memmingmem half that time.
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Bregenz tunnel no longer an issue, new tunnel is now open both bores, fly through now.
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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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Would go back in a minute if the flights from Scotland to Innsbruck weren't so fecking expensive
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Same from Leeds, its not a Scotland thing.......the issue is I think that they only generally seem to take charter flights, Thomson/ Monarch etc. I know theres an EJ option from Liverpool but they rip you off on ski bags etc. Plus there's the issue of bad weather diverts, we stick with Lufthansa Munich or Swiss ZHR, FOC carriage. I'd like one day to fly to Memmingen or Friedrichshafen if it ever gets opened up to competition but for now only the Irish snake goes there and I'd rather a poke in the eye than fly with him.
By the way - flights could be even more expensive soon when you guys have to fly outside English airspace from the newly named Salmond Airport 
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mountainaddict, How lucky were you that the flight was delayed. We have flown into memmingen a few times going different places it is an easy enough airport to get through so once in the doors you can get to the gate fairly fast. Great news Markymark29, about the tunnel, that will reduce the journey time a lot.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Maybe think about getting a private airport transfer. It´s a much more relaxed way of starting and finishing your holiday. You would be met at the airport arrival gate and travelling within 10-15mins on the shortest, least traffic congested route. It´s probably more expensive than hiring a car, but a lot less hassle than planning the route yourself, timing the return drop off, and if you´re unlucky enough to arrive or depart in a snowstorm, 100 times less stressfull. A holiday is about enjoying yourselves
Ted
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Ok, I am back with questions for those of you who remember being in Kappl, what hours are ski school. The plan so far is, ( and with us it always changes) drop the kids to ski school, sort out runs for the first day for the when ski school finishes, at 12? or is it later as far as you can remember? Perhaps we can do a few runs in ischgl whle the kids are in school and go back and collect them at lunch, or am I going with wishful thing.
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You know it makes sense.
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Ok, I am back with questions for those of you who remember being in Kappl, what hours are ski school. The plan so far is, ( and with us it always changes) drop the kids to ski school, sort out runs for the first day for the when ski school finishes, at 12? or is it later as far as you can remember? Perhaps we can do a few runs in ischgl whle the kids are in school and go back and collect them at lunch, or am I going with wishful thing.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Austrian ski schools are normally (though not always) along the lines of 10-12 and 1-3, with a supervised lunchbreak and half hour or so before the lesson.
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Poster: A snowHead
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biddpyat, looking at the website there are 2 hour or 4 hour versions my guess is the times ar as suggested by clarky999, in his post. You can include a supervised lunch.
I think the ski school meetin place is up the mountain for most lessons where there is a big nursery area fun park etc for kids and a large restaurant complex. You access it directly from the gondola. If after you have got used to it you could drop the kids at the bottom and go and ski Ischgl for a bit but it would be impracital to drop them at the top get down ski Ischgl and get back again within a couple of hours if they were not taking lunch.
We actually had lessons for our kids across in Samnaun as we visited there first and liked the ski school and it was cheaper than Ischgl but that involved an early start each day and sking them over to the top of the Samnaun area.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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biddpyat, ski school is mid mountain, so you need to ski down to valley floor and get the bus/taxi to Ischgl. It will be very tight to get back in time to meet for lunch (if you do not pay the extra €10 or so for supervised lunch), as the gondola queues in Ischgl can be quite slow IME - think there is a new gondola in now so might be better? Probably worth getting the kids supervised lunch if you're planning to do Ischgl. If you are skiing in Kappl, the set up is ideal for kids as all the runs either lead to the mid mountain 'base' or the gondola station on the valley floor.
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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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Thanks boabski, That is a handy option with supervised lunch, hadn't heard of that before. We will have a car which is a little advantage. I suppose the best thing is to ski for the first two days in kappl with them and if we want a change of scenery go over as soon as the girls get finished lunch. Problem with me is I want to ski it all........ rofl.
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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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Pretty sure your kids will love ischgl too. Take them out for the day 
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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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I think that's what we will do! Thank you all for your replies, sure we can always return if we don't get enough skied.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Just saw your tunnel update Markymark29. Great news - thanks for that! 
And our Monarch flights (Manchester to Friedrichshafen) are scheduled not charter....
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FAQ
....but (amazingly - and hats off to Ryanair) we were still allowed on the flight as it was delayed 
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