 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi, Been an avid reader of snow heads for some time. We are looking to organise a trip for early 2017, for a group of six, 2 of which are beginners, with one week on the nursery slope at St Christoph, the rest of us are a fairly mixed ability bunch from nervous intermediates up to one of us who copes easily with most blacks.
We are trying to find a resort that covers all those abilities, but must also have a reasonably short transfer time. We would also consider the Friday night ski train as an alternative. We aren't overly fussed about St Anton type après, although a little more life than St Christoph would be good.
Any recommendations for resorts would be great.
Thanks
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Val Thorens might be a good option. Early so the altitude bodes well for early snow and there are slopes for all abilities and a vast area for the more advanced to explore in the 3 Valleys.
Also good to fit in with the ski train which give you a reasonable transfer time from Moutiere.
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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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Verbier.
Val d'Isere.
Val Thorens.
Saalbach.
Zermatt.
Les Arcs.
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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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Lovely as Zermatt and Verbier are, I wouldn't put either on the list for beginners or nervous skiers. Zermatt is not a short transfer either, though it's fun if you take the train.
Take a look at Courchevel 1650 (Moriond)... Train to Moutiers and about half an hour to get up the hill. It's just over 2 hours from Geneva if you drive.
There are good wide gentle slopes down to the village itself, with some good ski schools with native English speaking instructors. You have the whole of the 3v on your doorstep for the more adventurous types, and tree line skiing if the weather closes in (always worth knowing that if you head to the mountains in January when things can get a bit wild in the high resorts). It's not a party town, but there are a few decent bars and you have swanky Courchevel 1850 up the road if you want to hang out with a few Oligarchs!
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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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@David Wright, take a peak at some of the Ski Amadé resorts which offer the range of skiing you are looking for plus the short and easy transfer times. There is contrary to common belief masses of on piste accommodation in most price ranges. Flights into Salzburg mean transfer times of under an hour for most and it is all motorway or valley roads, no twisty mountain passes or similar. Some resorts are within 35 minutes of the airport even.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@David Wright, a few pertinent questions...how early in 2017 are you thinking of going? Any preferences for types of accommodation? If you don't use the ski train, what mode(s) of transport would you use and, if flying, which UK airport(s)?
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@David_Wright,
If you are feeling brave and value for money matters then pick somewhere that is as cheap as you can get for what you require. The black run skier seems to be the odd one out here so I'd suggest focussing on the other people and that person can perhaps get an off-piste lesson or similar to enhance their trip.
You may get a late deal to a more well known resort which off-sets other higher costs for such a place, in this case still choose somewhere with a local lift pass that is better value than the larger area pass i.e. Les Gets/Morzine from Geneva (cheaper than Portes du Soleil pass) or La Plagne/Les Arcs by ski train with it's smaller area passes i.e. for Champagny area.
You could check out resorts which offer lower lift pass prices in January for which there are many. You may also get lift pass plus accommodation offers at this time too.
You could choose smaller resorts with good value accommodation (not requiring a late booking) and cheaper lift pass prices e.g. Foppolo from Bergamo or Achensee from Innsbruck or Hintersee from Salzburg or Mondole from Turin where costs for 6 days would be around Euro 110-165 (compared to 240+ for most of those mentioned above).
Obviously if money is no object and your beginners don't mind subsidising other skiers then somewhere like Courchevel 1850 would fit the bill too.
Regarding other people's feedback only once everyone in your group is an intermediate would somewhere like Saalbach, Ski Amade, Courchevel (1650), Les Arcs, Cervinia (with Zermatt) or Val Thorens be a good choice, or if you waited for everyone to be advanced  then Verbier and Val d'Isere would also be nice options.
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La Plagne, or specifically, Belle Plagne might suit. High enough, plenty of options for your group's ability. Some ok apres bars - not banging, but usually fine. Ski train to Moutiers?
Plenty of ski in/out options or close as damn it.
Saalbach Hinterglemm is worth a look - there's a thread running that has bags of info. Easy slope access in the main, good variety of skiing options, lively apres!
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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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Morzine/Avoriaz might be an option. Short transfers from Geneva. Mix of pistes for all levels and the apres doesn't have to be lively if you don't want it to be.
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We are the 40 something who like our blues and easy reds. We love Ski Welt, we ski Scheffau, Ellmau and Brixen. This year stayed in Brixen. Nightlife was quiet enough but adequate for us. I am sure with a group that size you will be able to create your own fun in the local pub.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Couple of thoughts - Ski-2 have a good set-up in Champoluc, really good ski school with excellent British instructors that would be great for your beginners. If you can get flights into Turin then the transfer is short and easy but Ski-2 will pick up from lots of airports including Geneva (which is where we went). Champoluc is part of the Monterosa ski area and most of the pistes are well suited to intermediates. There are three linked valleys and it's fun to explore right across to Alagna.
If you're not bothered about getting British instructors then a cheaper option might be somewhere like Obertauern. It's a fairly compact ski area, mostly ski in/out and while it's not a wild town there's a great atmosphere in the big après bar down in town late afternoon/early evening. After that everyone heads back to their hotel and the place is really quiet.
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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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@David Wright, If you can get flights to Turin easy enough then Aosta valley in Italy is only an hour away with good transfers available. We go to the small Pila area an love it. Very quiet during the week though busy at weekends when all the locals come up. Similar to the suggestion above.
Have a look at pilaski.co.uk and Carole can sort out all the Italy side you just organise the flights.
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| Quote: |
only once everyone in your group is an intermediate would somewhere like Saalbach, Ski Amade, Courchevel (1650), Les Arcs, Cervinia (with Zermatt) or Val Thorens be a good choice
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This sweeping statement should not be interpreted as meaning that these resorts are unsuitable for beginners. They have excellent facilities for beginners, as well as intermediates. I have organised, or been a member of, mixed ability groups to all except Ski Amade, and no one (including beginners) has been disappointed.
If the beginners (or anyone else) is going to want tuition, choose a resort that has a good reputation for its ski schools and access to village-level nursery slopes. Also it helps to have suitable rendezvous mountain bars/restaurants/apres-ski venues that all members of the group can get to, and possibly ski down from at the end of the day. Normally it doesn't take long for beginners to progress from the nursery slopes to the easier intermediate runs. Bear in mind that during the second half of the week the beginners may well be capable of covering significant distances and may be looking for a decent network of intermediate pistes. Research the piste maps. Members of the group may well want to spend at least some of the time skiing with each other, and it is possible to achieve this without over-taxing the less experienced skiers or unduly restricting the most competent skier, provided that you choose the resort carefully. When I'm guiding mixed-ability groups I'm frequently directing nervous intermediates down easy blue pistes and the more competent skiers down alternative reds or blacks that end up in the same place, so that everyone is satisfied and the group remains intact throughout the day.
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You know it makes sense.
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| David Wright wrote: |
Hi, Been an avid reader of snow heads for some time. We are looking to organise a trip for early 2017, for a group of six, 2 of which are beginners, with one week on the nursery slope at St Christoph, the rest of us are a fairly mixed ability bunch from nervous intermediates up to one of us who copes easily with most blacks.
We are trying to find a resort that covers all those abilities, but must also have a reasonably short transfer time. We would also consider the Friday night ski train as an alternative. We aren't overly fussed about St Anton type après, although a little more life than St Christoph would be good.
Any recommendations for resorts would be great.
Thanks |
What about Make myself a SH bash 2017. Seems ideal for you.
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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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Most ski resorts offer something for most category of skier. La Grave for example has beginner/learner slopes despite mainly being ski routes/off piste, Lech has a separate nice beginner area near the centre, and Val d'Isere/Tignes has a collection of green/blue runs. The key point for a beginner though is that all have expensive ski passes and none best fit their category of skier. Large ski areas such as those mentioned above in this thread have expensive lift passes and way more pistes than required by near beginners and the less confident. Obviously people do go there with these requirements and enjoy themselves but that doesn't make them any more a good fit. Skiers generally make inappropriate decisions and incorrect feedback on forums such as this does not help. Would you be persuaded the use a limousine to go shopping at tesco or a landrover to only drive in a city centre? Be informed, consider different options, and be careful to take advice at face value. If you value image over substance or money is no object then ignore my comments because they won't matter to you.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Thanks for all the input and advice. At the moment our favourite is looking like Montgenevre. On paper, at least, it appears to tick all our boxes. Any pluses or minuses before make a final decision would be great.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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How about Risoul? Only downer is slightly longer transfer time. Would be excellent for the beginner and good for inters. If there's powder, then the advanced skier would be happy.
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