 Poster: A snowHead
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Anyone been to Ski Dubai recently?
Whats the equipment like and can you upgrade?
Planning to go when we pass through in September and wondering whether to take my boots for 2 hours out of what will be a 3 week trip in total!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Last question first--NO.
It simply isn't worth carrying your ski boots for a "quick" go at ski Dubai.
Equipment isn't great, but for a couple of hours it will suffice. There are no options. It's pretty much get what you are given.
It really is no different to any other indoor slope. It's when you step outside you realise what an absurd idea it is.
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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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I found it a bit chilly as I didn't have any warm clothes with me, and the supplied jackets were not quite warm enough for 3 hours in there.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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We were there in February. The equipment is crap. My son and I took our boots, gloves, helmets, socks and a few other bits of clothing. We stuffed them all in one bag as we had a good luggage allowance. The skis had no edge to speak of and my son had problems getting long enough skis. He has 138cm SL skis at home but the longest he could get that fitted his boots were 130.
The slope itself is pretty good. It is longer than any fridge in the UK. Best stick to the Poma as the charilift is slow and more for sightseers than skiers.
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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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| Old Man Of Lech wrote: |
Last question first--NO.
It simply isn't worth carrying your ski boots for a "quick" go at ski Dubai.
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Completely disagree with this. All the equipment is beginner level and very soft and there are no upgrades. If you're an advanced skier with properly fitted boots you can have a bit of fun with their crap skis but if you're stuck with their sloppy boots and soggy skis it's very little fun at all.
As others have said, it also feels very cold and there's no insulation in their jackets. Take good thermals, gloves, hat and a fleece or gilet to wear underneath. The poma is much faster than the chair.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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I used to go to Ski Dubai several times a week. (I lived there and there is nothing affordable to do with your life).
The kit is a bit cheap and rubbish but I always found it adequate for the time you spend in there. It's not that cold inside. I used to wear my own jacket, just because it had pockets and vents in and I could be a bit more comfortable. I would definitely take your own gloves and socks, the ones there are no good at all. The skis are some sort of all-mountain Rossignols and they insist on setting them up to what the computer says. (You stand on it and it weighs you, then you tell it if you're rubbish, utterly rubbish or dangerous) which they say is down to a scientific formula but personally I think it's a random number generator. They refresh the equipment reasonably often actually, far more so than you'd expect.
If you do want to wear your own kit, you could also consider not so much packing your own, as having a look in the summer sales in the Oakley shop opposite Ski Dubai, or in the sports shop next door. Both places always have really good brand ski gear at ridiculously low prices, during the summer. Don't just buy for the session obviously, but if you've been thinking of a new jacket, it's worthy of a look.
In terms of boots, the normal hire boots are some big fat Rossignol things which are basically slippers which go in bindings. They are skiable and they're really comfortable. If you want to be a bit sporty, they do also hold some Atomic things which are much harder and more responsive, like you'd expect from your own boots, so they're worth a try too, but do expect to sacrifice some comfort.
My main advice for skiing in that place would be:
1) Buy a copy of The Entertainer in Virgin Megastores before you go in. (Virgin is opposite Ski Dubai). It's a big book of 2-for-1 vouchers. And one of the vouchers is for, you guessed it - Ski Dubai. So you'll cover half the cost of the book straight away. Then have lunch in either Apres (the aptly named bar upstairs) or the South African steak place which are both also in the book, and you'll cover the rest of the cost.
2) Don't eat in the Avalanche Cafe on the slope itself. It will cause you to have to sample the Mall of Emirates toilets, which are fairly horrendous.
3) Do have a cake in St Moritz Cafe by the reception. It's really nice cake and also in the entertainer book.
4) Use the drag lift. You have to hold on tight because it's properly steep. But the chairlift takes absolutely forever and you'll only get 10 runs in a 2 hour session.
5) Watch out and don't take anything for granted. The place is full of terrible skiers and you do need to keep an eye out for them. There is also 'Arabic Skiing' which is the art of assuming oneself is a natural born world champion skier, turning up for your first time skiing having had no lessons, strapping some planks on and straight-lining down the black run with no consideration for anybody else... then ending up in the fence and being rescued by the ski patrol who would be bemused if this wasn't a daily thing.
6) Finally... GO IN THE MORNING. ON A WEEKDAY. It'll be a private slope with fresh snow. The later in the day, and the later in the week you go; the busier it will get. Friday afternoon there is no point even trying.
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dp, all good stuff. Not much to add. I recommend going at opening time on a Friday morning - 9 am - it's empty then and you'll be making first tracks on a groomed slope. Other days I think it opens at 10? As you say, mornings are best - the crazy Arab 'skiers' are nocturnal and only come out to play much later.
Unfortunately the Dubai Metro does not run on Friday mornings.
I always ask the guy who issues the skis to set the bindings to my numbers - not what the computer gives you. Never had a problem.
The drag lift is much the quickest way back up but not for beginners - it's steep and has a nasty dog-leg 1/2 way up. But it only runs at busy times.
I reckon on 1 minute for a descent and 4 minutes back up on the chair so at quiet times you can get 24 runs in your 2 hour pass.
They do NOT provide hats or gloves and the 'socks' they do give you are useless.
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| Dubaian wrote: |
Unfortunately the Dubai Metro does not run on Friday mornings.
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Not to drag this off topic but I don't see that as a big obstacle - in 2 years living there I used it twice. Taxis are so cheap and so readily available, it makes no sense to run up a sweat walking to the metro.
The first class carriage is so cheap that everybody uses it, and it's always full and you can't get a seat. The 3 standard class carriages are thus relegated to 'smelly class' where you need a military type gas mask to enter, and the ladies carriage is what it says on the tin. All-round just not the kind of lifestyle they promised when they said move to Dubai...
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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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Hi
We have just returned from a week in Dubai and visited Ski Dubai twice. Actually really enjoyed it - equipment is a little ropey especially the mass hire Rossignol Ski Boots that they hand out. Skis are again Rossignol but are actually not too bad. Found the quality of the snow on the slope much better than the fridges in the UK and the slope has a nice gradient and width to it. Clothing they hire out kept us warm enough - take your own gloves, base layer and socks though would be my advice. Chair lift is very slow so to max out slope time use the drag lift - quite steep with a couple of corners - keeps you on your toes so to speak.
All in all a great experience and I would definitely go again when in Dubai.
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