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St Anton vs Val Thorens vs Ischgl

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hello

Myself and 3/4 of my 22 year old mates are looking at going to one of these resorts next year. We are confident skiers and are looking for a good nightlife and apres. Was wondering if anyone could give recommendations for a group such as ourselves.

Thanks
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
All three would probably feature in a list of top 10 ski resorts good nightlife. Do one per year for the next three years
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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?
But nobody knows what aprés-ski will look like next winter.
Would not make it a major thing in your decision...
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@Rfc1871,
Recommendation - wait & see. No one knows which resorts/countries will be allowing what for season 21/22.
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@Rfc1871, assuming something like normal service is resumed then St Anton. Although I dont like the "village" of Ischgl it would have been ideal for what you are looking for, however after the events of last spring the thought is that the village is going to very much tone down the apres element. whether it will is rather a different matter. Long time since I was in 3V but it always struck me as a collection of unattractive tower blocks with expensive beer (or champagne in Courcheval), especially so for the higher altitude locations. St Anton has the best skiing and as much apres as anyone can handle, though the loud raucous element is not always popular around here (perhaps because many of us are well past the age when we could cope with such things Madeye-Smiley )
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Never been to St Anton so cant comment on that resort. Both Val Thorens and Ischgl have great ski areas and lift systems. Though Ischgl has an advantage with all the skiing being fairly central so getting back to the town at the end of the skiing day easy. Val Thorens, if you venture to Courcheval and dont give yourself time to get back, its very expensive in a taxi to get back. As for the towns, Ischgl is a "traditional" town and fairly compact with a party reputation (pre covid, it was a hub for a mass covid infection last March) Val Thorens is far more stretched out with some of the bars a distant walk to some accomadation.
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Been to St Anton and Ischgl but not Val Thorens. Although I liked St Anton I much prefer Ischgl. Better apres and nightlife and better piste skiing although not as good for off piste. We can't be sure what next year will bring but I suspect traditional Austrian apres will be severely curtailed in both resorts.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Not sure what "confident" means - if it means you are happy skiing blue and red pistes then add Saalbach to your list. Sölden should also probably be on the list for a lads trip.
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skitech wrote:
Val Thorens is far more stretched out with some of the bars a distant walk to some accomadation.


With the exception of the 5* Altapura Hotel at the "very bottom end" of Val T, no bar in Val T is more than 15 minutes walk from any other accommodation. Most are 2 to 10 minutes walk.
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Been to all of the above, and for apres nothing beats Ischgl, but at your age I believe that and Stanton would be the better choice, since the pricing in Ischgl appears to suit the +35 clients better Happy But for apres it is THE place in the alps in my opinion. I have been there 21 sessions in a row, so I might have a slight bias.
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rambotion wrote:
All three would probably feature in a list of top 10 ski resorts good nightlife. Do one per year for the next three years


This ^^^ All things being equal, for what you want, I would say there’s no red flags on the locations you selected. Maybe pick the cheapest first in case apres/ nightlife is restricted. The skiing should still be great either way in any of those places.
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Rfc1871 wrote:


looking for a good nightlife and apres.


The Fun police could well be putting a stop to that - at least for the 1st season skiing is open.
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Can you clarify why YOU mean by "good nightlife and apres"?

1. French - Maybe a glass of wine off the snow, then home to chill/eat, then back out from 9/10PM till 2AM.
2. Austrian - Drinking hard and fast on an empty stomach by 5PM, drunk and starving by the end of general apres at 7PM, stuffed with food and in bed by 11PM.

Clearly if it's 1. then of the 3 resorts you listed Val Thorens will probably be your best option.
If it's 2. then do you like to be surrounded by loads of/as few as possible fellow Brits? St Anton to hear other english voices/Ischgl to hear more Scandi ones and to laugh at tragic Russian dress sense.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Never been to VT so can't comment. I prefer St Anton to Ischgl for the overall experience and both are great resorts, so you'll have a great time whatever one you choose. For me the uplift from Ischgl is a bit off-putting as I've always had to queue for a while to get up the hill, whereas I've not experienced the same in Anton.
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Bergmeister wrote:
skitech wrote:
Val Thorens is far more stretched out with some of the bars a distant walk to some accomadation.


With the exception of the 5* Altapura Hotel at the "very bottom end" of Val T, no bar in Val T is more than 15 minutes walk from any other accommodation. Most are 2 to 10 minutes walk.


Also just to add, the main bars are all next door to each other, so if it's important to you to be close then it's easy to ensure your accommodation is just a stroll away (and still be ski in, ski out).
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Quote:
(Re Ischgl) But for apres it is THE place in the alps in my opinion. I have been there 21 sessions in a row
Assuming you mean 'seasons' (though you could well mean 'sessions' given the context wink), it could be argued that the fact that you've been there so much means you don't know what you've been missing elsewhere! Toofy Grin Somewhere else could've been bouncing even more!
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From purely skiing point of view:
-Intermediate level or good skier but staying on-piste:VT hands down, great pistes, and whole of 3V to explore, you can truly go somewhere different every day

-Advanced piste/between-the-piste off piste: I vote for Ischgl, some serious pistes and decent side/between-piste or itineraries you can explore

-Going with school/guide off piste: VT- has some serious off-piste. As does StAnton but the off piste in St Anton requires so much skinning/ bootpacking/flat sections and despite that so crowded
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mountainaddict wrote:
Quote:
(Re Ischgl) But for apres it is THE place in the alps in my opinion. I have been there 21 sessions in a row
Assuming you mean 'seasons' (though you could well mean 'sessions' given the context wink), it could be argued that the fact that you've been there so much means you don't know what you've been missing elsewhere! Toofy Grin Somewhere else could've been bouncing even more!


If there is anywhere quite as full on as Ischgl, I'd be interested/horrified to see it.
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mountainaddict wrote:
Quote:
(Re Ischgl) But for apres it is THE place in the alps in my opinion. I have been there 21 sessions in a row
Assuming you mean 'seasons' (though you could well mean 'sessions' given the context wink), it could be argued that the fact that you've been there so much means you don't know what you've been missing elsewhere! Toofy Grin Somewhere else could've been bouncing even more!


Danish keyboard and autocorrect fecks it up wink I also spend to weeks skiing in France every year at different places, so i do get around Happy
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Quote:



If there is anywhere quite as full on as Ischgl, I'd be interested/horrified to see it.

It's called Saalbach Hinterglemm Toofy Grin
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@boabski, a superb area and Saalbach is possibly my favourite place to be, but it's nothing like as hedonistic as Ischgl in my view. Not that it's a competition of course!
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22 years old, Val Thorens hands down. St Anton and Ischgl are for the more middle aged (picture red cheeked men with salopettes holding in their ample stomachs)
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
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Andybag wrote:
22 years old, Val Thorens hands down. St Anton and Ischgl are for the more middle aged (picture red cheeked men with salopettes holding in their ample stomachs)


It does look like a young crowd.


http://youtube.com/v/WTH3txmOHjo

PS After the first beer we generally wear the salopettes off-the-shoulder and just let it all hang out.
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Ischgl


http://youtube.com/v/vr5KSDijLJU


http://youtube.com/v/AgZOSHQ8SOQ


http://youtube.com/v/yYuv51h1s4I


Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Fri 29-01-21 19:12; edited 2 times in total
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St Anton


http://youtube.com/v/yZ1GZ9wDnSI
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Definitely all three of them, each of them was fun. The timing of the Apres was different (a consideration valid for a worry free post Covid19 world).
In ValTho you can go to the Folie Douce in the valley next door (Meribel) when you are done skiing and leave in time to get the last gondolas up. And then you wash yourself and go to the bars in the evening.
In Ischgl you end your skiing at one of the pubs in the village where East European girls dressed in Austrian clothes dance for your entertainment. Or go to fun but extremely crowded pubs where you can only drink.
While in St. Anton you stop a bit above the village, enjoy Austrian hits sung by everybody but you, have a juicy burger or smoked ribs with a few beers and then you put your skis on and descend in the dark. You can take a taxi if you are truly wasted, but it's a short, easy and fun descent.
I MISS St. Anton. A LOT
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@DB, I was there for the 2017 closing weekend for a mate's stag do. Couldn't see us on your video though. The top of the mountain concert was rubbish but the skiing was great. Its a great weekend for anyone who likes a party/
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
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Andybag wrote:
22 years old, Val Thorens hands down. St Anton and Ischgl are for the more middle aged (picture red cheeked men with salopettes holding in their ample stomachs)


This is also my experience. We loved St Anton as 40 yr olds but I’m not sure the kitsch Austrian tunes are what 22yr olds are looking for. VT is definitely a younger crowd and lots of Scandies which is most definitely not a bad thing! Throwing in Verbier as well which has cracking night life which has options catering to bother the younger crowd and the well heeled old timers.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
drporat wrote:

In ValTho you can go to the Folie Douce in the valley next door (Meribel) when you are done skiing and leave in time to get the last gondolas up. And then you wash yourself and go to the bars in the evening.


Valley next door? Alternatively it's a lot easier just to go to the Folie Douce that's actually on the slopes in Val Thorens. Then it's just a lazy irresponsible ski (or responsible chair) back to your apartment before the big night out.

VT is also home to the bigger nightclub in the Alps I believe.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Why does everybody here keep on referring to the days before March 2020?
Bunch of sentimental old farts!
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Could it be because that's the last time any of us went skiing?
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@Valluga, past performance etc.....
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@Handy Turnip, you are correct and they serve a great Carbonara there but only at the Folie Douce of Meribel I witnessed that amazing show.

http://youtube.com/v/4jSPn2MxTuA
The others were less interesting than Pano Bar in L2A.
@Langerzug, have some faith and look towards the horizon. The Spanish Flu and any other pandemic have passed and people returned being happy and content away from work.
If there will be snow, everything will return and will be perfect. Let's raise a morning cup for that!
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@drporat, a carbonara?! Laughing I'd suggest that you've been at the wrong times then.

At the right times it's full on table dancing, champagne spraying, apres craziness!!!


http://youtube.com/v/HKkX_vHZsfA

The Meribel one may be bigger and a bit better (more West End than wild party at times), but it's wrong to suggest that VT isnt a massive apres party - and there's no need to worry about getting the gondola back, so would win every time if I was staying in VT.
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I know, it is wild but I'm more into skiing and eating than into partying NehNeh
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@drporat, Laughing Laughing yes definitely 100% me too now, my partying days are well over. However I still look back fondly to 8 years ago or so at those Folie sessions and 3am finishes in VT (and still up for first lifts)
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Handy Turnip wrote:
drporat wrote:

In ValTho you can go to the Folie Douce in the valley next door (Meribel) when you are done skiing and leave in time to get the last gondolas up. And then you wash yourself and go to the bars in the evening.


Valley next door? Alternatively it's a lot easier just to go to the Folie Douce that's actually on the slopes in Val Thorens. Then it's just a lazy irresponsible ski (or responsible chair) back to your apartment before the big night out.


Downloading isn't allowed on the chairlifts from the Folie Douce in VT. That's why we see so many p155ed idiots skiing down. It really is carnage at kicking-out time and it won't be any surprise to hear of a tragedy resulting at some point. Sad
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
@Bergmeister, the new pioneers lift was supposed to allow pedestrian access to stop this but tbh I don't actually ever think I've seen it in use.

So yes lots of drunken idiots skiing down!

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Andybag wrote:
22 years old, Val Thorens hands down. St Anton and Ischgl are for the more middle aged (picture red cheeked men with salopettes holding in their ample stomachs)

I wouldn't say this.
St Anton has its fair share of "super cool Instagram 20ish year olds" by morning, 7pm its like watching a scene from bambi on ice as they're wobbling down the street bouncing off lamposts.
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Not related to the OP which I previously replied but drunk skiers are everywhere to be found.
You have the short distances to sky under influence, like in St. Anton from Mooserwirt and the medium ones like from Folie Douce in VT or from the Niederhutte above Obergurgl.
The problem appears with the long runs. I remember a very long and narrow at times blue piste coming all the way down from PanoBar towards Les 2 Alpes. At 4 PM ain't much fun
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