Hey all. I'm flying to Dolimites this weekend, and will ski from Sun to Weds. We're staying in Val di Fassa. I'm a seasonsed skier and my two teenage kids are late beginner/intermediate (blues and reds). My wife is very much learning still so may not join us for all of the time and may stick to lessons in val di fassa.
I want to take the teenage girls on the Sella Ronda and reckon they can manage it. Question is, with only three days of skiing are there any other unmissable places to ski in that area that we should do?
We have a car so getting about should be easy.
Any recommendations grateefully received. the area looks so vast I'm struggling to make sense of the piste maps.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
I would just enjoy it with four days. Skiing in the Val di Fassa and the Sella Ronda will give you a great flavour of the place. It's a lovely ski area and there are plenty of other lovely bits but with four days serendipity is likely to get you to as good places as seeking out specific locations one of which isn't clearly better than another
Oops just noticed it's three days skiing in which case I'd reemphasize it.
It is just such a big area and wherever you go will be lovely.
In December I'd try and stay in the sun.
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?
@brightonian, Sella Ronda from VdF with two beginners will keep you busy for a couple of days (I recommend an overnight stop in Selva)
It's all good in the Dollies but quite samey - nowhere's unmissable.
Just cruise around the endless blue runs, get your bearings, and plan next years trip(s)
@brightonian, as others have said enjoy the limited time you have, also the days will be short daylight wise. If you plan to do the Sella, make an early start ie be on first lift and have a plan B if any of you get tired or don’t ski as fast as you need to. I’d consider going clockwise, and if you need you can cut it short at Belvedere and take the lift down to Alba and use a bus to get back to Fassa, if you look at the ski map you’ll see what I mean.
I’ve only done the anti clockwise route, somewhere around Sellajoch there’s a fascinating area of standing rocks, the cloak wise route might miss them, you may want to go that was one day to see them.
I’m back this March and will do the clockwise route from Alba.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
One thing which isn't a must do if you are trying to get maximum skiing time but is maybe worthwhile if people are tired and the weather is good is going up to Pass Pordoi cablecar.
It's in the Fassa bit of the Sella and the views are magnificent but there is no skiing back down
@brightonian, there's more to see in Val di Fassa than you can possibly do in 3 days, I reckon you'd struggle in 3 weeks! As others have suggested, it might be good to just let serendipity take you, but sometimes it's good to have a bit of a plan or destination to reach.
A nice area to play on confidence-building blues is above Plan de Gralba under the shadow of the Sassolungo mountain. From the top of Campitello cablecar, ski down past Passo Sella into the Val Gardena ski area. On the way back you go through Citta dei Sassi (Rock City), the area of huge boulders.
The area between Alba & Pozza-Buffaure is a nice circuit.
A short drive away, Carezza ski area is a lovely quiet spot with easy runs. The tree-lined runs above Pera in the Catinaccio ski area are good on a bad weather day. Further down the valley, Passo San Pellegrino ski area has some lovely sunny wide long blues.
A great spot for spectacular views on a sunny day is up the Sass Pordoi cablecar, it's 2950m, the highest lift around the Sella. There's a restaurant/cafe up there. There's no piste skiing down, so you need to take the lift back down.
Some things are going to be tricky unless your kids are competent on reds. Either way round the Sella Ronda involves tackling reds.
To tailor the suggestions, it would be helpful to know the answers to these Qs:
Where in Val di Fassa are you staying? Where are the wife's lessons being held? Are you wanting to meet up with her at some point during the day?
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Excerpt from my Jan 2020 Val di Fassa Dolomites trip report You really will be spoiled for choice with use of a hire car
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We stayed in Vigo di Fassa, which was great. Small but very pleasant and excellent access to the various ski areas using our hire car. Managed to try out a fair few areas - and loved them all. Details as follows:
Day 1 (PM-only ski as we arrived very late the night before and ended up buying a half day pass): Catinaccio (the small local area at Vigo di Fassa).
Day 2: AM at Carezza; PM at San Giovanni di Fassa. 20 minute drive in between.
Day 3: Sella Ronda from the cable car at Alba (not Arabba, as I originally posted....)
Day 4: AM at Alpe Lusia; PM at San Pellegrino.
Day 5: From San Giovanni di Fassa, via Alba cable car (not Arabba, as I originally posted....) to the sightseeing summit at Sass Pordoi; then to Marmolada and back.
Day 6: AM at Alpe Cermis; PM at Latemar (15 min drive in between). At Latemar we skied to Obereggen and back.
In summary:
- Loved the scenery – it’s just amazing.
- Six days of blue skies.
- Scale of the skiing available on the Dolomiti Superski Pass is incredible – and everywhere we skied had an impressive (fast/modern) lift system. We must’ve ridden only about four slow lifts all week.
- Fabulous cruising runs overall – and some pretty decent black runs too.
- Loved skiing the Sella Ronda (clockwise). A really enjoyable day out - though that day (midweek) was easily the busiest pistes we skied and the only day with queues of more than about 30 seconds. Otherwise, we had a lot of runs (and sometimes ski areas!) to ourselves.
- Snow was generally very good to excellent – especially as it hadn’t snowed for about three weeks. The snowmaking set up across the whole of the Dolomites is so impressive. In the main, we skied good, grippy, hardpack, topped up with snow making. The only exception was late afternoon down to Arabba on the day we did the Sella Ronda (runs very slick/challenging) due to the volume of traffic.
After all it is free
After all it is free
Thanks so much everyone for the helpful tips. @luigi the kids are fine on reds and we’re staying near the col rodella lift and about 10 min drive from Belvedere lift. And yes we’d want to meet up with her after lessons - part from the day we’d want to do the circuit.
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.
brightonian wrote:
I want to take the teenage girls on the Sella Ronda and reckon they can manage it. Question is, with only three days of skiing are there any other unmissable places to ski in that area that we should do?
.
If they can cope with Italian reds (generally easier than the reds in the French 4 grade system), they will breeze the SR. Some say anti-clockwise is slightly easier, but not a lot in it, esp since they reconfigured the Arabba section so you don't have to do the narrow steep pitch at Porta Vescovo on the clockwise version. There are a few steepish red pitches off some of the high points that can be a bit intimidating for early intermediates, but it's mostly cruising...and some poling along the flatter sections! Snowboarders hate it!!
It is very scenic all the way round, as long as the weather is clear enough, but highlights are the view from Belvedere area above Canazei and the view from Col Rodella at the top of the Campitello cablecar.
In fact that whole section from Canazei through to Plan de Gralba with the Sassolungo looming one side and the buttresses of the Sella on the other side. Then it gets quite canyon-like as you drop into Colfosco. A nice side trip is up to Col Pradat in the Edelweiss Valley, the view from the terrace there over to the Sella is spectacular.
Views above Corvara with the Sassongher backdrop are very nice too.
The only other place that beats the Sella Ronda for scenery is the area around Cinque Torri and the Hidden Valley, but that would be a big ask from Val di Fassa.
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Wed 14-12-22 11:07; edited 1 time in total
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Wow. Stunning pics. Thanks for that. Very excited now!
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
Oh, how those pictures make me want to go back to that area!!
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.
brightonian wrote:
Thanks so much everyone for the helpful tips. @luigi the kids are fine on reds and we’re staying near the col rodella lift and about 10 min drive from Belvedere lift. And yes we’d want to meet up with her after lessons - part from the day we’d want to do the circuit.
Good spot there in Campitello.
I guess you're not going to be able to stray too far if you want to meet up after lessons. Sometimes the lessons are held on a small slope in the valley at Canazei for complete beginners. At the top of the cablecar the runs would be a bit too steep for novices. So not quite sure how that will work out, if you want to ski together. What is the meeting point they have given her?
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
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
Here's my TR from our trip back in January. We stayed in Pozza di Fassa.
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Poster: A snowHead
