 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi Snowheads! I’ve been quietly devouring the info here for the past few years so first up a huge thanks for the generously shared knowledge and enthusiasm!
This is my first post and I’m hoping to tap into your collective knowledge for tips and advice for a long ski trip. I’ve got a sabbatical coming up and I’m thrilled to be taking 6 weeks this season (2023) to drive and ski around the Alps with my wife between Feb 26th and April 12th. It’s a long delayed trip due to illness, injury and covid so I’m a bit overexcited and keen to get it right. It’s all being booked a last minute do to a bunch of boring life admin stuff which we’ve only just about resolved.
I’ve locked in a rough driving route and likely resorts and would love to hear any suggestions from this community on a few things:
1. Any decent lower budget hotels or apartments which you might recommend in the resorts we will be at - it’s going to be an expensive trip and I’d like to be sensible. In resorts I’m familiar with like Val d’Isere I know of a hotel or two which is good value but we’re going to be mostly at resorts which will be new to us. We don’t need anything specific, perhaps just reasonable walking distance to the lifts / town but even that isn’t a deal breaker as we will have the car. Mostly just looking for some kind of positive value exchange between my cash and the hotel’s charm!
2. Special experiences in these resorts - I’m keen to do one thing that isn’t skiing each week.
3. Tips or leads on any great ski instructors in these resorts - we are solid intermediates but would like to end the season as significantly better skiers.
Week 1: Flims Laax for a Ski Technique Camp
Week 2: The Sella Ronda, looking at Val Gardena, Corvara but very open to suggestions.
Week 3: Ishgl
Week 4: Val Thorens (meeting friends but no accommodation booked
Week 5: Zermatt (possible side trip to St Moritz on the beautiful train between the two)
Week 6: Probably Val d’Isere as it will be April by then, but open to other suggestions in the area.
Huge thanks in advance!
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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 - Zermatt - Val d'Isere is a bit of a schlep. Could you swap weeks 4 and 5?
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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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The Glacier Express is excellent - recommend the private rooms at St Moritz youth hostel (not like any youth hostel you’ve stayed at before - more a decent 2*) and you can do the 5km sled down the closed road and train back into town.
Last edited by Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see? on Sat 28-01-23 19:22; edited 1 time in total
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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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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I'd second the idea of swapping Val dIsere and Zermatt.
The latter should be just as good in April.
I have no suggestions for particular hotels as I usually self cater.
However if you are looking for cheaper hotels in Ischgl. I would look at one of the other villages in the valley, which are cheaper and the parking in Ischgl is free. I have stayed in Kappl and Galtur, though look at location in Kappl, the main road along the valley is busy and less appealing to stay in.
Personally I tend to ski in resorts and don't look for other things so can't give great advice on non skiing things. However if you're intermediate but improving having a guide from the ski school to take you off piste can give some beautiful memories if you can find picturesque routes away from the lifts.
If you are looking for a day somewhere away from the Sella Ronda that doesn't involve skiing I visited Bolzano on a summer cycling trip and found it attractive and the Oetzi museum is fascinating.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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A couple of comments on the whole idea:
1. You will need winter tyres on the car for Austria at least.
2. As you have a car, staying a short drive from the lifts will save you £££ in popular resorts, but will sacrifice convenience.
3. Buying 6x 1week liftpasses will take you well beyond a season pass, even one for one of the huge liftpass unions. But there's no other way to visit such a variety of resorts in your itinerary. I assume you have budgeted a hefty 5-figure sum for this trip anyway.
4. The logical order from a routing point of view would be Laax, Ischgl, Selva, Zermatt, VT, VdI. Starting from the UK, it saves about 350 miles compared to your itinerary, but I understand you may have other considerations.
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| T Bar wrote: |
I'd second the idea of swapping Val dIsere and Zermatt.
The latter should be just as good in April.
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Yeah, that would work if week 4 needs to be VT, so Laax-Ischgl-Selva-VT-VdI-Zermatt.
That still saves nearly 300 miles on the original route.
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If Val Thorens is a lock and Val d’Isere is on the wanted list I’d probably just save the extra driving and complete the Tarentaise by putting Les Arcs in at week 5. From there You’d have the option to ski across to La Plagne or do a drive to maximise the ski area there, and maybe take a day in Sainte Foy as well. The downside is that it maybe doesn’t tick the box of a glorious day-off skiing with activities in the local area, that might be a drive away depending what you’re looking for. Although La Plagne has a bobsleigh run you can do in the afternoon/evening.
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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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@benbux, Ischgl to Val Thorens is a long way (depending on weather etc probably not far off 8 hours drive) more sensible to aim for Zermatt (or better St Moritz). Personally I would swap Ischgl for the Arlberg. Ischgl does have a lot of decent piste skiing but the Arlberg is a much better all round experience (probably easier to find value for money places to stay, look in Pettneu for instance) with some of the best skiing in the alps also relatively easy to do a day in Innsbruck - direct train from the centre of St Anton. Also much easier for onward travel as not a 45 minute drive back down a long valley to get to the Autobahn.
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Thanks so much for all your thoughts above - it’s extremely helpful and great to get your perspectives.
PamW and others - Thanks and I agree it’s not a very optimal route, but and luigi said, I’m kind of locked in to Val Thorens (and Val d’Isere) because of friends’ holiday plans. Sella Ronda is being done as early as possible as it’s apparently less snow sure there. We’ve skied La Plagne and Les Arcs before, so want to get to new countries and resorts in between them, hence Zermatt.
I did consider getting some off piste experience and training in Chamonix after VT instead, but thought March 25 - April 1 might be pretty late in the season for decent snow in that area - am I being too pessimistic and underestimating the area perhaps? There is a workshop you can do with Ronin skis where you make your own skis - heavily supervised of course - which I’d be quite keen to do.
The wife and I need to have a conversation about VT as neither of us is particularly excited about the resort, but would be nice to see friends. If we don’t do VT, a much more sensible journey is possible and I can add a new ski area to the list!
Thanks Munich-Irish for the Pettneu suggestion and the call-out on the Ischgl to VT distance, which I had actually glossed over - will definitely plan a stop somewhere mid way for at least a couple of nights… maybe Wengen, or go the other way and do Lake Como… so many options!
Tbar, thanks for the heads up in free parking in Ishgl - staying where you suggest in Kappl and Galtur and doing a drive each day could make that a nice low cost week to offset some of the others.
Luigi - thanks for the tips. I paid out for a new set of all season tyres that have the M&S so will be legal in Austria. I also have snow chains (and a whole pile of other compulsory stuff!) for France.
Thanks again for taking the time to reply and share your thoughts!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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the parking isn't free in Ischgl any more.
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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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@Mother hucker, Oops, thanks for pointing it out . It has changed since I last visited. The charges of 5 euro a day or 7 euro for covered parking on the website could still make staying elsewhere a significant saving.
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@benbux,
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The wife and I need to have a conversation about VT as neither of us is particularly excited about the resort, but would be nice to see friends. If we don’t do VT, a much more sensible journey is possible and I can add a new ski area to the list!
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One possibility which might save money and increase interest though it probably wouldn't save any travel time Would be to plan a visit to the Maurienne valley which has a plethora of small interesting and cheaper resorts. You could ski with your friends by going to Orelle for the day and meeting up in Val Thorens.
We have done this in the past . The pass sharing arrangements in the Maurienne are no longer as good as they were but you can still get multiday passes which cover several resorts in the Haute Maurienne I think
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You know it makes sense.
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If I were skiing for 6 weeks there's no way I'd want to live in hotel bedrooms all that time, especially on half board. I'd mix in some nice self-catering places so I could sample local restaurants. Or sometimes just have an extra gin and tonic and some nibbles, if I'd had lunch on the mountain.
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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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| pam w wrote: |
| If I were skiing for 6 weeks there's no way I'd want to live in hotel bedrooms all that time, especially on half board. I'd mix in some nice self-catering places so I could sample local restaurants. Or sometimes just have an extra gin and tonic and some nibbles, if I'd had lunch on the mountain. |
This is definitely the plan!
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Poster: A snowHead
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[/quote]
One possibility which might save money and increase interest though it probably wouldn't save any travel time Would be to plan a visit to the Maurienne valley which has a plethora of small interesting and cheaper resorts. You could ski with your friends by going to Orelle for the day and meeting up in Val Thorens.
We have done this in the past . The pass sharing arrangements in the Maurienne are no longer as good as they were but you can still get multiday passes which cover several resorts in the Haute Maurienne I think[/quote]
Thanks Tbar. That’s a good shout and would also allow us to start to look at the area with a view to perhaps buying a chalet…
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| T Bar wrote: |
| @Mother hucker, Oops, thanks for pointing it out . It has changed since I last visited. The charges of 5 euro a day or 7 euro for covered parking on the website could still make staying elsewhere a significant saving. |
Yes, that’s still a bargain compared to almost every single other place I’ve had to leave the car since we started driving!
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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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@benbux,
Zermatt is a car free village.
Have you thought about staying somewhere down in the valley that would give you access to multiple resorts?
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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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Re the Maurienne, I'd say the Haute Maurienne (Bonneval, Val Cenis, La Norma, Val Frejus) have generally better skiing than the lower Maurienne (especially off piste if you hire a guide). And as you say, Orelle links you into Val Thorens and the the Trois Vallees.
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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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@benbux,
For week 5 perhaps substitute French Portes du Soleil for Zermatt - a shorter drive from Val T & Val d'I, but you could still ski over to Switzerland side.
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