 Poster: A snowHead
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We are planning to go on a ski trip in late March/early April, but having trouble narrowing the many ski resorts down to one. I would love some suggestions for places that check off the following points…
- Likely to still have good snow in March/early April
- Good instruction options for English speakers
- Charming alpine town
- Views of jagged peaks (rather than rolling mountaintops) - kind of like what you would see from Mayrhofen
- Sledging runs
- Good network of interconnected blue (and/or green) runs
- Blue/green runs that are appropriately rated (with fairly gentle slopes)
- Good grooming on the blue slopes
- Moderate pricing - we are flexible here, but veer away from those that are most expensive.
We are having trouble finding a ski resort that fits all of these needs, but our top contenders at the moment are Obertauern in Austria and Les Saisies in France. I would love to know how these resorts differ from one another, if anyone has been to both. Or, on a more general level, what kinds of differences tend to come up between skiing in France and Austria.
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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Also, just want to note that I posted before and got some great responses that helped me figure out my checklist. Really appreciate all the feedback!
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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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Briancon (Serre Chevalier) ticks most of those requirements
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Really not sure I'd agree that Briancon meets the requirements, though other serre Chevalier villages might.
Les Saises is more rolling mountains than jagged peaks I think (though happy to be corrected).
What about somewhere like Valloire? Genuine mountain village, on the road to one of the most famous alpine climbs (Gallibier).
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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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| JDL65 wrote: |
Really not sure I'd agree that Briancon meets the requirements, though other serre Chevalier villages might.
Les Saises is more rolling mountains than jagged peaks I think (though happy to be corrected).
What about somewhere like Valloire? Genuine mountain village, on the road to one of the most famous alpine climbs (Gallibier). |
Valloire and the Haute Maurrienne in general is a good shout with decent snow cover in my experience of three April visits, Good reasonable blues and fine Mountain scenery.
Not sure about sledging variable alpine towns/villages , our experience of instruction pretty good.
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I'd say Les Saisies ticks most of the boxes - the mountain scenery is pretty good and in my experience of skiing elsewhere in France is as good as anywhere except Chamonix, and better than many. I've skied in Valloire - and I'd say Les Saisies edges it! The ski runs themselves are on "rolling hills" (which suits the OP!) but the surroundings include Mont Blanc, the Aravis and the Pierra Menta - all pretty good examples of mountainhood!
However - one of the reasons I like it is because it is NOT an English-speaking sort of place. If you book a private instructor and don't speak French they will speak to you in English, but probably not very fluent or technical English. And if you book group lessons and everyone else is French, most of the chat will be in French! I would say that if you decide to go to Les Saisies book lessons IMMEDIATELY.
It's generally OK at the end of March/early April though some of the lower runs in the Arly Valley will be shut (not a great loss to the OP as they use some tricky draglifts they'd probably not enjoy) but in the last few years the weather has been weird. In most years mid March is better than early April but we were there the first week in April two years ago and had the best snow they'd had for weeks, and better than many places around.
There is designated a sledging area up near the cross country area, next to "Le Signal" pool, bowling and restaurant complex. But I'd not describe it as "sledging runs". Just the sort of place you'd take the kids for a bit of fun. A more interesting area was vandalised some years ago by the building of a huge complex of de-luxe apartments.
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