 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi All,
I'm new to this site so I hope I'm in the correct forum ! We are planning a family ski trip at Christmas week. Myself and my wife have been skiing 5 times but my teenage kids are first timers. As we've never been skiing this early before, I need to find out where you would recommend for good snow for somewhere between say December 20th and January 2nd.....I went to Sauze 2 years ago and thought it would be perfect for the first trip for the kids but would worry about snow there that early !
Any advice would be appreciated !
Ta,
Ben
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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Ben Dover, welcome to 
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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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Ben Dover, have you got a cousin by the surname McCracken?
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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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Ben Dover, Welcome.
While height doesn't guarantee you good snow (nothing does), it does positively increase the likelihood.
That said, IIRC, early season conditions in Morzine (not high at all) last year were generally better than those in many "higher" French resorts I believe.
Also, height can bring its own problems (cold, wind, exposure, lack of trees in bad weather).
I have no personal experience of Austria but would think you might also want to look at areas with good snow making - e.g. in Italy: Courmayeur or Champoluc - or as mentioned somewhere with a glacier - e.g. Cervinia.
Champoluc has the advantage that the skiing area is reasonably limited and simple so if the offspring make good progress you don't need to worry about them getting lost. It's also a good family resort. If you're looking for a package then I understand http://www.ski-2.com/ do so (I have NO affiliation) - if booking DIY then ideally fly to Turin, Milan Malpensa or Milan Linate in that order and I can highly recommend the Hotels Castor or Breithorn. The Hotel Favre is a bit more budget oriented.
(You might also want to look at Chamonix - and there, yes, I do have an affiliation! PM me if you like for information).
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Thanks all for the help, Peter in reply to your question, I don't but I do have an uncle who goes by the name of McCrevice, Phil McCrevice !
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Ben Dover, same joke different surname 
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Ben Dover, Alpe D'Huez has a pretty good early snow record.
We are there this coming Xmax from 16th to 26th as I think it's a pretty sure bet.
Have a look at www.skialacarte.co.uk
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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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Try Val Thorens, 2300m. Can be cold, almost snow sure!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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Been to Obertauern early for the last three seasons and its always had good snow. Not as busy as the bigger resorts and the piste quality is pretty good especially for kids.
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Going to a resort which has high altitude skiing is the conventional wisdom, although that's no guarantee that those resorts will offer the best of early season snow. A problem with high altitude resorts is that they can be very bleak if the weather is bad: high winds, very poor visibility, possible lift closure, etc. It's therefore helpful if your resort also offers some skiing below the treeline in case the weather closes in. Les Arcs would be one option for you; it has high altitude skiing, up to 3,200m, but also lots of skiing below the tree-line at Peisey/Vallandry, Arc 1600 and the Villaroger parts of the domain. There is quite extensive snow-making facilities (doubled in size for this coming season), protecting key pistes in case there isn't too much of the real stuff.
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You know it makes sense.
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Thanks All for the help, will investigate all suggestions further. In answer to Ray Zorro, Did you and I work together at some stage ? I haven't made one of 'those' films since I got tangled up in my crampons two years ago...I just don't seem to have the star attraction that I used to !
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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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Ben Dover, I'll PM you the details of our Christmas trip that provenjohn is coming out on 
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Poster: A snowHead
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Ben Dover, Christmas is a gamble, as indeed is any time in December and early January.
Pistes take time to build up. It all depends on when the snow starts. Some seasons have been wonderful, but recently rather more have been pretty miserable.
I've had OK Christmases in Cervinia ('87), Courchevel ('93) and Vaujany/Alpe d'Huez ('97), but conditions were never as good as later in the season.
And you have the added problem of two first timers: it is the lower easier slopes are most likely to be in poor shape in a bad year.
On the other hand Christmas in the alps can be such a super experience.
So my advice is go. Go primarily for a different sort of Christmas: a christmas in the mountains. And then if there is decent snow, consider that a bonus.
You'll have a great time.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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FAQ
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I always wondered why you weren't invited back to give out the awards at prizegiving along with the others that had gone on to "success" in their chosen field 
