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Which resort for easy, motorway, stress free skiing?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Want to take my Mrs on only her third skiing holiday. She is still very nervous but did very well in Soldeu on her second week skiing. Any where else where most of the skiing is easy and good for confidence building or is back to Soldeu the best bet? She normally has lessons in the morning and then we ski together in the afternoon but I'm really not worried bout my skiing as I get enough of an adrenaline rush during my week with the boys.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Courchevel 1650. Never seen so much wide easy piste.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Lizzard, Another vote. I did see someone dispute this in another thread, but 1650 is so much quieter than 1850 and quiet = good in my book for nervous skiers
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Cervinia is well worth considering.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Austria is best for nervous beginners.

The hills are smaller, lower, warmer, grassier and flatter than elsewhere.

Try somewhere like Zell am See.
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Louis, my inevitable vote for Banff's Sunshine Village (Embarassed). Frosty the Snowman, as you say, 'quiet = good for nervous skiers' and you don't get much quieter than Sunshine. It was perfect for me as a nervous beginner last season. I'm not sure if the Ski School does half-day lessons, apart from private ones, though.
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Another vote for Cervinia. You then have the option of nipping over the border to Zermatt in the mornings Louis.
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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!
france -la plagne, courchevel 1550,`650 or 1850 and plenty of options in alpe d'huez
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Have a look at Valmorel. It is in the Tarentaise Valley near to bigger ski areas so access is good but it is quieter and has a friendly family type atmosphere. Enough skiing to keep a good skiier contented and some nice motorway pistes for building confidence.
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Having been to Courchevel 1850, I wouldn't say it was stress-free. Literally hundreds of people piling down the same piste. I agree that there is lots of easy motorway skiing there but I could only recommend it if you like the M25 during rush-hour.
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Louis, all the above are sensible suggestions
But I'm a La Plagne fan.
As you can see from the piste map: there are blue runs all over the place.
I've been taking young kids and nervous adults there for years and all have thought it ideal.
Stay at Belle Plagne: I think it the most pleasant of the higher "villages".
The day often starts skiing down to Bellecote. Do not make the mistake that lots of nervous beginners do and go down on the piste nearest the Arpette lift (follows on Les Laines). This piste may be wide and well pisted, but it is often hard and icy early morning, and full of panicking skiers sliding and shrieking. Instead go through the village and down Les Ours.
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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.
la plagne
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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
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
Arosa, but take the lift back to the resort to avoid the horse & carts
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Schladming.

It is where I went for my third week of skiing, after the second week having been in Soldeu, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Mostly nice wide reds, with a few blues and a couple of not too hard blacks (The one down to the bottom of the Planai was the first black I ever skied the whole of).
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
1650 is fine but 1850 is v steep relative to your average blue.

Cervinia, Les Arcs (particularly Peisey Vallandry), La Plagne, Megeve, La Rosiere.

But if you really want her to feel confidence above her usual level go to the states - the grooming (piste bashing) is light years ahead of what you can find in Europe which makes it perfect for timid intermediates.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Louis, it's not only the nature of the pistes which makes for relaxing and confidence-building skiing. Having really quiet pistes, without lots of boy racers, is also helpful, as is some decent weather (not too cold) and unintimidating surroundings. Snow quality is vital too. Your OH will not care about having miles and miles of pistes to play on, especially if some of them are rather samey. Why bother with places like La Plagne or Courchevel, when there are heaps of small resorts which will be much quieter? Obviously you will choose a quiet week (first week in February or second week in March will be best in France) so if there are only two of you, why not book at the last minute when you can be more certain of snow? Of the better known French resorts, Les Gets or La Rosiere would probably fit your bill but there are hundreds of small places to explore. Ski tuition will also be crucial. Les Gets has an excellent BASS ski school - maybe you should learn to snowboard when she learns to ski, then you can explore together in the afternoons with her being more in command than yourself? And she will feel less knackered at the end of the day than you will be, too. That, I can assure you, will do more for her confidence level and enjoyment than almost anything else. It's no fun always trailing in the wake of someone much better than you, however kind they are about it.
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Les Arcs. Runs the size of motorways especially on the Valandry/1800 side. The 2000 bowl can be a little more challenging.
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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?
thewahwah wrote:
Having been to Courchevel 1850, I wouldn't say it was stress-free. Literally hundreds of people piling down the same piste. I agree that there is lots of easy motorway skiing there but I could only recommend it if you like the M25 during rush-hour.


all depends when you go, I've been over a late Easter a few years back and by the closing weekend the place was deserted! No queues anywhere, straight onto the lifts Smile
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kitenski, I was in Courch last week in January 2007 (wouldn't have called it a peak time) and it was bedlam. Perhaps it was because the snow was less good elsewhere so everyone came up to 1850 but there were definitely queues everywhere, except for the drag lifts Sad.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
pam w wrote:
Why bother with places like La Plagne or Courchevel, when there are heaps of small resorts which will be much quieter?
I agree with your point, but details please: which "small resorts"?

For nervous learner skiers, the prospect of going to these non-brochure places can be quite daunting. They will have to arrange everything themselves: travel, accomodation, ski school, and all. They therefore need, more than ever, info from people like you who have been there to point them in the right direction.

On the whole the majority of skiers are remarkably unadventurous, and when asked for recommendations we come up with the same 10-20 resorts time after time.
The average punter can get the same names from any brochure.
A forum like this should be able to do a little more
A forum like this should be able to identify some of those hundreds of non-brochure resorts, and allow snowheads to enjoy the little places the locals go to.
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Small resorts:

Vars
Chamrousse
Notre Dame de Bellecombe (and environs)
Villard de Lans
Orcieres Merlette
Most of the Maurienne valley
Valmorel
Alpe du Grand Serre (though this could be said to be taking things to extremes)
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Small resort: Pila. No need to DIY either, Brit TOs go there.
Another large resort: La Thuile. One drawback is that beginners need to download by gondola.
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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!
Well jonpim, off the top of my head I can list a few....(most also have UK tour ops going there...)

Puy St Vincent
Gressoney
Champoluc
Montgenevre
Engelberg
Les Gets
Les Houches
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kitenski, I wouldn't include Engelberg in this category.
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rjs wrote:
kitenski, I wouldn't include Engelberg in this category.


Why? I wouldn't say it's busy, and assuming the lower slopes are open has beginner terrain.....
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kitenski, None of the pistes are particularly wide, don't get bashed all that often and have many counter slopes.

The beginner slopes are either Klostermatt or at Gerschnialp, which are away from where everyone else skis.

I have been there several times with beginner friends who found it intimidating.
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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.
Bansko has some nice wide stress free skiing. For nervous skiers there is also the ski road. This runs for nearly 7kms from the top gondola station to the bottom gondola station. It is an easy blue all the way, and works wonders for confidence building.
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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
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
Jonpim, wrote
Quote:
I agree with your point, but details please: which "small resorts"?

There are so many, and so different, it's necessary for people to narrow down their priorities if we are to give very precise information. For example, Notre Dame de Bellecombe (part of the Espace Diamant area) has great red runs, but may be a bit too challenging. Les Saisies, lift linked, is ideal, but group ski lessons are only available in French. A bit better known is Valmeinier, which we visited some years ago with Snowcoach. A very little known resort is Areches Beaufort, but it's not ideal for a nervous near beginner (nor for a black run hero, for that matter). Some people want "apres ski" (which usually seems to mean getting very drunk in a crowded place with lots of other people) whereas others are content to get drunk quietly at home with a good bottle of wine, prior to an early night and onto the first lift in the morning. Some nervous skiers hate surface lifts, others hate high gondolas.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
No ones mentioned Lech, and certainly all the blues round oberlech tick all the op's boxes.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
pam w, kitenski, Lizzard: great stuff. It's the resorts not listed in standard brochures I'm interested in.
I'm off to see what I can find out about those places in Internetland. Keep them coming.
And then why not go and tell us all about them in the Resorts Section - the list there is really pretty boring at the moment.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Jonpim, like me, you want to discover the identity of resort X. Skullie Skullie Skullie Skullie Laughing
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rjs wrote:
kitenski, None of the pistes are particularly wide, don't get bashed all that often and have many counter slopes.

The beginner slopes are either Klostermatt or at Gerschnialp, which are away from where everyone else skis.

I have been there several times with beginner friends who found it intimidating.


Ok, I've not been there with a beginner, thanks alot, will remember that for future reference!! Esp as some beginners were wanting to come with us in Feb to Engelberg Smile
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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?
pam w, thanx. Makes a lot of sense!!

Does your Les Saisies fit the bill?
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Selva. Sauze D'oulx. Les Arcs.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Ghost Dog, I wouldn't recommend Selva for a nervous beginner: either of the main lifts out of resort only takes you to a bunch of reds. In that area Corvara would be a much better bet, then at the end of the week if they've increased in confidence the Sella Ronda could be a possiblity.
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Louis, it would fit the bill other than the fact that you can't get group lessons in English. Maybe your OH speaks French (no need to be completely fluent) or would in any case prefer private lessons - they are very reasonable here and several of the instructors speak good enough English and are very pleasant. Have a look at lessaisies.com and come back to me if there are any more specific queries; glad to help. If you PM me with an email address I could send you some photos. When are you thinking of travelling?
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Swirly, We are talking about a third week skier here. They would have to be very nervous before they would find most of the reds too worrying, although tey would probably want to keep off the blacks Smile
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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!
alex_heney, I think that nervous people who have only done two weeks skiing would find plenty of reds a bit worrying, especially in less than perfect snow conditions. Don't forget that people learn at very different rates, and for some people being taken far out of their comfort zone is counter-productive and discouraging. I have spent three whole weeks with a nervous sister in law around the easy slopes in Les Saisies, and she can do the easier reds, slowly. She's had lessons, including dry slopes in the UK, and group and private lessons here, but she's just extremely cautious and I have to bit my tongue not to give gratuitous amateur advice! It was one of the reasons I took up snowboarding, so that I can keep beginner and early skiers company and "do my own thing" on the easy slopes. Being a fairly hopeless snowboarder also reminds me how it feels to be worried about getting off a chairlift, or negotiating a bit of narrow track. It's too easy for confident and experienced skiers to dismiss the fears of others. I'm a fairly confident and experienced skier (albeit not a very good one) but that doesn't stop me finding some places plain intimidating (Tignes in anything other than bright warm sunshine, for example). It is all supposed to be fun, after all!
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pam w wrote:
alex_heney, I think that nervous people who have only done two weeks skiing would find plenty of reds a bit worrying, especially in less than perfect snow conditions.


Yes, I realise that, but some of the reds in Selva they were taking first week skiers on in lessons. Reds vary from place to place, and the ines tere are not particularly difficult, and generally have good visibility and very good snowmaking.

I'm thinking here particuularly of the ones above Plan de Gralba, that being the area I know best.

Quote:
Don't forget that people learn at very different rates, and for some people being taken far out of their comfort zone is counter-productive and discouraging. <snip> It is all supposed to be fun, after all!


Yes, I do realise that people learn at different rates, and I was a particularly quick learner. But I still think there isn't too much in that area that wuld phase most third week skiers.
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thewahwah wrote:
Louis, my inevitable vote for Banff's Sunshine Village (Embarassed). Frosty the Snowman, as you say, 'quiet = good for nervous skiers' and you don't get much quieter than Sunshine. It was perfect for me as a nervous beginner last season. I'm not sure if the Ski School does half-day lessons, apart from private ones, though.
make that 2 for sunshine!! and also suprisingly cheap, check it out.
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