 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi peeps,
Back from my trip to soll last week had a blast but now i'm hoping to get a cheeky weeks away mid march. In soll i loved the nice easy relaxed reds/blues but found the runs were a bit short and had to get lots of lifts etc. So can anyone suggest somewhere that has some nice long, easy slopes (europe only) that's not going to be hugely expensive. Cheers peeps 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Les Arcs (never seen pistes so wide) or La Plagne.
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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_Mac_Daddy, Saalbach, check out their website for the interactive piste map. Loads of snow there also like Soll.
www.saalbach.com/default.php?id=87&L=1
Or, we're off to Mayhofen at the end of Feb and some of the resorts in the Zillertal valley have loads of long reds (esp. Hochfugen). Mayrhofen is reasonably priced also.
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The_Mac_Daddy, Cervinia has a wide selection of the abovementioned slopes also
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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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Was impressed by first impressions of Baqueira Beret in the Pyrenees at the weekend. About 2 and a bit hours easy drive from Toulouse and generally full of good cruiser reds and blues. Also some not too fearsome blacks if you want to push yourself a little.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Try Serre-Chevalier - huge flattering ski area and some good deal available.
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just back a couple of weeks ago from Cervinia - I chose it for my partner because of the long easy cruisers - but to be honest I wasn't too keen on Cervinia and I don't actually think that it was particularly good for long wide cruisers after all. Its also all basically above the treeline making it very samey, and the atmosphere is a bit low. I also thought the ski school was very average, actually no, the ski school was plain poor.
Clearly there's far more skiing over the Zermatt side, and very varied skiing at that - so this is a real plus. But getting over is dependent upon the weather being suitable, and coming back over to Cervinia requires a trip to a scratch under 4000m (unpleasant for some, me included) or more than 30 mins on the worlds longest drag lifts!!!!
Cervinia is now off my list - I'm interested in the other suggestions on this thread too ..... keep em coming ....
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Adam Holt, wow, that's the first negative report I have heard about Cervinia .. it has been on my to-do list for a few years now, as I had always heard such great things about it.
So it was very interesting to read your report, and see the other side to Cervinia !
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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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Adam Holt, Sonya, I wasn't that impressed by Cervinia when we skied over to it from Zermatt.
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The Mac Daddy, why not have a look at La Rosiere, the Espace San Bernardo has some great skiing on mianly reds and blues, we have some availablity in March, apart from easter week, at really good rates. There's also huge amonunts of snow now so all of the skiing is accessable.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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The Sella Ronda (Dolomites), also known as the 'Sud Tyrol' of Italy, is the greatest area of blue/red pistes I know. The scenic variety is spectacular.
A bit more expensive, but with even bigger mountains, is the Jungfrau area of Switzerland (Wengen/Grindelwald mainly). The vast majority of skiing here is easy.
Courmayeur in Italy is popular with intermediates, and provides access to the spectacular Vallee Blanche into Chamonix's terrain in France.
For maximum snow reliability, but a less attractive resort, Flaine in France has always been popular.
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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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Kramer, Sonya, If I'm honest I was really quite dissappointed by Cervinia and I couldn't see what all the hype was about at all. It is basically one big bleak ski area where too much of the lift system is antiquated and slow. One piste is pretty much identical to any other - almost no variation to be found anywhere. Once you go over to Zermatt you instantly see that Cervinia is very much the poor cousin as the sheer scale and variation and scenery over there is spectacular. The down side of that is that beginners and lesser skiers can't get to benefit from the Zermatt side as it is too steep and difficult in places, and in fact there is no easy way down to Zermatt at all. A further down side is that if the better skiers in your group want to go and experience Zermatt properly then they will need to go for the entire day to make it vaguely worth it.
Cervinia town barely feels like a ski town to me. In some respects this is nice as it does really feel like you are in Italy. But it felt to me that the skiing was not taken very seriously. To back this up, the ski schools are small and not customer focussed - group lessons are a bit of a joke - on the first day I was graded along with my partner (who's just getting over snow ploughs) and the entire bunch were broken into only 4 levels - it was laughable. I was only going into group lessons because I didn’t want to ski alone most of the time - but I knew privates would have made more sense. I was put in the top class with people utterly miles below my level - there was no more advanced option offered to me - it was pathetic.
The ski hire set-up also felt very shakey - crappy little shops with mayhem inside - no order no routine no nothing.
Ski Shops - I wanted to buy new boots and I couldn't really find any shops!!!!! There were a couple of tiny little places here and there but nothing offering a good range that I could find. I think there was a bigger shop (allegedly) up beside the gondola station but I never went in and I was staying at the other end of town.
Ski testing - I went hoping to test some skis - Rossi B2's, Atomic Metrons etc I couldn't find any of these skis for sale or for rent in any of the little shops - this actually made me feel a bit sort of sad and depressed!!!!!
Steps - Cervinia town in the main is almost completely flat but I have never, repeat NEVER seen so many steps in a ski resort in my life! I was particularly aware of the steps as my mrs has the bun in the oven and I was clucking around her protectively every time we came across steps. The Gondola station is well above the town level so if you are walking there are a load of steps to go up to get to the building, then steps up into the station building itself ….. Then wait for it …. Steps back down to the Gondola!!! Then when you get up to Plan Maison there are further steps down to get out or yet more steps down again to get to the next gondola …. What bright spark came up with all that? its just beyond me. I don't remember a single step anywhere on the Zermatt side.
Nightlife - with said bun in said oven I/we weren't exactly larging it. There seemed to be some decent enough wee places here and there - I quite liked the Yeti and the bar at the top of the pedestrian street on the left. I can't say that I got much of an apres feel though (by apres I mean straight off the slope drinkies - ref: previous thread on What is Apres!?)
All in all the whole set-up felt really amateur to me and I wouldn't go back. I'm sure that people will read this who have booked to go later this season - if so please don't let me put you off - maybe I'm just a grumpy hard to please old git! Also I met lots of people who go year after year after year. And ever furthermore - there was so much hype that it made me go in the first place - so maybe I just missed the point. I can only say what I think.
Adam
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Hey peeps, thanks for all your responses, i've at least got a couple of place to look at research etc. I went to Cervinia last year and thoroughly enjoyed it, i rate Cervinia as an excellent confidence building resort, which is pretty snow sure due to it's altitude but has the associated pit falls too such as not much tree line skiing etc I really liked that our hotel was right next to the first lift of the day and it was easy to ski back to the hotel door. I agree that a lot of the runs are the same, but that is good for someone who is learning and who wants to concerntrate on technique.
With regard to my next trip, i quite fancy Austria again, due to the current amount snow they're having, so will have a close look at the austrian resorts mentioned, my only fear is the short runs like in the ski welt, where you ski for a couple of minutes then stand in a lift queue for 30 minutes etc, but i guess i should tar the whole country with the same brush 
Keep 'em coming peeps
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You know it makes sense.
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Mac_daddy - sounds like what i'm after also - Austria while there's the chance with the good snowfall!
(although as a learner boarder maybe the short runs of soll won't bother me as I'll be doing alot of sitting on my backside!!!)
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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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The best blue and easy red I had in Austrian was in Saalbach/Hinterglemm/Leogang valley near Zell am See. One can do a complete valley loop covering over 30km in a day by going in clockwise direction (anticlockwise has one black run at the Hinterglemm end).
For easy cruising Tignes, Les Arcs, La Plagnes, 3 Vallees, Valmorel and La Rosiere/La Thuile all have big and wide areas for intermediates.
SKi Welt isn't too bad if one tours around instead of sticking with any particular satellite resort and returning to the lowest point regularly. I find places like Ellmau, Going and the unlinked Westendorf pretty deserted most of the time when I skied in 2004 Christmas.
France is still the place if you want big, wide and long piste to cruise.
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Poster: A snowHead
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The_Mac_Daddy, I rarely queued in Saalbach, it's really efficient (lift system), much more so than the Ski Welt, so don't worry, you can ski for ages without having to get a lift. It's a really picturesque village also.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Stay in Mayrhofen, ski over to Lanersbach vi athe big new gondola. Loads of nice cruising pistes over there.
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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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Les Arcs & Cervinia - both resorts make you feel like you can finally ski!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I probably shouldn't mention this but Gressoney is excellent for intermediate cruising. It's not the largest area but between Gressoney and Champoluc there should be sufficient for a week. Then, if you start to feel more adventurous, get a guide and try some of the fantastic off-piste.
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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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France has the biggest resort networks.
Try 3V - I recall the nice big red from the Saluire in Courchevel, and plenty of endless wide rolling blues right across the valley. Meribel and Motteret have their share of long blues and reds, and there's a number of nice long blues down to the the Val T valley villages, as well as plenty of cruising up around Val T itself.
A lot of nice long easy crusing in Tignes/Val D, if I remember correctly - and that was at the begining of the year when half the resort was closed.
Yup, plenty of long cruisers in expansive La Plagne & Les Arcs. I agree with kuwait_ian's comment about width!
Contamines - home of long wide rollers. But only enough for 2 days max. Sigh.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Alpe D'Huez, worked for me
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Courchevel. Something great for everyone.
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I'll second Saalbach. It seems to me this is a great year for Austria. They don't have good snow every year so go there now, while they are flush with it. France has more reliable snow, so you can return there when Austria will be dry. Also, you get great value if you book a private B&B
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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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I'm with Caspar on this one. I spent a weekend there recently and found the pistes perfectly prepared and very quiet - an ideal opportunity to really get the hang of carving
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I'd go along with David Goldsmith re the Sella Ronda for wonderful variety of pistes and stunning scenery - going back to Corvara a second time next weekend. Madonna di Campiglio also in Dolomites great fun for intermediates.
La Plagne (stay in Belle Plagne) also good long cruising runs.
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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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East Anglia, next week.
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How about the Grand Massif (Flaine, etc)?
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You know it makes sense.
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I have whizzed down the posts in this thread and have skiied most if not all of these except for Sallbach and Mayrhofen.
I would recommend two:
The Sella Ronda in Italy - mentioned above mopre than once has the greatest selection and area of cruisy blues and reds anywhere I have skiied (about 30 or so resorts and areas). Corvara is about the bluest resort in the Sella Ronda. Selva is more mixed. Plus, the Sella Ronda has to be the prettiest area around.
Ichgl in Austria has the greatest selection of cruisy reds anywhere I have come across.
Depends where you place yourselves - bluer or redder
I would not say 3V is the best cruisy place about. Big, yes, ski safari paradise yes. Cruisy, no. Although Courchevel 1650 is a good cruisy blue area.it is limited.
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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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How about Lech/Zurs - lots of cruising there plus that wonderful trip back from Zurs - forgotten what its called.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Sella Ronda is a good bet, you can have a good cruise or go for a bit more challenging stuff if you want. And as BOOthy says the scenery is spectacular. Corvara is a good base for a gentle cruisy ski break.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Would that be the Madloch Joch tessaventer?
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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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That's the one!!
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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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Yes, Lech is a blue cruiser and Zurs has a little more red terrain to offer. And the Madloch Joch is great as tessaventer says. But you will re-cruise a bit.
La Plagne as lots but most of it is very samey IMHO.
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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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The_Mac_Daddy, the A1 just by the "angel of the north" is wide and has an excellent snow cover. Carry on for two or three miles and take the A1231 through Washington then take the A19 to Seaham - the pistes are in excellent condition although the best conditions can be found higher up towards Consett / Castleside / Stanhope / Alston.
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tessaventer, B00thy, The_Mac_Daddy did ask for somewhere which isn't too expensive, which isn't Lech or Zurs by any stretch of the imagination.
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Kramer, for the same reason I did not suggest Wengen or any of the other Jungfrau region resorts, even though the area has a huge number of long red and blue runs, still if you can get a good deal (try the Bernerhof hotel with several tour ops) it might be worth while
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Alpe'd'Huez would fit the bill as far as I'm concerned. There ARE acouple of runs that are marked as blues but should be reds but apart from that there are some great long blues and reds, especially if you venture away from the main bowl and head off to places like Monfrait, Oz and Auris. (Not to mention some great restaurants tucked away in these villages).
Did Saalbach last March and although most of the week was spent riding fresh powder there are some fantastic pistes to cruise along. The area is quite big and the lift system is good. Decisions, decisions!! 
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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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D G Orf, is Wengen expensive then?
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Kramer, let's say more expensive than many Austrian resorts but less expensive than somewhere like Zermatt, Switzerland will never be cheap because of the cost of living there, but the standards do tend to be high when it comes to Restaurants etc. Even the McDonalds burgers seem to taste like beef there (probably due to the fact that they have to use Swiss rather than US beef), but its just not a cheap country
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FAQ
