 Poster: A snowHead
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Two friends and I are planning for a trip in late January.
We're going to ski Dolomites (the reason being they were very impressed by photos of another friends' ski trip over there) and now facing two options.
1. Stay in Falcade (ski Trevalli-Moena/S. Pellegrino/Falcade)
2. Stay in Malga Ciapela (ski Arabba/Marmolada)
All three of us are beginners: one never ski, one has only been to snow dome and one at her third week-long ski trip.
We're keen to have a nice holiday at somewhere with good scenery, and the two who have never bee on the slope are doubtful whether they can ski for the whole week. While the one who's keen to ski worries about long lines at the lifts.
Anyone familiar with these resorts and can tell us about the suitability of these resorts?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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cppoon, Not sure about the suitability of those resorts for your group but the area certainly has fantastic scenery.
I skiied there last year on the  bash first week of February and we had no real problems with lift queues, just a bit of a queue on the first cable car up in the morning but we stayed in Campitello and cable car up was the only option unless you caught a bus to another resort. I'm looking forward to going back there again next year and I know someone will give good advice on the best resorts for beginners.
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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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cppoon, I would suggest that although I haven't stayed there, Falcade would probably be the better option for your level of skier.
There will be plenty of skiing for you, but it won't be as busy as the Arabba area, because it is off the Sella Ronda circuit. And the Arabba area probably has fewer beginner runs than most of the Superski Dolmiti areas.
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cppoon, I would not advise you to stay in Arraba as it can get busy and is the hardest skiing on the Sella Ronda! No doubt there are gentle nursery slopes there as well but I did not see any but we were not looking for any at the same time!
The scenery is fantastic and on the whole the skiing is not too demanding but obviously the whole "ronda" is something to do when you return there at a later date. We stayed in Selva and can comment on ski school there as a couple in the group were on their first ski holiday!
Have fun wherever you go and welcome to s
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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 have stayed in Selva Val Gardena (aka Wolkenstein) and that has an extensive area of easier runs and, if you progress, the potential to travel from one village to another and back. Might be a bit busier than Falcade, but late Jan should not be a problem.
Last edited by Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do. on Fri 6-11-09 15:18; edited 1 time in total
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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We too stayed in Selva Val Gardena...actually we like it so much, we stayed twice. Great towns and very easy access to ski schools, easy runs etc. We too had a beginner, who spent half of the holiday in ski school and the other half roaming with us.
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cppoon, Having stayed in Arabba and also skied to Malga Ciapela, I would agree with alex_heney, although I have only passed through Falcade. Malga Ciapela is at one end of the Marmolada area and would be a pain to get on to the Sella Ronda by skis everyday and the skiing is also quite steep in places on the way to Arabba. You can get buses to other resorts from Malga Ciapela and it's on one of the ski tour routes I think. I think Arabba is fine for beginners but you would need to head over to the Corvara area for easier and more plentiful skiing, or else stay in Corvara. I can't comment on Val di Fassa/Selva as I've only skied through but they also have big open green/blue runs in places but it did seem to be busier.
You could always consider the nearby Civetta area and stay in Alleghe or Zoldo. I know nickH is doing this and has booked through another snowhead sueski who runs her own business organising holidays for Arabba and Zoldo resorts. I have used her before when I went to Arabba. She will at least give you some free advice on the most suitable resort based on your requirements, even if you want to arrange your own holiday.
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cppoon, I would agree with others above that Malaga Ciapela is not the best place foe begineers as you would need to be a competent red run skier to go to the Marmalada or Arabba. As also suggested above Selva would be a good choice and also Colfosco which has a very nice nursery slope and easy access to very nice blue runs .
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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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cppoon, second recommendation for Colfosco for beginners, uncrowded nursery slopes and easy runs to progress to up twd Passo Gardena, Edelweiss valley and over at Corvara. Corvara itself also good for newbies, lots of interconnecting blue runs to progress to.
Malga Ciapela has a couple of drag lifts and flat runs for beginners, but you won't have anything to progress to as the Marmolada cablecar and the chair up to Passo Padon/Arabba all lead to intimidating red runs.
Never been to Falcade, but the piste map also shows lots of reds beyond the nursery slopes.
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Here's a picture of Colfosco taken from Col Pradat in the Edelweiss valley area above the village:
The village is partially shown at the bottom left, the nursery slopes are in the bottom middle, with incrementally steeper runs to progress to up the valley twd the pass on the right of the image and up twd where the photo is taken from. The peaks and buttresses of the Sella Massif form the backdrop. Corvara and its ski area are a chairlift ride away to the left.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Have you considered Canazei. Lovely village with direct access to the Sella Ronda and nice easy blue runs ideal for beginners and nervous intermediates.
The scenery is stunning with the Marmolada as a backdrop and excellent snowmaking.
When we were there in January 08 we had a fabulous time and will definetly return
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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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| valleyboy wrote: |
Have you considered Canazei. Lovely village with direct access to the Sella Ronda and nice easy blue runs ideal for beginners and nervous intermediates.
The scenery is stunning with the Marmolada as a backdrop and excellent snowmaking.
When we were there in January 08 we had a fabulous time and will definetly return |
Canazei's a great place but I would just question whether it would suit this group. The nursery slopes up at Belvedere is a really scenic place to learn but they aren't really segregated from the Sella Ronda through traffic and to escape from that immediate area there are steep pitches that IMHO would intimidate a new skier.
Selva has really nice nursery slopes but again there's a bit of a problem finding something to progress to (Ciampinoi & Dantercepies are steep pitches), unless you get a bus up to Plan de Gralba to access the nice easy blues up twd the Passo Sella. At the end of my first week the ski school bussed us up to Passo Sella for the easy 7km run back down to the village.
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Nothing to do with the subject of this thread, but the photo above is the best general view of the famous off piste Val di Mesdi I have seen. It cuts right across the middle of the Sella Ronda from the Passo Pordoi. It is the one right in the middle of the photo going to the horizon - steepest at the top and the bottom.
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You know it makes sense.
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