 Poster: A snowHead
|
Any one been here, nice article in the Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/jan/23/skiing-gourmet-cuisine-budget-abruzzo
Skiing in Abruzzo - One of Italy's poorest regions has a wealth of attractions for canny skiers, from gorgeous medieval towns to gourmet food
The main ski area, between the five historic towns of Pescocostanzo, Palena, Rivisondoli, Castel di Sangro and Roccaraso, is the Cinquemiglia, a five-mile long, 1,200m-high plain. And with a top station of 2,000m, it compares favourably with the Alps. Where it can't compare is the price. To put it plainly: the Abruzzo is a bargain.
This season, in a bid to boost tourism from abroad, particularly among British skiers, an enterprising association of 21 local hoteliers agreed to offer a five-night, half-board package at their hotels. For €330 they throw in a ski pass, equipment hire and airport transfers – a great deal considering that the price of a week's lift pass in Val d'Isère is currently €248.
Instead of staying in a ski resort, you stay in one of the five towns, all less than 20km apart. There's a ski bus from Roccaraso, or many hotels in the area offer free transfers to the slopes. You won't see people clomping around in boots with skis on their shoulders because they all get transfers straight back to the villages, which aren't dependent on the ski industry so have retained their character. Away from the lift stations there are no après-ski bars pumping out Eurotrash music; instead, there are bars and restaurants full of friendly locals knocking back grappa and eating nonna, grandmother-style cooking at reasonable prices. Between these lie national treasures such as the 16th-century renaissance and baroque monuments of the centre of Pescocostanzo.
..... the ski area .... had more than 100km of downhill pistes, 65 in total: 11 black, 27 red and 27 blue; plus two cable cars and 29 lifts. Wide runs threaded through thickly wooded hillsides, and above the tree line, vast expanses of undulating white rolled away into the distance. Perhaps we were spoiled by the fresh powder, but the off-piste seemed limitless and impossible to ignore. There were none of the jagged peaks and couloirs that you see in the Alps – and anyone looking specifically for that kind of hair-raising ski experience might feel limited here – but we found some serious moguls running down through the deciduous woods beneath the chairlifts, and the black runs, combined with a bit of impromptu off-piste more than kept us challenged and happy.
Getting there
Ryanair flies Stansted-Pescara. A five-day ski package including airport transfers, half-board accommodation, lift pass, equipment hire and ski bus costs €330 through associazionealbergatori5miglia.it (email:albergatori5migliaonlus@email.it), available Sunday-Friday until 2 April, excluding the first two weeks of February.
Further information
|
|
|
|
FAQ