Hi - Dont know where to start

A snowHead

Hi,
Im new to the sport and just need some help, ive been on a dry slope a few times in my past but want to try it for real. Im looking to book a holiday for sometime around Jan - Fed 2011 (but felxable). I ve had a looking on many diffrent holiday websites and to be honest im lost on where to start. could do with some advice on

- Which resort to vists and is more focused on the begginers.
- Best time to go.
- Which company to go with or Diy.
- Any more genral do's and Dont's

my budget for accomdation is about £500 to about £750.

All help and advice woulld be apreciated.

Many Thanks
James

A snowHead

Are you alone, a couple or with kids and what is your total budget per person? Are you looking for wild apres ski drinking or quiet nights in? Hotel or self-catering?

I would say get the Inghams brochure and have a good look. There's plenty of advice on each resort in terms of its suitability to beginners.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

89james, hi and welcome to Snow Heads snowHead

There will be lots of opinions and advice here but the main one will be to concentrate on the most appropriate resort for what you need and the best instruction. If you are thinking of France (or most places in Europe) and are not tied to school holidays, avoid February due to the whole of Europe and the UK being off then. January is often good for quieter slopes, good conditions and cheaper prices. You won't need a resort or area with miles and miles of slopes for which you have to buy a lift pass, and there are plenty of smaller resorts with their own ski area, which tend to be quieter and calmer to learn on. Mid march can also be good, but you may need to think about going a bit higher then to ensure decent snow. It's a long time since I skied in Austria, but I did learn there and I expect someone will be along soon with some good ideas of beginner-friendly resorts. How many people will be in your group or are you planning on going alone? My first two ski holidays were on my own and I loved it! You could be well advised to look at a catered chalet so as to have some company and your budget would be plenty for a decent, privately-owned property in a good French resort, leaving lots for flights, lessons, equipment etc. This pre-supposes DIY - it's a while since I've used a TO but Equity were good, and do an all-in price which may be helpful for you. Good luck and come back with any questions Very Happy

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Hi James

There will be many differing opinions - so this is just mine.

As a beginner, the choice of resort is not really based on ski slopes. On your 1st week one bit of snow is much the same as the next. OK some resort tend to attract more higher level skiers than other due to the availability of off piste, steep runs, etc but to a 1st week skier you can really go where you want to. eg. in our resort all 1st week skier will be able to move up into the main ski area as we have some very easy green runs from the top back to the ski school area other resorts will have easy lifts for 1st timers, other will have really good ski schools, all of these things tend to make your 1st ski holiday a success.

I would stay away from any resort where you need to take a bus to the slopes as this can be a pain. But generally you could just look at some pictures and see what you like the look of and go there.

I like the Austrian resorts, as they look nice and there is lots of off piste. But again this is not all Austrian resorts.
If you are looking for lots of shops then you could try Val D Isere. Nightlife... try the resorts in the milky way in Italy. Some of the smaller French resort have excellent feedback with regards to on-slope restaurants.

Oh, £500 to £750 in WAY over what you should be looking at during Jan. You can easily get a fully inclusive trip for that, not just accomm (unless you're looking for 5*)

If I were you I would forget DIY as this is your 1st trip (wait for the opposing views BTW wink

). Best bet would be to either search the web or pop down to your local travel agent. Don't book the 1st resort you see. Have a good look around before making your decision.

Oh and if you want to eat or drink when you're on holiday, stay away from some of the big French resorts unless you have loads in the bank wink

Main thing.
Don't look for that "perfect holiday" just go somewhere you like the look and have a great time - and don't pay £750 in Jan for accomm

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Welcome to Snowheads

I have just returned from San Cassiano (Italian Dolomites) having done France resorts time and time again. Scenery is spectacular; prices half that of France and the queues - what queues!! There are non ski activities including 3K taboggan run and the locals smile Very Happy

The slopes can be gentle (especially in Alta badia) but I can't comment on the ski schools since I didn't use them.

I didn't go half term but note that StanBowles did - have a look at thread in Resort Reviews and Trip Reports 'calling Sella Ronda Fans 2009/10'

Good luck

Very Happy

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Wayne, completely agree. For first (or second, or third) trips I'd advise getting a package deal with a reputable TO. If you're learning you'll have more than enough to think about without having to organise flights/accommodation/kit hire/ski pass/lessons, all of which can be pre-booked and paid for leaving you to turn up and (hopefully) enjoy. DIY is great when you and your crew are comfortable with the ritual of getting the ski passes and hire equipment (and the trick of getting it all sorted as soon as you arrive).

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Thank you for adivce and quick repleys, im more torn towards visiting Austria or France ( dont know why), Well at the minute is stands as me going alone but i have about 3 freinds intrested. well i was looking for somewhere with bit of a night life, im quite easy in regards to self catering or hotel. im not tied down to school holidays (thank god for that Very Happy

), so would you all agree on £ 500 is a good price to pay?

After all it is free

89james, yes that's a good price.
As regards dates, French school holidays start 12/2/11 and finish 13/3/11 so you would do well to avoid those dates in France (though the last week has only 1/3 of France on holiday) and UK (well, at least this area) has the week of 21/2/11 so definitely avoid that week or you will find crowded slopes and no change out of £1000.
If I were to pick a week, it would be the week before 12/2/11 as you have the best chance of good ski conditions with less-crowded slopes.

Which resort? One with lots of greens and blues, and probably not a big one as you'll have to pay for a lift infrastructure that you won't require.

I had a quick look at the SCGB suggestions for beginners and from that list would suggest that St Johann in Tirol, Kirchberg and Westerndorf, Cervinia, or La Clusaz could all fit the bill.
Many others too, but the TO brochures will help.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

Honestly, it more-or-less doesn't matter. There's hardly any such thing as a resort that isn't suitable for beginners. La Grave is the only European one that springs to mind.

The usual advice about 'make sure you're near the lift and don't need to walk or get a bus' and all that is just the icing on the cake, it's 5 minutes out of your day each morning. It's not the sort of thing you should base a holiday on. Sometimes those little ordeals are funny anyway.

Everyone I know learnt somewhere pretty random, and most of them with hindsight weren't the "ideal resort" (Some tiny place in Romania for my two best boarding pals; me in Westendorf before it had the link to the rest of the area; my other half in Verbier - staying in La Tzoumaz and having to get a gondola up *and* down again *and* a bus in order to get to the nursery area; friend of mine in Mayrhofen; half of the rest of my family in La Thuile during a half term week; ...). Look up these places and none of them are deemed excellent for beginners. Everyone enjoyed themselves, and everyone is still an avid lover of the sport.

QED it doesn't matter, so long as: there's snow on the ground, there's a ski school with an instructor who speaks english, you have a good attitude about the tiny hardships you're bound to encounter no matter where you go, and that there's a pub.

So don't stress about it. Honest. Just go somewhere where the budget tickles your wallet and the pics in the brochure tickle your fancy, for whatever reason. And don't be scared of any 'not ideal for beginners' stuff you might read, it's almost always at least partial cobblers. Except La Grave. Don't go to La Grave.

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

If you're a first timer then probably best going with a tour operator. Personally I prefer going skiing in Jan as the weather is colder and usually sunnier than February - oh and it's cheaper and quieter too.

Choose somewhere that is close to the piste/ski school meeting point as walking about with all the gear as a newbie can be quite interesting as a spectator wink

My choice would be in Austria somewhere as overall I think it is a better ski holiday experience than France or Italy, but hey more than half us Brits go to France so I must be completely wrong Toofy Grin

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Hi, if you choose your country first then go for a resort that you like the look of. France is mainly based around chalet accomodation, if you want hotel accomodation with pools, saunas, nice bar etc then you will have more choice in Austria. The apres ski and nightlife in Austria is great too and the villages tend to be much prettier than France. Oh and I think your euros will go a bit further in Austria too. Happy hunting snowHead

I would agree with going for a tour operator for your first ski trip - it helps with getting to know what to do/where to go on your first morning, getting to ski school, renting equipment etc. Once you've done that a couple of times, you will probably be just as happy doing DIY.

I also agree with paulio that to a large extent it doesn't matter, as almost every resort has suitable facilities for beginners, and many people have a great time learning in places that others say are 'not ideal for beginners'.

January will be cheaper than February and a bit quieter too in terms of numbers of people on the slopes. We often used to go the last week of Jan before the prices went up for proper high season.

I'm an avid Austria fan and if nightlife is your thing then the apres-ski there is rather good - Mayrhofen might be a good option. It is a nice combination of skiing plus a lively village. Plus there are lots of English tour operators going there so you will have a big choice of accommodation/flights etc. English speaking instructors etc. so it might be worth a look. Lots of other places would also fit the bill though.

In terms of France, I have never been to Alpe D'Huez but have heard it recommended for beginners as it has a large amount of easy-ish terrain, apparently, so that's another one that might be worth a look.

Having said that, the possibilities are really endless, there are hundreds of places that would tick all your boxes so have a look through some brochures and see what takes your fancy.

D

You know it makes sense.

Thank you for all the repleys its helped me out a great deal, ive been looking about and think ive found a good ski resort St. Wolfgang, but im still looking as there is so much to choose from.

James

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

89james, I think you'll find St Wolfgang far from ideal. Pretty little village (if you don't mind a lot of White Horse stuff) but a long way from a very limited ski area. Loads of far better places. Mind you, though I've been there in summer, I've never skied there - so maybe I'm wrong.

A snowHead

Deliaskis, Mayrhofen's a great example of the 'not ideal for beginners' thing.

Most lodgings are miles from the main Penken lift, the nursery area is at mid mountain, you need a full area lift pass to access it, and there are no runs back to the town (unless you go to the Ahorn, which is even more remote from most lodgings and accessed by a cable car which some beginners find offputtnig, apparently).

So on paper, a crap choice.

But it's not. It's a fine choice. All that stuff is nowhere near a deal-breaker, unless a person's idea of a holiday is to be constantly pampered and cossetted and powderpuffed and experience zero inconvenience at any time. In which case skiing probably isn't the holiday experience that person is looking for, what with the painful bruised arse and the inevitable sobbing at the top of the nursery slope, and so on.

A snowHead

pam w, On a first holiday it's not really an unlimited ski area that you need (after all 89james will not be bashing the pistes from dawn to dusk). The scenery and a little apres ski are just as important. But, make sure the TO will take care of transport, or that the bus is regular.

Edit : Good snow helps though. My first trip was to Kolsass /Weer in Austria. Boiler plate ice on day 2 was no fun. Lessons cancelled for the day. Still, it did not put me or the wife off too much.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

But, from memory, St Wolfgang is 45 minutes from its (extremely small) ski area. 1.5 hours commuting a day? I know that an unlimited ski area is not important - I have spent 6 seasons on one quite limited one, and not been bored yet. But St Wolfgang's own area has 17 kms of piste, and the majority of that is red. http://www.j2ski.com/ski_resorts/Austria/St_Wolfgang.html Highest point 1350m. So, I still maintain that it's not the ideal area.

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beequin, I'll throw my hat into the ring and say that bus to and from the lifts, even if it's only 5 minutes, is most definitely not what you want for a beginners holiday. Learning to ski is tricky and very tiring, not just from the on slope activity but the alien experience of clumping around in ski boots and carrying skis and poles. Now add a bus timetable, clock watching, clambering onto the bus, dropping skis and poles everywhere, watching out for your stop, dropping your gloves on the way out etc etc. My advice for learning to ski is to make everything as easy as it can possibly be, and that includes a short walk fromt the slopes/lift, to the bar, and from there back to accommodation.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

The ski snobs on here won't like this but a great resort for beginners is Soldeu in Andorra, we have just come back from there and a family of four came with us who were complete beginners, they absolutely loved it and in particular the English ski instructors. The resort is compact but there are some good bars and pick a hotel close to the lift(Sporthotel or Sporthotel Village) and in my opinion you can't go wrong. Prices are a whole lot cheaper than France as well and on a par with Austria. By the way, we went DIY, booked the hotel direct, flight to Barcelona (Easyjet) and private taxi, price was about the same as brochure but our transfer was only 2 and a half hours as it was private, TO coaches take about 4 hours which is the only drwaback with the resort.

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Yes, Andorra sounds good because people usually reckon that quality of instruction is excellent - a key point.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

After all it is free

Thank you for the all the help once again. I Have had a look at Andorra and im quite impressed, very modest on the pricing which is a big plus even the ski tuition. Im intrested in Arinsal with the hotel Princesa Parc and Soldeu which was recommend above. has anyone else been to these resorts, would like to hear you reviews or opinions.

many thanks
James

89james, I have stayed in the Hotel Esqui in El Tarter, just outside Soldeu, a couple of years ago. Lovely hotel, nice food, swimming pool etc. You COULD walk to the lifts without skis and wearing normal boots, but the hotel has a shuttle minibus every ten minutes apart from lunchtime, which was very efficient, and took a minute or two to get there. My over-riding memory of the slopes were being at the top of a wide red in a very heavy fog which came from nowhere and made visibility horrendously poor - otherwise, we enjoyed the skiing and didn't mind the town being a bit quiet. There was one bar alongside the hotel - can't remember the name sorry.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

89james,
* Ensure that who ever you book with "guarantees" (in writing if ness) that your ski lessons will be in English with a fully qualified teacher as some resorts allow un-qualified instructors to teach 1st week skiers.
* Make sure your hotel is either ski in/out or within walking distance from the slopes (no more than 300m)
* Don’t even try DIY – search the web or go to your local travel agent.
* Ensure the TO is fully ATOL covered.
* The package must be "fully" inclusive so you don’t have to bother with lift pass, ski hire, etc which can be a hassle to get.
* If you're on your own, get a single room - deff with no single supplement if there is only 1 bed in the room (as these are a con)
* Don’t go for a resort that has a nursery slope in the town with only steep runs back – or you’ll be stuck there all week.
* Don’t buy any expensive ski gear – you can hire a good quality ski suit in the UK.
* Look at other stuff than the piste map eg. shops, nightlife, etc.
* Ask your mates (not a ski forum) if they have skied in a nice resort before and if they say it was OK, go there.
* Pick a resort that you like the look of from the pictures in a brochure or on the web – but remember that resorts never look like that in reality.
* Remember that each person on a web forum has different ideas on what makes a good ski holiday. Read loads and then make your own mind up.
* Don’t pack too much – 20kg of clothing is way too much for a week’s skiing
* Don’t pay anything like £500 to £750 for accommodation. You can easily get a fully inclusive trip for this sort of cash in January.
* Ignore anyone who tells you to include a train or numerous busses, in the transfers from the airport. Get off the plane, get on a coach and go to your resort. Or (if DIY) hire a car.
* When you arrive in your resort, build a snowman, coz-you-can.
* Don't go to France as it will cost you an arm and a leg for lunch. wink

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* Don't go to France as it will cost you an arm and a leg for everything else. wink

* Have a look at Soll in Austria - that's where I learned to ski and it's brill
* You say you like the look of Andorra – check out the “full” cost of a trip there (including lift pass) as it can be stupidly expensive when you add up the total cost.

There are zillions of other tips that you can get about your 1st trip but (like most of my tips above wink

) your can forget em. Just go somewhere you like the look of and have a laugh.
Surprisingly, sliding down a snow-covered mountain with 2 planks strapped to your feet is quite fun (and a little addictive)

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

I would disagree with the people who say go anywhere after my experience this winter.

We went to Panorama in Canada and one of the group was a complete beginner - she spent 5 out of 6 days pretty much going up and down the same 200m slope - that was where her lessons were held. Now, I would have been really annoyed with that if it was me. The resort was really not beginner friendly and only had 1-2 green (complete) beginner slopes. Now, she did advance enough to tackle some of the other slopes, but really, a lot of the mountain was out of bounds for her.

If I was looking for somewhere, I would like to ensure that I could get down from the top of the mountain, or at least travel to different parts of the resort, so I could go and see the views and explore etc (this might not be important to you though, I did feel it was a shame my friend only made it to the top on the last day). Therefore I would look at a piste map to see if there were plenty of easy easy routes that went all over the mountain. This way, you won't end up skiing on the same run or in the same area all day long.

I would also suggest like the others mention, the resort has decent instructors and the accommodation is a minimal (walking) distance to lifts. It is no fun and very tiring lugging your equipment around in ski boots for long treks.

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Diy has its advantages, you can fly on a friday , return on sunday week, meaning more skiing in for your weeks hols. Diy may involve a hire car, not expensive. A car means you dont have to be based right beside lift. Car wise anywhere within 10km is near enough. We DIY to bergamo quite a bit, twice daily flights there, you can be skiing by 12 . On the way home poss to get a flight in the evening, meaning you can ski on the day you fly home. From Bergamo lots of ski resorts 1-2 hrs away.

Hotels can be 50-60 per night hb in the smaller ski resorts (Jan prices).

Some hotels may pick up up if you are staying for a week HB.

Flights to Bergamo, Gerona etc can be had for £40 return or less

kendub, are you sure that is all sound advise for a learner or (anyone else, come to that)? Coming off the hill buzzing/petrified (delete as applicable), then having to face a car journey on potentially snow/iced roads with lunatic local drivers? Also, have you seen the traffic jams coming out of most resorts at shutting time? I can't think of a more stressful end to a day skiing. I wouldn't consider doing that and I've been skiing for 20 years.

You know it makes sense.

Hi 89james, My first ski holiday was in Arinsal. Stayed in the Montane Hotel opposite the gondola. Some of the very friendly Irish beginners in my ski school class stayed in the Princess Parc and loved it but my hotel was nearer the gondola Very Happy

If my instructor was the norm for Andorra then their reputation for excellent ski instruction is well deserved. She was French-Spanish and had no problems teaching in English. A great instructor.

About the resort, it's very compact so it's easy for beginners to get their bearings. Most of the hotels, bars, restos and shops are within about 200m either side of the gondola. If busy nightlife is a requirement then Arinsal has it.

I went the first week of Feb and it was busy. School holidays I think so go January as I suspect it might be very warm in March due to it's more southern location. However the piste maintenance was top notch when I was there.

Our group flew into Toulouse, some go via Barcelona from what I've read. The coach transfer was about 4 hours, too long for some. However as it was my first ski holiday it was exciting seeing the landscape become progressively more mountainous and snowy as the coach drove towards and then through the Pyrenees.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

89james,
I would heartily recommend Soldeau in Andorra for beginners. Nearly all of the instructors are English or Australasian.
Way better than ESF in France for beginners unless you get private lessons.

Our first two trips were to Andorra then we had a 15 year break due to children. This year we went to Les Gets as a family (having been to Morzine with the lads for the previous 2 years).
My wife was back in beginners as was my 8 year old daughter. Frankly the ESF lessons were rubbish compared to Andorra.
My 13 year old daughter is blind and had brilliant one to one instruction with an ESF instructor. She was able to ski pretty much as well as my 8 year old by the end of the week and this was the main reason for choosing Les Gets.
I used my lessons just as an excuse to ski with someone of the same ability and they were ok - top end of level 2. I was in level 3 but they bumped me down as a) they were all French and b) they'd merged the class with level 4 so they were all way better than me.

A snowHead

A snowHead

89 James, As I said in my earlier post, our friends found the English instructors in Soldeu excellent and want to go back next year. The advantage of Soldeu is the large amount of easy runs to progress to once you have cleared the very easy nursery slopes. Soldeu is small and the main road runs through it but there are a few good bars and the Sport Hotel and Sporthotel Village are recommended, both by the lift and pretty good hotels. The only drawbacks with Soldeu is the long transfer from Barcelona or Toulouse and the mountain restaurants are not the best, particularly the one in the nursery slopes area. We found skiing down (or riding down for the beginners) and having lunch in the Villager a good option, food and drinks reasonable price and much better quality than on the mountain. Have not stayed in El Tarter but have skied down to the bottom and it seems very quiet down there, depends what you want from your nights, bars or just stay in the hotel. Have a look at directski.com where you can book a package including learn to ski and lift passes or you can just book a hotel with them and the ski packages and then do your own flight and transfer. Doing your own flight and transfer will not be much cheaper but you will get a much shorter transfer time than with a package holiday, no compulsory stop at a dingy cafe on route!

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

89 James we have stayed in the Pricessa park for the last two years and will probably be going back next year finances allowing.Really nice hotel handy for the gondola but far enough away from the bars to be quiet at closing time.
Iwould reccomend getting a locker at the top of the gondola which costs about £45 for the week and holds four sets of skis and boots.We normally took the gondola down into the village for lunch as the food is better and cheaper.You will struggle to find better value than booking the beginner package with your tour operator which includes lift pass equipment hire and group lessons.The instructors all speak good english and are very good teachers.
The apres is as quiet or boisterous as you want it to be and there are not many ski resorts where you can get a large beer for 1.5 euro or free toasties when you buy a drink between 4.30 and 7pm.We usually go first week in January and never queue longer than two minutes for the lifts.
If you need any more info just ask.

Help!!

Hi - Dont know where to start

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