Best place in Europe

A snowHead

here is two top10 lists what I think is the best places in Europe, the first list is about liftserviceskiing and backcountry in the nearby area, I think some of you will be surprised about whats on number 8 on my list, the second list is the best aprésskis and rock n roll in good skiresorts

1 La Grave (france)
2 Zermatt (Swiss)
3 Verbier (Swiss)
4 Chamonix (France)
5 St Anton (Austria)
6 Val d Isere (France)
7 Bou Taûll (Spanish Pyrenees)
8 Vasilitsa (Greece)
9 Meribel (France)
10 Alagna (Italy)

1 Saalbach (Austria)
2 St Anton (Austria)
3 Kitzbühel (Austria)
4 Mayrhofen (Austria)
5 Val Thorens (France)
6 Bad Gastain (Austria)
7 Åre (Sweden)
8 Hemsedal (Norway)
9 Chamonix (France)
10 Sierra Nevada (Andalucia southern Spain)

So to go to Europe and have the best skiing and Aprés skis together it would be St Anton and Chamonix the best choice,
discuss my lists please!

A snowHead

Bad Gastein was rather quiet comparing to Saalbach/St Anton. But I did like to Swedish bar with good live rock music band.
Guess you list of top resorts is mostly based on off piste availability. What would be your Top 10 of intermediate piste cruising? Ay size of the resort.

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

Tom W, You have right,, the list is what I think, and Im about 100% offpistskier,, but I will find out what should be a top10 list for intermediate piste cruising Very Happy

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Ischgl not on the apres list - can't be right!!

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

You obviously have never been to Ischgl.

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Some good ones there. But no Engelberg/Andermatt? Meribel rather than Val Thorens? Zermatt ahead of Verbier/Chamonix?

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

Chick, I have been in Ischgl ,, Have make a season there,,,,

After all it is free

Tom W, When I think about resorts for intermediate piste cruising, its difficult, but I will make a try,,

1 Cortina (Italy)
2 Cervinia (Italy)
3 Saalbach (Austria)
4 Ischgl (Austria)
5 Livigno (Italy)
6 Madonna di Campiglio (Italy)
7 Sierra Nevada ( Andalucia southern Spain)
8 Meribel (France)
9 Avoriaz (France)
10 Auron (France)

BobinCH, Yes, Zermatt before Verbier and Chamonix, but its was difficult,, I have make seasons in all 3,,,

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BobinCH, The choice of Meribel, its in the middle of 3valley,,

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I would have thought 90% of skiing resorts are good for intermediate cruising, among them are:-

Milky Way (Cesana, Sestriere, Suze D'Oulx)
Serre Chevalier
Espace Killy (Tignes, Val D)
Paradiski. (Les Arc, La Plagne)
Dolomites (Sella Ronda, Civetta, Kronplatz..)
L2A
ADH
Domaine Evaison (Megeve, St Gervais)
Grand Massif (Fliane, Le Carroz, Morilon, Samoen)
PDS (Les Gets, Morzine, Champery..)
Solden
Ski Welt
Ski Amade
Valmorel
etc
etc
.

snow reports

saikee, How many resort have you ski?

Here is my suggestion of the best resorts for skiers with a car (based on a large number of resort choices nearby)

(1) Tarentaise Valley with 1600km piste possible starting from the one end Valmorel, 3V, La Plagne, Les Arc, La Rosiere/La Thuile, Ste Foy, Espace Killy. Best point to stay is about mid point at Bourg St Maurice it is 17 miles to either end.

(2) Dolomites (1200km piste) 12 Areas all skiable by one ski pass. Sella Ronda loop has 510km piste fully linked. Best accommodation point either Selva or Arabba.

(3) Ski Amade (860km piste), 25 resorts all on one ski pass. From Schladming to Gastein Valley. Mid point is around Flachau.

(4) Valley of Serre Chevalier has a Galaxy ski pass enable the holder to ski one day in Milky Way (Cesana, Sestriere & Sauze D'Olux), Montgenevre, Serre Chevalier, Put St Vincent, L2A & ADH.

(5) Zillertal Valley full access of the 7 unlinked resorts for any ski pass 4 days or more bought from any one of Fugen, Kaltenbach, Zillertal Arena, Gerosstein, Mayrhofen, Ahorn & Hintertux.

(6) Ski Welt is like an octupus spreading out into Itter, Hopgarten, Westendorf, Bixen Thale, Going, Ellmau, Scheffau and Soll. Ski Welt pass includes St Johnn im Tirol and a few miles off is the might Kitzbuhel.

(7) Silvretta Valley ski pass coves only See, Kappls, Ischgl/Samnaun and Galtur but one can do a day trip from there to St Anton/Lech/Zurs as well as Serfaus/Fiss/Ladis

( Cool

Using a central location around Sallanches one can ski Domaine Evasion (St Gervais/Megeve/Rocherbrune), Chamonix Valley, Grand Massif (Flaine/Le Carroz/Morilon/Samoen) and French side of PDS (Les Gets/Morzine/Avoriaz)

(9) Colorado has along the i70 highway dotted with resorts like Loveland, Arapahoe, Keystone, Brenkenridge, Copper Mountain, Vail and Beaver Creek. Aspen's 4 resorts are also within easy reach (by separate accommodation).

You know it makes sense.

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

A snowHead

saikee, good list, but not Colorado here,, its about Europe,, If we will have rest of the world on the list, its will be like this

1 Wistler (Canada)
2 Niseko (Japan)
3 Revelstoke (Canada)
4 Kicking Horse (Canada)
5 La Grave (France)
6 Portillo (Chile)
7 Furano (Japan)
8 Zermatt (Swiss)
9 Jackson Hole (US)
10 Mt Baker (US)

All resorts I lists I have ski!

A snowHead

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

Hmm, I've only really skied Austria so can't compare to most of the other resorts on your list, but for a long time I've wanted to hit most of the resorts above St Anton up. I've never really heard Zermatt mentioned as being all that epic backcountry-wise though... Also surprised Ischgl isn't on there, some great offpiste too, especially with touring kit. Nothing Scandinavian (I've heard of great touring potential up there)..?

(Although as far as bang for your buck goes, Nordkette in good conditions is up there with the best of the tiny unknown gems. I've skied lots of great offpiste straight off the two lifts there, but hiking around the back this summer doing my dissertation research has opened my eyes to SO MUCH potential, with touring kit there is a huge amount of awesomeness available.

As for the rock'n'roll resorts, well, I love Saalbach, but St Anton beats it hands down. There is only one Mooserwirt, the rest are just imitations - even Bauers and the Goaststall (which is technically Hinterglemm), although they're both ace. Ischgl has to be on there too, the apres maybe isn't quite up to St Anton/Saalbach standards, but the late night drinking/dancing is the best I've seen in the Alps.

And maybe Gulmarg should be on the international list...

For piste cruising, surely most resorts are good? St Anton is so far the only resort I've skied that I'd say is average to bad for pistes, although the single black run at Nordkette means it's not particularly ideal either lol.

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clarky999, Not Gulmarg beacause I have never ski there Sad

And about skandinavia (Im swedish) was I wanted to have resorts with good liftservice skiing and backcountry in the same time, the areas in Northern scandinavia, most in Norway, Sunnmöre, Hurrugane, Lyngen has no liftservise skiing at all, but the areas are worldclass backcountry Very Happy

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clarky999, Zermatt has some good off piste terrain but it needs buckets of snow to cover all the rocks (eg Stockhorn) and crevasses (Schwarztor, Unterteodulgletscher) and the big routes require long hikes and are not particularly challenging - except the extreme Marinelli couloir. If you are lucky and get it in condition a route like the Schwarztor is memorable but overall I don't think it's in the same league as Verbier, Chamonix, Engelberg or St Anton for lift served/short hike off piste.

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Good though Kicking Horse and Revelstoke are I'd find it hard to rank them above La Grave for what lift served can access. Quality and quantity of snow may be a different matter. Kicking Horse in particular while brilliant at the top has a relative short vertical drop to more mellow terrain and a lift setup that isn't great.

After all it is free

More on 7 Bou Taûll (Spanish Pyrenees) and 8 Vasilitsa (Greece) please

Mike Pow, To start with Vasilitsa, its a little resort, only 7 lifts, and a vertical drop of 530m, why did I have this resort on my lists? yes beacause I have ski there two times, 2 weeks first time 1981 and 1 week the second time 2001, and both times there was powder that is difficult to beat, and we had all the sweets for us, greece skier not ski offpist, so its for the offpist and powder that make Vasilitsa on the list not the liftservice skiing. some of my friends have goone there and they have also the storys about good powder, there is good powder on other place in europe, but also complete hysteric after a dump, you can easily stay in bed to middle of the day, after to drink to much ouzo, no one have make any track in the deep snow anyway, there is open bowls and great skiing in the sparse forest, http://www.vasilitsa.com/vs/default.asp

Bou Taûll in spain is The little resort with BIG skiing, there is 17 lifts, Vertical drop of 725m, the base is on 2025m and the highest lift take you to 2749m, highest in the Pyrenees, 60% of the slopes are for advanced skier 20% for beginner, and the offpist is great, the high level make it very snowsure, and also very quit even in midterms,
http://www.snow-forecast.com/resorts/Boi-Taull/pistemap

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I forget to say that I go to Bou Taûll minimum one week every year,,,

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I think this is far too subjective. For me, I prefer European resorts (I have no real desire to go skiing in USA or Canada) with resort charm, nice hotels and plenty of intermediate piste skiing. I'm not looking for concrete jungles, off-piste or noisy après. Everyone is different. There is no 'best' only 'preferred', in which case my list would include Kitzbühel, Madonna and Courmayeur. I have skied in many other resorts but those are the ones that currently make it into my top three.

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queen bodecia, Good choice this 3,,, Very Happy

double post

You know it makes sense.

double post

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

I find riding a passenger train to the top of the piste and ski down quite brilliant in Zermatt. You do get a proper seat, a special place to rest the skis and the leisure time to admire the Matterhorn.

A snowHead

saikee, One of the reason Zermatt is on place 2 on my list Very Happy

A snowHead

Thanks freeheelskier

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

freeheelskier, I think we may want similar things ski-wise (though I'm not looking for a very active nightlife). I only ski pistes to get to off-piste and am prepared to do a bit of skinning but prefer the lifts to do most of the upward movement.
Bou Taûll I've never heard of but sounds interesting. Where, in relation to that map is the off-piste? What is the snow record like? Is there much steep skiing?
I'm booked up for next season, but for the future, can you recommend a good local guide who would find us some exciting skiing? (I organise a couple of holiday for 6 each year). I'm very much going for the sort of place now which isn't well known for off-piste and a guide can find you fresh tracks more than a week after the last snow.
You can have good or bad experiences of snowfall anywhere in Europe, so it really means nothing for the future.

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snowball, The offpist is very easy to acces from lifts, some with maximum 20 min with skins, from Puig Falcô there is some real step offpist lines all the way down to the base, From Port D Erta You can use your skins to Pic Cerrai de Durro and skiing direction to the base, If there has not snowing fore a couple of weeks You can book a guide from the skischool and they will take to the Backside of Puig Falcô and the also arrange with taxitransport back to the resort, I have never use guides, Its possible to ski backside anyway if the weather is good and you use trancivers. but dont forget to book up a taxi, I dont now what the snow record is but when I was there end of january last season there was 2.50m at base, was their any basestaton in the alps had that in end of january last season? the only bad thing is that is no trees in the skiing area so it is very sensitive for bad weather, The best way to get to the Bou Taûll is from france, Pau, Toulouse or Tarbes hire a car on the airport and drive, From Pau and Toulouse 3h driving and from Tarbes 2h 40min driving. I dont know about any bustranfers.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Great info. Thanks.

No English on the web site unfortunately.

General idea of prices please:

Lift pass
Lunch
Dinner
Accommodation

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Mike Pow, yes, I don't speak any Spanish either. (Website is http://www.boitaullresort.com/ - to save any others a Google)But no mention of skiing on it and piste map says Resort 8km away.

Going back to the list: I agree there is good off piste in Zermatt but not, it seems to me, the challenge (or possibly the extent) to be found in St Anton, Chamonix and Verbier.

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

Mike Pow, and snowball, Thats the good thing with Bou Taûll only website in spanish and Catalan! The resort will still be not well known, But to get there and speak english should be no problem, and in the pyrenees also alot of spanish people speak french, that help me anyway. Up on the station there is appartments, but its nicer to stay in the resort down the valley, yes the map is right, there is 8km to the station, there is skibus from the valley, so I dont se any problem realy, even if its more optimal with ski in ski out! but its ceaper to stay in the valley resorts, and more genuin pyrenees restaurants and bars, with nice atmosphere. The prices is like alot of other smaller skiresorts in europe, what I can remember I think last time I was paying 155euro for a 6days skipass, And for lunch, dinner and accommodation, I dont remember realy, but the price level is medium if I can say like that, I ski more expencive resorts and also some cheaper, but the cheaper resorts is not better than Bou Taûll,,

After all it is free

i feel a mini-road trip to the pyrenees coming on. been meaning to take a look at that area for ages and accessbility from Toulouse is a bonus

freeheelskier, I have no worry about going to a Spanish speaking resort, however finding out from the website what is available at what price is a wee bit harder - I'd need to get out a dictionary. For example there seems to be nothing mentioned about the skiing but that can't be right, I must be missing it somewhere.

By the way you spelt it Bou Taull but it is actually Boi Taull.

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