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Resorts for very very nervous beginners

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hi all just posted a thread on Rauris in Austria and got some great info back.... So I'm going to widen the topic and ask for recommendations on ski resorts for a very nervous beginner. Looking for somewhere in Austria but interested in all opinions... My partner has a weeks ski ing under her belt but is very nervous so I am looking for resorts that has really gentle, preferably chair reached blue runs.... Thank you all in advance
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I would say Val Thorens in France. Some green runs accessible by chair lifts and has a whole host of Blue's as well. Enough to last you a week. Plus a run down to Les Menuires for more Blue's.

I would go in April when it is quiet - more more relaxing for a nervous beginner. Don't go at half term.
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kabby, keep an eye on reports from the pre birthday bash warm up week trip currently ongoing. Technically in Italy but the locals speak German and it is very much 'Tirol'.
I like St Vigilio for beginners. The area is mostly served by modern gondolas rather than chairs and there are very very few drag lifts. There are good blue runs on top of Kronplatz. As I say, I like it there. But it certainly doesn't suit everyone, so keep an eye on the thread for reports as to how others find it.
It is not a mainstream resort amongst the Brits so you might find it hard to find a package trip there
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San cassiano, just took a very nervous friend there with 1.5 weeks under her belt. She loved it, loads of easy blues and she liked the fact she could ski to & from places rather than the same runs over & over again.
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kabby, Try Seiseralm, also in the Dolomites. Lots of very gentle blue runs, great huts and scenery. Good value too.
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kabby, I went to Soll in Austria when I returned to skiing 11 years ago and I thought it was good for beginners.

I've not been but I have also heard good things about Niederau.


Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Mon 28-01-13 20:02; edited 1 time in total
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Depending when you're thinking of going, Folgaria in Italy might be worth a look. It's not especially snow sure so early/late season is probably not a good idea. Not sure if many TOs go there but it is a fairly small resort, lots of gentle blues, and easy reds if they make a bit of progress, mostly through trees. Nearly every lift is a chair, some with automatic bars, so one less thing to worry about. Not very exciting skiing for you, although there is one "black" and the worlds smallest park. The village has cobbled streets, a few reasonable hotels/restaurants but thats about it, other than an indoor ice rink, pool and disco.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
I would recommend Lofer and the Loferer Alm. You have to take the gondola up to and down from the skiing area but there is an excellent beginners' area (with "magic carpet" covered by the lift ticket) and then wide rolling pistes for progressing. See e.g. my report in this thread for some photos. I chose it for our first day's skiing last week with a group which included a competent but nervous skier.
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In my humble opinion La Plagne in France is a great resort for building confidence, lots of wide open blue runs. Very difficult to get caught out on harder runs as they are few and far between
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skitech wrote:
In my humble opinion La Plagne in France is a great resort for building confidence, lots of wide open blue runs. Very difficult to get caught out on harder runs as they are few and far between


This.
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pjd wrote:
kabby, Try Seiseralm, also in the Dolomites. Lots of very gentle blue runs, great huts and scenery. Good value too.


+1 for Seiseralm. If the crowds are not insane then Alpe D'Huez is great too.
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Saalbach, particularly the Kohlmais has lots of good beginner runs, and they've been working hard on replacing drags with chairs so there aren't many left. Portes du Soleil - filled with easy, cruisy pistes. SkiWelt, but not the Westendorf side so much.
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In France, Les Saisies.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Can't help, we took a one week skier up the 6man chair in Rendl and threw her down the red. She hasn't been the same since.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Thank you all so much for taking the time to post replies on this topic... You have all been generous with your time and il have a look and do a bit if research on all the recommendations
Cheers all
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
I would also second the Seiseralm. Just as pjd describes.
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+1 for La Plagne. It's perfect for buidling confidence with wide & gentle blue runs littered all over the resort. The only caveat I include is in my humble opinion avoid staying in La Plagne 1800 as the end of the day run is not ideal for a 'very nervous beginner'.

Plagne Centre / Belle Plagne / Plagne Villages all perfect.
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kabby, a little left field, but what about somewhere like Arinsal in Andorra? Extremely beginner/progressor oriented with a lift link to/from Pal if a little more adventure is sought, but still plenty of gentle cruisey blues to ski.

Otherwise, another +1 for La Plagne and possibly Belle Plagne of the various villages, given there are some very gentle ski in/out options and one doesn't have to go too far to potter about and build confidence.
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Slight diversion, but JohnHSmith mentioned St Vigilio as being good for a beginner and mostly being modern gondolas... Is there anywhere else like this where most blue/some easy reds can be accessed from and to gondolas, particularly in Switzerland or places with good public transport? Looking for a long weekend in March, and Saas Fee is on the shortlist at the moment.
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Westendorf, really good beginner slopes and some good gentle progression runs. All accessed right in the village.

Second choice, Montegenvre, again great beginner options right in the village
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Maria Alm is very unintimidating on the Natrun mountain, only 1000m to the top.
Mayrhofen would also be good on the Ahorn, it's the widest blue run in the known Universe.
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neilkav wrote:
Westendorf, really good beginner slopes and some good gentle progression runs. All accessed right in the village.

Second choice, Montegenvre, again great beginner options right in the village


Have to disagree with Westendorf, none of the runs to the bottom (of the Alpenrosenbahn/village) are particularly suited to beginners, all having relatively steep sections sometimes with funny cambers - even the first pitch of the nursery slope is too steep for real beginners IMO.
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kabby, Serfaus / Fiss would suit you very well... Not an area widely used by UK TO's but great lifts, and a relaxed family feel perfect for taking it easy
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I know Austria was the preference, but how about Norway? Scandinavian skiing is often ignored, but has some lovely little resorts which are ideal for beginners (who don't need/want a big area).

Have a look at Geilo. A mix of slopes of various grades, but in reality most wouldn't be classed as anything more than a Blue in most other resorts - so could be an option for you.
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call me dave, no other resorts that I can suggest with such a high proportion of gondolas, but if you are looking for somewhere in Switzerland that doesn't require drag lifts and chairs (although there are some) then look at the Jungfrau area which is served by mountain railway from Laturbrunnen / Grindelwald / Kleine Scheidegg
Don't know if it fits your other criteria though. It's a long time since I was there. There is a current thread about Jungfrau on this forum but I confess I haven't read it. Try a peek at that?
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I'm actually heading to Wengen in a couple of weeks based on a serious examination of the piste maps of the bigger resorts. The regulars on the thread have kindly recommended some good runs too. Very interested to see further suggestions for the OP's needs! I would suggest it for the OP, but I've not been yet and it doesn't sound particularly quiet there despite there being a considerable number of long blue runs.
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A smaller cousin of 3Valles: Valmorel / St. Francois-Longchamp. The former is on Tarentaise side, accessible by bus from Moutiers. The latter is on Maurienne valley side. A lot of blue pistes. It is possible to ski from one resort to the other on blue slopes only. St Francois is the smaller one but easier as it has a lot of green ones. For those progressing quicker there are several areas with decent red and black runs and avalanche controlled off-piste (this on Valmo side). Nice charming village, no 10-storey tower blocks.
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For a nervous beginner, quiet slopes will make a big difference. That's partly a matter of choosing a resort (places like Val Thorens are never what you'd call really quiet IMV) but also getting the timing right. Avoid school holidays, take local advice about the quietest weeks. Then take local advice again about avoiding the busier slopes.
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We started at Geilo too as at half term it is still quiet and very friendly but it is a pain to get to. I also like Pila in Italy as it has huge learning areas with a Gondola to get there and back so you can avoid the "funnel run" that all resorts seem to have that are very busy getting back down. They maybe green runs but if there are loads of other people on them they are no fun for a beginner. Have a look at pilaski.co.uk and she would sort everything out for you.

Coffee and mountian food much cheaper in Italy too.
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Second the Pila suggestion, pistes always really well groomed and lots of confidence building runs. I have been several times and always seem to get lots of sunshine too, which is helpful when your trying to convince someone to enjoy skiing! You can stay in Pila or another option is to stay in Aosta a lovely Italian town a gondola ride from Pila.
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 Poster: A snowHead
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Val Cenis in France has (so they say) the longest green in the Alps, in the Escargot, and at 10km of green run, lots of time to perfect turns, and when we went last Easter, not very busy, 4 man chair to the top, and reasonably priced for a French resort, and we got lift passes and boot hire included in our apartment package !!

http://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/val-cenis-vanoise/trail-map/
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Hemel
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You will get hundreds of recommendations for Beginner resorts as everyone started somewhere and has fond (or otherwise) menories of where they started!

But surely it is the right instructor to help your very nervous beginner gain more confidence and self-belief that is more important? I would have thought that working with a good ski school or private instructor would be a better path to go down. The resort is irrelevant in the long run if you have someone who can help that person get over their nerves.

Rauris is a very good beginner and intermediate resort, as are a lot of the Austrian ones as they are doing away with drag lifts completely on a progressive basis. In the Flachau-Wagrain-St Johann/Alpendorf section of the Sporwelt Amadé for example, I can only think of one drag lift remaining and you do not have to use that if you don't want to (serves a nice interesting black and steep red).
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Samerberg Sue wrote:
You will get hundreds of recommendations for Beginner resorts as everyone started somewhere and has fond (or otherwise) menories of where they started!

But surely it is the right instructor to help your very nervous beginner gain more confidence and self-belief that is more important? I would have thought that working with a good ski school or private instructor would be a better path to go down. The resort is irrelevant in the long run if you have someone who can help that person get over their nerves.

Rauris is a very good beginner and intermediate resort, as are a lot of the Austrian ones as they are doing away with drag lifts completely on a progressive basis. In the Flachau-Wagrain-St Johann/Alpendorf section of the Sporwelt Amadé for example, I can only think of one drag lift remaining and you do not have to use that if you don't want to (serves a nice interesting black and steep red).


Very good point, but have you ever had a bad instructor. Maybe its just me but all the lessons I have had have been very good in all sorts of countries and resorts. Norway was possibly the worst as she was trying to teach in 4 different languages at once - but so impressive no way would I say it was bad or even poor just a little slower.
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Quote:

Very good point, but have you ever had a bad instructor

there's a big range of instructors, and I'd agree that finding the right one is crucial. charlotte swift in Les Deux Alpes (easiski.com) is particularly good with nervous skiers, though that's not a resort which would normally spring to mind as ideal for beginners. I have a local instructor in Les Saisies who I've used for a few very nervous beginners - he's wonderful, but not all of the local instructors would be nearly as good. Some just have the right personality, I guess.
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pam w, Charlotte was exactly who I was thinking of to be honest!
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Jake43 wrote:
Very good point, but have you ever had a bad instructor.


Hell yeah

Nervous newbie on week 2 day 1 - Les Menuires 1/2 term early in the noughties, so cold you nose freezes off, pm lessons

Crazy ESF lady at the end of the lessons (around 16:30) decides that we're going off-piste through some trees on the way home. Most people were still trying to come to grips with turning, and yet she's like 'we go..it is fun..'. Watch most of the group give it a go and crash in various ways, I get 3 yards, feet either side of a tree and narrowly avoid trashing the crown jewels. SKis off, walk out to piste and shakily snowplough down where eventualy meet with instructor - at least 3 of the group walk out of the trees, carrying skis, 2 in floods of tears.

I'm all for a bit of pushing but that was positively ridiculous imho,,,
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
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Jake43, yes - a couple of years ago in Chamonix with ESF. My first time on an actual mountain - all he did was yell at me to do things, but not how to do anything. I was terrified and in tears by the end of lesson - took off my skis and swore I'd never ski again.

Fortunately I was convinced to try it again the following season, and got a great instructor who had me loving it within 5 minutes. I'm now furious at the first idiot for makes me lose a whole year, and avoid ESF like the plague.
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