Who is going skiing and where 2015?

[a311]

51mon said:

Just booked a week in Solden, Austria mid March - can't come soon enough....! :-)

From what I've read it sounds pretty spot on for a bunch of intermediates who are partial to a beer or 5! Anyone been before / got any top tips...?

Cheers

Si

Solden will definitely meet your needs, it's ideal for intermediates IMO with more than enough to keep you interested in a week. It has a rep for rowdy après, I didn't find it overly so-not quite up there with places like St. Anton and apparently although I didn't visit them there are or at least one were or two strip joints. You may find that that there aren't many brits, it seems popular with scandies in particular and not really on the radar of mainstream British skiers and TO's. Obergurgl is close by but a defiantly more of a family scene.

The resort is quite strung out, with two gondolas up at either end of the town so unless your accommodation is close to one of those it could be a bus each day. People seem to complain that a road runs right through the town but it's not exactly a motorway.

It's high and snow sure, but with that comes the usual issues associated with high altitude namely a lack of trees and susceptibility to bad weather and lift closures. It's 4 years since I was last there so there may be new lifts, accommodation etc.

[irish boy]

feef said:

I'm off to Avoriaz for new year. Hopefully get some more fresh before then, it's looking a bit bare. GFS Model data suggests a dump midweek tho.

Same here, travel on the 3rd jan tho, fingers crossed for a dump of snow before that. Haven't been following the forecast, more taking the bury my head in the sand approach…...

[feef]

irish boy said:

Same here, travel on the 3rd jan tho, fingers crossed for a dump of snow before that. Haven't been following the forecast, more taking the bury my head in the sand approach…...

Im out till the 10th. You'll find me in Le Tavaillon of an evening.

[a311]

Things can change quickly and hopefully they will. Speaking to friends living and working in the Alps the higher slopes are OK but generally it's as bad as anyone can remember it for 30 years.

Last time I skied at Christmas was in 2009. Once the ice was broken with the chalet host and a few beers he showed us some pictures on his phone taken just a couple of days earlier and the home run down to the chalet was green and muddy, it then proceeded to dump and dump until it got to the point there was too much and things were closing due to avalanche risk.

If it gets to the end of the week and there's no snow and it remains mild the resort operators and punters alike will very worried about Xmas week.

It's not really unusual for there to be little or no snow at this time of year and IME it does come in time for the Christmas week. I'm not out till the 1st of February for my first trip but Glencoe and Nevis range open up this weekend so hoping to get some sliding in over Xmas.

[//j17]

a311 said:

Things can change quickly and hopefully they will. Speaking to friends living and working in the Alps the higher slopes are OK but generally it's as bad as anyone can remember it for 30 years.

Last time I skied at Christmas was in 2009. Once the ice was broken with the chalet host and a few beers he showed us some pictures on his phone taken just a couple of days earlier and the home run down to the chalet was green and muddy, it then proceeded to dump and dump until it got to the point there was too much and things were closing due to avalanche risk.

If it gets to the end of the week and there's no snow and it remains mild the resort operators and punters alike will very worried about Xmas week.

It's not really unusual for there to be little or no snow at this time of year and IME it does come in time for the Christmas week. I'm not out till the 1st of February for my first trip but Glencoe and Nevis range open up this weekend so hoping to get some sliding in over Xmas.

Depends where your friends are and how good their memories are.

Apparently there's plenty of snow in Ischgl:

And people in the Port du Soleil area are saying not much different to 2007, with the old locals saying a warm December is usually followed by a snow-filled rest of winter...

[irish boy]

feef said:

Im out till the 10th. You'll find me in Le Tavaillon of an evening.

First time in that resort for us, obviously recommended since your going back?

[feef]

irish boy said:

feef said:

Im out till the 10th. You'll find me in Le Tavaillon of an evening.

First time in that resort for us, obviously recommended since your going back?

4th year on the trot, I'll be out in Avo for 3 weeks this year, two over new year and again at half term.

It has the reputation of being a beginners/intermediate and family resort, which is it, and it's excellent for families. But that also means there's far more scope for finding relatively untouched off-piste if you know where to look. There's a couple of spots I know where I can get fresh tracks 5 days after a snow fall. The snow's never as nice 5 days later, but that's an indication of how quiet some pockets can be if you know where to look.

There's also quite a few 'freeride' areas which are avalanche controlled but unpisted so a lot of folk who want to do a little bit of off-piste but staying safe will tend to stick to those areas, again freeing up the proper off-piste a bit more. If you're willing to climb a bit, there's some awesome terrain.

[irish boy]

Excellent cheers!!

[Dan911]

Off to Seefeld (Austria) on the 27th Dec till 3rd Jan.. Nice New Year break..

Not much snow, sorry, No snow as yet!

Might see if I can speak to the travel agent about changing destination, les gets is due for a dump in the next few days..

Anyone every booked and there has been no snow?.

Thanks

[a311]

//j17 said:

Depends where your friends are and how good their memories are.

Apparently there's plenty of snow in Ischgl:

Indeed, I'm not surprised that the conditions are OK in Ischgl they open late November religiously which is permitted due to extensive snow making. I assume the valley is also cold enough to allow them to do this.

I've got various mates working over there, mainly in Tignes,3V, St Anton and a couple of the smaller Italian resorts. Tignes and Val d'Isere had a dusting in resort yesterday with about 5cm up the mountain.

[//j17]

[quote=a311]Indeed, I'm not surprised that the conditions are OK in Ischgl they open late November religiously which is permitted due to extensive snow making.../quote]

Snow making machines aren't helping many French resorts at the moment - it's not been cold-enough to run them! Certainly that's been the report for Chatel in PdS.

[a311]

//j17 said:

Depends where your friends are and how good their memories are.

Apparently there's plenty of snow in Ischgl:

Indeed, I'm not surprised that the conditions are OK in Ischgl they open late November religiously which is permitted due to extensive snow making. I assume the valley is also cold enough to allow them to do this.

I've got various mates working over there, mainly in Tignes,3V, St Anton and a couple of the smaller Italian resorts. Tignes and Val d'Isere had a dusting in resort yesterday with about 5cm up the mountain.

[taaffy]

Grand Massif now confirmed as not opening on Saturday so I now have to choose to drive an hour to either Avoriaz which has only 8 blues open or Cham which is offering limited Montets skiing and which will be rammed or Courmayeur which could be opening on Saturday.

Milder weather in the offing next week so a seriously poor start to the season and if it does not get much better then it will be an early end to the season too.

[a311]

taaffy said:

Milder weather in the offing next week so a seriously poor start to the season and if it does not get much better then it will be an early end to the season too.

PdS areas do seem to have it particularly bad right now, however what happens for the next week or rest of the month won't mean and early end to the season. All it will take is a decent storm, or even prolonged cold temps so the cannons can get ticking.

[897sma]

taaffy said:

Grand Massif now confirmed as not opening on Saturday so I now have to choose to drive an hour to either Avoriaz which has only 8 blues open or Cham which is offering limited Montets skiing and which will be rammed or Courmayeur which could be opening on Saturday.

Milder weather in the offing next week so a seriously poor start to the season and if it does not get much better then it will be an early end to the season too.

I had the email from GM yesterday saying they wouldn't be opening this weekend they did say there would be something to compensate season pass holders but whatever it is it wont be snow! Still heading out on Friday though but have packed my walking boots just in case.

Edit, just checked webcams and it's snowing higher up

Edited by 897sma on Wednesday 17th December 13:27

[5potTurbo]

My daughter's on a school ski trip in Les Arcs this week. There's not much snow. Sorry for thise heading away for Christmas, but unless there's a massive dump of snow soon, you're hiking.

[prand]

With all this doom and gloom there's actually a bit of snow about in the Alps today.

I'm going to Les Gets on 3 jan and it's looking reasonably snowy today. The problem is, not much more is forecast for the next couple of weeks with temps going up to 10C which will mean a couple of inches today will soon disappear.

I've decided that from today I'm not going to ruin my Christmas moping around looking for non existent snow reports and just wait till the day before before deciding if I need to pack any ski gear!

Even though we're driving I don't fancy the idea of scratching around the area trying to find a patch of skiable mnountainside with everyone else, our very small kids will make this very stressful and complicated, but I do home they get to have a play in the snow at some point, even if we don'a actually get much skiing done.

[Marcellus]

Press release from Chamonix Mont Blanc;

[quote]
The start of this winter season is, to say the least, difficult as a result of the slight snow cover below 2 200 m. However, this does not prevent the Compagnie du Mont-Blanc from proposing a selection of activities up the mountain to satisfy its Christmas visitors.

Our teams are all hard at work to offer the following possibilities as of Saturday 20th December:

Details of the lifts open in Chamonix & Les Houches :
Domaine du Brévent for sightseers ONLY.
Planpraz gondola & Brévent cable-car.
- Domaine de la Flégère for sightseers & weak skiers
La Flégère cable-car & Les Evettes chair-lift.
Skiing on the Ev ettes trail.
Domaine des Grands Montets for skiers
New Plan Joran gondola, Argentière – Lognan & Lognan – Grands Montets cable-cars, Bochard gondola, Marmottons & Tabé chair-lifts.
Skiing on the following trails : Bochard, Marmottons, Grands Montets variante (Departure at 3 300 m via Col des Rachasses to rejoin the Bochard trail).
Domaine de Balme for sightseers & skiers
Charamillon & Vallorcine gondolas, Autannes chair-lift.
Skiing on the Caisets trail (return trail from Charamillon to Le Tour).
Domaine des Houches for sightseers ONLY.
Bellevue cable-car & Prarion gondola.
Excursions sites
Aiguille du Midi, Montenvers Mer de Glace and Tramway du Mont-Blanc.

Special rates
Day & long stay passes « MONT-BLANC Unlimited Christmas » “First Snowflakes Special Offer”
Available At adult, Youngster, Senior , Veteran & Family rates
1 day:Adult: 58,50 € Youngster/Senior : 49,70 &eu ro; Veteran : 29,30 € Family : 166,70 €
2 & 3 days :Adult: 92,80 € Youngster/Senior : 78,90 € Veteran : 46,30 € Family : 264,50 €
4 days:Adult: 174,40 € Youngster/Senior : 148,20 € Veteran : 87,20 € Family : 497,00 €
5 days:Adult: 209,60 € Youngster/Senior : 178,20 € Veteran : 104,80 € Family : 649,80 €
6 days: Adult: 228,00 € Youngster/Senior : 193,80 € Veteran : 114,00 € Family : 649,80 €
(Smart card at 3,00 € obligatory from 2 days onwards)

More than ever, the MBU Christmas Pass is THE pass to ski & to visit the attractions at the foot of Mont-Blanc!
Unlimited access to all the ski & sightseeing lifts of the Compagnie du Mont-Blanc (including Montenvers Mer de Glace train, Tramway of Mont-Bla nc & Aiguille du Midi cable-cars) & to Les Houches.
Unlimited access to ChamVal : sports’ installations (swimming pool, ice rinks...) & to the cultural installations (museums).
Access to the Cinema Vox (passes of 3 days & longer) at just 9,00 € 3,50 € per film.
Access to the resorts of Verbier & Courmayeur (Please check opening of lifts in these resorts).

Half Day morning pass (08h 30 – 13h 00) Domaine des Grands-Montets (except 2nd cable-car)
Half Day afternoon pass (12h 00 – 16h 30) Domaine des Grands-Montets (except 2nd cable-car)
One rate ONLY : 41,00 € (According to availability)

Full day pass Brévent – Flégère or Balme
One rate ONLY : 30,00 €

N.B. The announced opening of lifts, products available & their rates are based on today’s conditions. All are subject to change depending on the evolution of the snow cover.
DIRECTION MARKETING ET COMMERCIALE

[/quote]

Edited by Marcellus on Wednesday 17th December 19:29

[feef]

The last 24hrs has seen a bit of an improvement

[cptsideways]

For those thinking where to go, shortly Val Thorens had excellent snow last week compared to everywhere else, it was about 80% open, excellent base conditions & fresh powder just last week.


If I was deciding where to go that would be No1 on my list