Who is going skiing and where in 2017
Discussion
NRS said:
Welshbeef said:
housen said:
think the season is over sub 2000m resorts swiss/French alps ...within 2 hours from gva ...unless it snows in march
its 15c here in town gva
and pure sun for next 10 days
Go east to Bansko loads of snow and it's a 2,500 m max (resort 900m). its 15c here in town gva
and pure sun for next 10 days
Think of different locations/chase the snow don't simply go the usual or have to stump up FMSO much more £ for Gstaad or the top end mega height resorts.
Arrived in Garmisch yesterday via Innsbruk for a week. Great skiing today with snow all the way down. Did get roasting hot today so skiing hard with a normal jacket and gloves on was a challenge! Forecast for the week seems more of the same so will switch to lightweight jacket and gloves.
rog007 said:
Arrived in Garmisch yesterday via Innsbruk for a week. Great skiing today with snow all the way down. Did get roasting hot today so skiing hard with a normal jacket and gloves on was a challenge! Forecast for the week seems more of the same so will switch to lightweight jacket and gloves.
Yep, we were in Gerlos last weekend and it was hot very very hot - brilliant sunshine the entire time we were there. First days skiing was Saturday - skied into resort at the end of the day and a music festival had been set up in the car park of the lift station, roll on 6 hours of drinking, dancing and fireworks - awesome.Les Carroz this weekend then Morzine the week after, can't wait.
jammy-git said:
Anyone consider America/Canada as a viable alternative to the Alps next year? Can't be that much more expensive I imagine, the long haul flight is a bit of PITA though I guess.
I've been banging on about how great British Columbia in Canada is for years. Already booked for next Christmas. The time difference and distance does make it a better two week holiday. Not cheap either, however we've just booked flights with IcelandAir that reduce the flying time to 14hrs and are £550 each.
The snow's fantastic, people charming and welcoming, speak the same language and you can hire a truck to drive...
Marcellus said:
housen said:
think the season is over sub 2000m resorts swiss/French alps ...within 2 hours from gva ...unless it snows in march
its 15c here in town gva
and pure sun for next 10 days
I'm inclined to agree with you, just spent 4 hours in Morzine, Avoriaz, Chatel and Champery OK early on but as it warmed up very Spring like with wet heavy snow and quite a bit of Brown/green/grey where it shouldn't be.its 15c here in town gva
and pure sun for next 10 days
jammy-git said:
Anyone consider America/Canada as a viable alternative to the Alps next year? Can't be that much more expensive I imagine, the long haul flight is a bit of PITA though I guess.
I'll sing the praises of Breckenridge any day of the week.We went out this year with a veteran of the European slopes - he said it was the best skiing he'd had in 25 years. Things he noticed: less queuing, polite skiers, efficient staff (including on-piste policing), open slopes and miles of piste and off-piste areas.
The 'Sheldon haircut' service was in full effect too. We forgot our paperwork for the ski passes, but happened to have our passes from the previous year. No problem - they found us on the system, re-enabled the old cards (and printed out a new one for the one we'd left in the apartment) and away we went. Then we went to the ski hire place, which brought out the same model of skis we'd got on well with the previous year and brand new (and comfortable) boots in the right size. One of our party commented how well they'd got on with the boots they had the year before. The assistant checked the records, told us they had that specific pair in the back and brought them out. This is all in a town that has something like 40,000 people turn up for President's Weekend (the one time the queues do get a bit big). They're geared up to deliver top notch service.
The snow was really good this year too - nine inches just before we arrived, then a week of blue skies and cold enough nights to keep everything from getting icy. The available terrain is a little larger than Val-d'Isère, but is served by a town over twice the size so it's not just a resort. There's good eating up on the mountains and of course plenty of restaurants in the town, plus good spas, bars and a couple of micro breweries.
Breckenridge Peak Ten by Lock Farm, on Flickr
We had a blast - our eleven year old son is comfortable on black runs now and managed 35mph on his favourite run. I think in total we did about 130 miles of skiing each during the week (including lifts). We're not hardcore, but it was very easy to just get out on the slopes and enjoy ourselves. The travel is a bit of a pain, but there's a direct transfer service so it's very straightforward. You loose a day either end, but that's the case with just about any holiday out of the UK these days.
jammy-git said:
Anyone consider America/Canada as a viable alternative to the Alps next year? Can't be that much more expensive I imagine, the long haul flight is a bit of PITA though I guess.
Just over 2 weeks before we go to Whistler, Great place. 9 days there then a week in Hawaii. Snow and Sun best type of holidays.jammy-git said:
Anyone consider America/Canada as a viable alternative to the Alps next year? Can't be that much more expensive I imagine, the long haul flight is a bit of PITA though I guess.
Echo all the above platitudes. On the back of posting in the "Where was I?" thread I've just booked a last minute 10 day trip back to Banff for the end of March. Spring is a good time to go. It will be warm in town, but still excellent snow conditions on the three hills along with the previously mentioned cheerful Lifties and polite guests. As for being expensive, well I paid £4600. But that's for a solo trip about six weeks away, a five star hotel (Fairmont Banff Springs) and BA business class each way. So it's definitely possible to do the same trip without being quite so extravagant.
ukbabz said:
Heading out to the 3 valleys this weekend, reports seem to say the pistes are good but could do with more snow. Hopefully it holds up and an epic week is had!
I'm off to Verbier on Saturday. Forecast predicts 9" of snow Thursday/Friday this week. Then a wall of sunshine for when we're there.JagBox said:
Just over 2 weeks before we go to Whistler, Great place. 9 days there then a week in Hawaii. Snow and Sun best type of holidays.
Have a great time. Wish I could head to my place in Whistler around now... It's a huge place. Do use the on-mountain orienteering tours, think they are 11am every day. And if you/your family are handy off piste, I can thoroughly recommend the Extremely Canadian two day steeps camp. If you sign up, tell Pete I sent you
Currently in Flaine, Grand Massif
Unseasonably warm - good for tanning, poor for skiing
Freezing point today is at 2400m, so almost at the peak
Rain on Mon night turned lower slopes slushy
Area needs colder temps and more snow soon
Pisteurs are doing all they can, but finding some slopes turning beige and rocks showing through on more runs
Unseasonably warm - good for tanning, poor for skiing
Freezing point today is at 2400m, so almost at the peak
Rain on Mon night turned lower slopes slushy
Area needs colder temps and more snow soon
Pisteurs are doing all they can, but finding some slopes turning beige and rocks showing through on more runs
RC1807 said:
Currently in Flaine, Grand Massif
Unseasonably warm - good for tanning, poor for skiing
Freezing point today is at 2400m, so almost at the peak
Rain on Mon night turned lower slopes slushy
Area needs colder temps and more snow soon
Pisteurs are doing all they can, but finding some slopes turning beige and rocks showing through on more runs
yup what a mess Unseasonably warm - good for tanning, poor for skiing
Freezing point today is at 2400m, so almost at the peak
Rain on Mon night turned lower slopes slushy
Area needs colder temps and more snow soon
Pisteurs are doing all they can, but finding some slopes turning beige and rocks showing through on more runs
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