Skiing from village to village in the Alps
Jan 9th, 2007 | 05:42 AM
#1
Original Poster
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 254
Likes: 0
Skiing from village to village in the Alps
I've heard about places in the Alps where you can ski from village to village. It sounds incredible. Is this the general way you ski over there, or are there particular mountains / bases that we would want to look into if we would want a ski vacation of this nature?
We are intermediate rocky mountain skiers but have never skied in the Alps.
We are intermediate rocky mountain skiers but have never skied in the Alps.
Jan 9th, 2007 | 05:59 AM
#2
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 216
Likes: 0
Abe, Yes skiing from village to village is one of the best things about skiing the Alps. While there are many more examples, two that I'm most familiar with are:
Le Trois Vallee in France - We stayed in Val Thorens but would ski over to Mirabel and on to Courcheval for lunch before heading back - www.les3vallees.com
The Sella Ronda in Italy - We stayed in Cortina, caught an early morning bus to the Passa Falzarego to begin the Sella Ronda - www.dolomitesworld.com/sellaronda/?ln=EN
Intermediates can easily do the Val Thorens - Courcheval trip. The Sella Ronda is another story. The level of ski ability to do the circuit is intermediate, but it is rather grueling. Luckily, there are plenty of taxis ready to ferry the weary travelers back, but they aren't cheap.
I've also heard the Morzine (Fr) and the connected Avoriaz (Swiss) is another fun trek, but the couple of times we tried to plan it, the plans fell through. Maybe next year.
Le Trois Vallee in France - We stayed in Val Thorens but would ski over to Mirabel and on to Courcheval for lunch before heading back - www.les3vallees.com
The Sella Ronda in Italy - We stayed in Cortina, caught an early morning bus to the Passa Falzarego to begin the Sella Ronda - www.dolomitesworld.com/sellaronda/?ln=EN
Intermediates can easily do the Val Thorens - Courcheval trip. The Sella Ronda is another story. The level of ski ability to do the circuit is intermediate, but it is rather grueling. Luckily, there are plenty of taxis ready to ferry the weary travelers back, but they aren't cheap.
I've also heard the Morzine (Fr) and the connected Avoriaz (Swiss) is another fun trek, but the couple of times we tried to plan it, the plans fell through. Maybe next year.
Jan 9th, 2007 | 06:00 AM
#3
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 2,206
Likes: 0
>I've heard about places in the Alps where you can ski from village to village. It sounds incredible.
Do you mean ski tours, or skiing with lifts and on groomed slopes?
>Is this the general way you ski over there, or are there particular mountains / bases that we would want to look into if we would want a ski vacation of this nature?
A lot of small mountain towns/villages combine their skiing area into one, so you can take a lift to one mountain, ski down to the other side, take a lift up the other side of the valley, and so on. Often you can then ski down to a different village from the one you started from, and take a bus or train to your starting point. Not every skiing area is that extensive, but many are - for example Ischgl/Samnaun (which sits across the Swiss/Austrian border), Davos/Klosters, Villars/Diablerets, Portes de Soleil, and quite a few more. Zermatt/Cervinia is another example, but there is no road or rail connection between the two except half the way around Switzerland, so if you are in a hotel on the other side and lifts close while you are on the other side you are stuck until they open.
Do you mean ski tours, or skiing with lifts and on groomed slopes?
>Is this the general way you ski over there, or are there particular mountains / bases that we would want to look into if we would want a ski vacation of this nature?
A lot of small mountain towns/villages combine their skiing area into one, so you can take a lift to one mountain, ski down to the other side, take a lift up the other side of the valley, and so on. Often you can then ski down to a different village from the one you started from, and take a bus or train to your starting point. Not every skiing area is that extensive, but many are - for example Ischgl/Samnaun (which sits across the Swiss/Austrian border), Davos/Klosters, Villars/Diablerets, Portes de Soleil, and quite a few more. Zermatt/Cervinia is another example, but there is no road or rail connection between the two except half the way around Switzerland, so if you are in a hotel on the other side and lifts close while you are on the other side you are stuck until they open.
Jan 9th, 2007 | 06:39 AM
#4
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,007
Likes: 0
The Serre Chevalier domaine in the Haute Alpes (in France, but very near Italian border) is designed this way. www.serrechevalier.com
Great place, not purpose built, but traditional, and therefore lots of charm.
Great place, not purpose built, but traditional, and therefore lots of charm.
Jan 9th, 2007 | 07:23 AM
#5
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 8,457
Likes: 0
Hi HonestAbe,
It's like this also in the Berner Oberland. You start out from Grindelwald, then ski around "First," then take the gondola to Maennlichen and ski that area, then ski around Wengen, then take the lifts over to Muerren. Here's a link to the ski maps (click on "Winter"
:
http://www.wengen-muerren.ch/index.p...ang=en&L=1
s
It's like this also in the Berner Oberland. You start out from Grindelwald, then ski around "First," then take the gondola to Maennlichen and ski that area, then ski around Wengen, then take the lifts over to Muerren. Here's a link to the ski maps (click on "Winter"
: http://www.wengen-muerren.ch/index.p...ang=en&L=1
s
Jan 9th, 2007 | 07:56 AM
#6
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 9
Likes: 0
Yep, you can either ski hut-to-hut via touring skis and carry all your gear in a back pack. The huts are full serivce huts and re much like hotels. The most famous is the Haute Route which goes from Chamonix to Courmeyer to Argintere to Verbier to Zermatt.
Europe has ski regions (Chamonix, Verbier, Arlberg, Silverettas) which are comprised of many ski areas. You can ski to another ski area during the day and have lunch there and ski back, or even dinner and take a taxi back.
Unlike US Resorts that only offer like 4000 acres...combining resorts opens hundreds of thousands of skiable acres. More than you will be able to ski in 2 weeks!
Europe has ski regions (Chamonix, Verbier, Arlberg, Silverettas) which are comprised of many ski areas. You can ski to another ski area during the day and have lunch there and ski back, or even dinner and take a taxi back.
Unlike US Resorts that only offer like 4000 acres...combining resorts opens hundreds of thousands of skiable acres. More than you will be able to ski in 2 weeks!
