Snow reports: European ski resorts set to celebrate the whitest Christmas in years with more snow in the forecast
The leading European ski resorts are more than ready for Christmas
this year thanks to substantial natural snow cover. The Alps benefitted
from excellent early winter snowfall and skiing now at all elevations
is on dry groomed cover. The Pyrenees also are in good shape with all
runs open whilst Eastern Europe is preparing to offer almost all uplift
for the week ahead. Across Scandinavia resorts are preparing for the
arrival of heavy snowfall through Christmas week. The North American
winter has so far not delivered the very large volumes of snow they
experienced last season but skiing conditions are still decent in all
the major resorts with the freshest and deepest snow through this
weekend to be found in British Columbia and also across New England. For a specific resort, check our full snow reports and weather alerts sponsored by Crystal Ski Holidays.
France
It is an especially good year to be in the French Alps
for Christmas as snow conditions are exceptionally good and overhead
conditions mostly sunny through until Boxing Day, when significant fresh
snowfall arrives. Argentiere (1,240m), neighbouring Chamonix,
is now reporting 170cm of consolidated snow depth on upper slopes and
skiing down from top station at 3,275m is on dry soft snow. Today 39 of
45 lifts are on offer but more will open from this weekend. Average base
elevation temperature highs will remain cool, not much above 0ºC, so
expect good snow conditions to be maintained until the fresh snow
arrives.
Austria
All the Austrian ski
areas are in great shape as we head into Christmas week with skiing
typically on firm packed or packed powder snow depending on slope
aspect. Through until Christmas Day the forecast indicates cool, bright
and often sunny weather with only occasional snow showers in the north
but then fresh snow arrives and temperatures fall. Mayrhofen
(630m) at low elevation sometimes lacks natural snow cover on lower
slopes at this stage of the season but this year all 25 lifts and all
pistes are open with 130cm of snow base at the top station elevation of
2,250m.
Switzerland
The Swiss Alps
caught some of the heaviest snowfalls of December and average recorded
snow depths for the leading resorts are the most impressive in Europe
right now, with Engelberg
reporting over four metres of snow cover on its highest pistes. Less
extreme snow depths but still excellent ski conditions are on offer in Zermatt
today where skiers are enjoying sunshine and groomed powder snow with
base depths of over 100cm at mid-mountain level. The resort will be
opening the majority of uplift and all pistes from this weekend in
anticipation of what should be an excellent Christmas period. The Swiss
Alps will be cool and mostly bright through until December 26 when fresh
snowfall and lower temperatures arrive.
Italy
It has been a fine start to the ski season across the Italian Alps
and the Dolomites with substantial early-season snowfall meaning far
less reliance on snow cannon to provide lower elevation snow cover than
in recent winters. Overhead conditions are currently bright and dry but
temperatures remain low enough for groomed dry snow on piste at all
elevations. Cortina d'Ampezzo
(1,220m) in the Dolomites is offering excellent piste skiing right now
with firm packed snow and base depths of 90cm under the top station
elevation of 3,240m. The forecast for Cortina and the region is dry and
cool through until Boxing Day when fresh snowfall and colder air is
expected.
Big news for budget-conscious travellers – according to a new report this week, the Slovenian resort of Kranjska Gora has the lowest prices in Europe, knocking Bansko in Bulgaria off the top spot for the first time in seven years.
Produced in partnership with Crystal Ski Holidays, the 11th annual ski costs survey from the Post Office compared prices in 22 European resorts – five French, five Italian, five Austrian, three Swiss, and one each in Andorra, Bulgaria, Slovenia and Finland.
Acclaimed as Europe's best-value family resort in December last year, Kranjska Gora has now been confirmed as the cheapest resort overall, followed by Bardonecchia, in Italy. Of the 10 cheapest destinations on this year’s Post Office report, four are Italian, providing an alternative to the Eastern European resorts which are usually seen as a good bet for a lower-priced winter sports break.
The biggest decrease is Morzine in France, with a price index that’s 13 per cent lower than October 2016. Prices have also dropped significantly in other French resorts, including Les Deux Alpes (down 11 per cent), Serre Chevalier (9.3 per cent) and Val d’Isère (7.6 per cent).
1. First thing’s first, bring your brain. Making good decisions is more important than any piece of gear.
2. Avalanche beacon goes on at the car, off at the bar. Make
sure you pack your shovel and probe. Airbags are useful, too, but they
are not an excuse to take risks you wouldn't otherwise take.
3. Know the forecast. Every avalanche center in the country
has a website and each offers automatic daily email updates. These
centers have also started to spread their message via social media. The Utah Avalanche Center and Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center are particularly effective in highlighting daily messages with photos and video on social media.
4. At the trailhead, don't park like a jackass. Keep it
tight so others can play, too. Pro tip: Stash beers in the snow for when
you return with your ski partners.
5.
The International Ski Federation (FIS) produces a set of guidelines to help keep you and other skiers/snowboarders safe on the slopes.
It’s
important to understand that these ‘common sense guidelines’ are regularly used
for insurance and legal purposes, where an accident has occurred on the slopes,
so we highly recommend reading and adopting them.
Most of the guidelines are common sense and things you
probably already adopt in your skiing. There are however a few rules of the
slope which we regularly see people ignore, so we’ve highlighted those in RED below.
The Experts at Ortovox Shed Light on Avalanche Beacon Functionality and Stress the Importance of Three-Antennae
Like most of your avalanche rescue tools, the transceiver, otherwise
known as a beacon, is a device that you hope to never use in the
field—except in a training scenario. Having a solid understanding of how
your avy equipment works is paramount, and there’s hardly a tool more
difficult to truly understand than this minuscule device. Read up on the
intricacies of the avalanche beacon, below, and above all else,
remember that nothing is a legitimate substitute for practice, practice,
practice.
So, you’re no stranger to hitting the slopes come winter. This time, you’ve taken the step to buying your own skis and you can’t wait to get out on the snow. But wait, it’s not that simple. You’ve got to get your equipment to the resort! What’s the cost of flying with skis? This varies from airline to airline – and if you don’t plan ahead, you’ll get stung. Here’s our ski equipment flight carriage cost guide for the 2017/18 season.
Note: Some airlines will accept ski equipment instead of baggage with no extra charge. This sounds like a great deal but let’s face it, we all take baggage with us on a ski holiday. In these instances, we’ve listed the additional charge of travelling with both baggage and ski equipment.
All prices mentioned below are for flights to and from your destination. READ ON...
In More Mountain's first blog
in this series they gave you a little bit of information about the
Village of Morzine. This is to give you a head start for your arrival.
In this blog they give you a quick summary of the Mountains.
This information should help reduce “first day faff” and get you to the
best slopes for your group as easily as possible .
It is really easy to get to the ski lifts from all of their properties in Morzine. They are within easy walking distance to the lifts or bus stops. Our chalet hosts will even drive you to the lifts from your chalet and bring you back at the end of the day.
The five main lifts you need to know about are Nyon, Pleney, Super
Morzine, Prodains and Ardent. These lifts are the telecabines and
bubbles that get you off the valley floor and in to the various ski
areas. READ ON..
