Boarder (ex) now too old, need to find masses of snow for kids!!

Hi,
I wonder if anyone could help me! I'm an avid ex-boarder who has unfortunately been spoilt rotten with the charms of Whistler-Blackcomb too many times!

I have never actually been to a ski resort in Europe but bearing in mind I'm a few years older and 3 children later now, I'm really just looking for a nice Bavarian type village where I can guarantee getting some snow (up the mountain and in the villages) where my kids can play (sledging/snowballing etc etc). Quite fancy Gamisch Partenkirchen in Bavaria but not too sure on the snow report mid December!! (15th ish).

Open to suggestions, Austria, Switzerland but obviously with the 3 children, the budget is fairly tight!!

Cheers everyone :lol:

Unfortunately the traditional Bavarian style villages tend to be quite low, which of course affects the amount of snow they have and also the quality of it, especially in December. Garmisch probably wouldnt have much although it does have lifts that go higher. Worth a try though, and the village does look quite nice. It should have many facilities to having once hosted the Winter Olympics, be it a while back!!

Then after the problem of snow at the nice traditional villages, is that the higher resorts dont tend to look as nice. Having said that the Austrian high resorts are quite nice, Obertauern and Obergurgl being the 2 main ones. Obertauern would be the best if you want the most snow in mid Dec. It ranges from about 1700m to 2400m or so, so there is enough variation in height if the snow there is even bad!! Other high resorts in the Alps include Tignes which looks hideous. Great skiing but as far as pleasantness of the resort it scores very lowly. Austria is definately the place to stick to to get the height and still retain the typical Austrian charm.

We are going to Germany ( Hindelang ) on the 20th December.

You could try some of the following

http://www.slideorglide.net/

http://www.skithedream.com/

We have arranged our trip with the second of the above.

We chose Hindelang because they have some slope dedicated to sledging, which will be handy for the 4 kids in our group of 11 :O)

Gavin

If you are after Bavarian charm then I would also recommend Austria. Anywhere in the Tirol valley would suit as all the villages are pretty old and established traditional mountain places. A long time ago I spent a couple of seasons in the village of Fulpmes and remember that the villages from there all the way up the the Tirol Glacier were stunning. The Austrians know how to build nice lodgings so even the new ones keep the old charm. The other benefit with that region is that the snow is pretty consistant.

Anyway ... your never to old to board, enjoy!!

I also recomend Austria - but I am bias!

The ski-Amade region near Salzburg is fanatstic for all kinds of skiing.
The ski-pass itself is Austria's biggest with over 860km of skiing available.

We live in Radstadt (follow our link at the bottom for more info) at about 900meters. Radstadt is the home of Austria's only floodlit sledge run. It is 3km long from the top of the mountain to the bottom...and the gondola lift still runs into late evening so no walking uphill all the time!

It is a fantastic place to come as a family as there is plenty of on and off piste activites....

If you want Austria, a reasonable safe bet for good snow and a plenty of beginners' skiing then definitely try either Obertauen or Obergurgl. Both are among the highest resorts in Austria. Obergurgl is the more attractive of the two.

Geoff Smith

Sunshinebreaks wrote:If you are after Bavarian charm then I would also recommend Austria. Anywhere in the Tirol valley would suit as all the villages are pretty old and established traditional mountain places. A long time ago I spent a couple of seasons in the village of Fulpmes and remember that the villages from there all the way up the the Tirol Glacier were stunning. The Austrians know how to build nice lodgings so even the new ones keep the old charm. The other benefit with that region is that the snow is pretty consistant.

Anyway ... your never to old to board, enjoy!!

Hi you mentioned you've been to Fulpmes, do you think they have snow in the village itself? We're staying at the hotel stubaier dont suppose you happened to see that one there did ya!!!!

Hi you mentioned you've been to Fulpmes, do you think they have snow in the village itself? We're staying at the hotel stubaier dont suppose you happened to see that one there did ya!!!!