Back from Niederau today

So glad it was'nt so bad. I really did not envy you. It does seem expensive travelling that way, may-be flights at not peak season would work out cheaper? I now have the Lapland bug and would like to visit all the resorts, but the one I wont be going to, although I would love to is Saariselka, 3 and a half hours transfer time.........no way. Glad you all had a good time.

2 questions if I may?!

1)Are there lots of button lifts? I'm considering Niederau for the week of 7th March to try snowboarding and am a bit concerned as I gather they are a pain.

2) What made you get the ferry that way? I find flying a miserable experience with the budget airlines and think I'd rather drive. From Gateshead it's a long way, but thought it wouldn't be too bad via Calais - did Amsterdam seem a better way to you?

Ta

:mrgreen: 12 days cant wait :mrgreen:

Karen72,
Do yourselves a favour; go to somewhere like Val Cenis or Folgarida in term time; you will get everything in for about 2k ( for 4 people), thats flying , 1/2 board, ski pass, lessons( if you want them).
These are great places for budding learners & decent skiing for you ; also very good value & nice places as well.
Actually I bet Val Cenis is quiet even in school hols but the prices arent cheap then!
If the other 1/2 doesnt want cold holidays, then sort yourself out a ski buddy & leave them at home......their loss.

KevinC wrote:2 questions if I may?!

1)Are there lots of button lifts? I'm considering Niederau for the week of 7th March to try snowboarding and am a bit concerned as I gather they are a pain.

2) What made you get the ferry that way? I find flying a miserable experience with the budget airlines and think I'd rather drive. From Gateshead it's a long way, but thought it wouldn't be too bad via Calais - did Amsterdam seem a better way to you?

Ta

Kevin. There are 2 button lifts that serve the main nursery slopes. then if you want you could ski over to another button lift but this across country and I dont think it suitable for boarders as it is so bumpy. Then from this button lift you can acces a Tbar which takes you to the bottom of the hard bit of red 19. I saw a lot of boarders doing the shuffle in lots of places and it really did look a pain. As I have already said there seemed to be a lot of walking, heaving, pushing in between lifts (and I am lazy! :wink:) I know you say the button lifts are a pain but i didnt see any boarders fall off them.

If you get the gondala to the top, there are only a couple of runs for beginners. One is a shuffle to the left of the gondala, you shuffle for about 50 metres then ski down, then if you follow on to a red run, even the longest run up to it wont get you to the peak of it, so another shuffle to the top of that run. To be honest, when I was looking at the boarders it just seemed a lot of hard work! but I am not a boarder and could be wrong.

To answer your second question. One of the reasons we decided to take the ferry from newcastle to amsterdam was because we were 2 adults with 3 kids and there are not many cheap package holidays available during half term holidays. This seemed like an adventure for the kids too. Like I say, for the car, me hubby and 3 kids and 3 breakfasts was £580 return, plus the 12 hour drive to Niederau plus diesel,I suppose when you work it out if we could have found a package, there probalby wouldnt have been much difference.

I would not consider Niederau as good for beginners. I think it is very limiting. I know I will be shot down for saying that but as I am in the category of intermediate (at the lower end), I found the runs from the top to the bottom very challenging and in fact only managed it once, the other times I got the gondala down. Once we arrived in Amsterdam I even turned to my hubby and said, there was no way, if we were sailing to Dover, could I have faced a grueling drive back to Newcastle. We had really had enough! We got it back to Newcastle because we are from here and it seemed an easy choice. You sleep overnight and start your journey from amsterdam.

i hope this helps. I am sure lots of Niderau fans will jump in and tell you different, but I can only tell you from my point of view.

Karen

Thanks for the comprehensive reply - much appreciated.

I'd already heard a few negative things about Niederau but then it seems every other thread on here is about the place so I was intrigued.

I might just leave it up to the Gods (i.e. where is cheap in the week up to the 7th March) as the place doesn't sound ideal for learning. Then again we're only going away again this year as the gf wants to try boarding.......it might not be the end of the world if she doesn't enjoy it and decides to stick to skiing.

Hm......Niederau it is then :lol:

kevin loads of j2'ers there 7th march, so we will all have to have a drink one night

ps for fear of being shot, Mayrhofen is supposed to be good as well they had some pretty cheap deals on the crsystal site for that week


<< running now to hide from gun fire lol