Rate the resorts you've visited.

Is this it AllyG?
http://www.j2ski.com/ski-chat-forum/posts/list/8095.page

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Our family like large cruisy resorts with feel of travel - the more blues the better

Niederau, Austria:
Pro's 2 or 3 really gentle runs that are good to learn on
Reasonably priced food in restaurants and supermarkets for self catering.
Pretty village

Cons:
ski area is too small.
queues during peak season are ridiculous (25 minutes at the gondola)
sold as a beginner resort but really the only place the beginners can use is the 2-3 green slopes at the bottom of the gondola, the blue runs from the top can be pretty daunting and I felt for a blue they were quite steep.
ski school allowed kids in the gondola with no adult supervision

Would I go back? NO 3/10

Valmorel, France:
Pros
a large ski area with feeling of travel
large wide cruisy runs
lovel green runs that go right to the bottom of the village
lots of ski in/out chalets
lots of variation out of the village so not many queues

Cons
Expensive slope side and in resort, especially expensive in the supermarkets

Would I go back - YES 9/10

Les Saisies, France
Pro's
Lots of wide cruisy blues. lots of variation and tree lined skiing
pretty village
links to the espace diamant with more skiing available.
well groomed pistes.

Cons
struggling to think of any. maybe cost of some of the restaurants on the slope but depended on where you went, there were cheaper options if you wanted.
Would I go back - YES 10/10

Ellmau, Austria
Pros
Pretty village
large ski area
Buses regular and clean

Cons
Blue runs are quite challenging
funicular very busy even at off peak times ie 11am on a Wednesday in January.
Runs got very cut up quickly making them extremly mogully.
Piste markers confusing.
More suited for intermediates.

Would I go back - NO 4/10

Late 20s/early 30s couple who like lots of mileage on good mixture of runs, just beginning to think about off piste but only playing alongside runs at present. Preferably in a resort that won't break the bank with decent food. Don't do 'nightlife' beyond a meal and glass of wine.

Sauze d'Oulx/Milky Way - Italy
Jan 2008 (learnt to ski), Jan 2009 (2 weeks)

Pros

Lovely tree-lined runs in Sauze area, ideal intermediate cruising. Well maintained pistes.
Easy access to rest of Milky Way, inc more challenging runs in Sestriere.
Short transfer from Turin.
Decent food, drink and accommodation, averagely priced.
Generally good for beginners, excellent ski school.

Cons

Erratic snow record (though good for us in 2008 and epic in 2009). Not always possible to ski back to resort.
Could be a problem for beginners who struggle to find their ski legs. Although many runs are easy (despite being reds) they are not 'perfect' for building confidence – I've been to places which are better.
Piste signposting is 'interesting' and doesn't always resemble the map....
Some old and slow lifts, though I believe old 2 man lifts from Sportinia were replaced last season?
Lifts in the 'best' (in my opinion Moncrons) area very rarely running and mostly drags.
Could be noisy/lively, check location of accommodation carefully (not a problem with the hotel we picked, Gran Baita).
Bus service can be erratic and walking to Sportinia in ski boots would be hell! Less of a problem if you use Clotes lift but unsuitable for beginners.

Would I go back? Yes, especially now we could get most out of Milky Way area. 8.5/10 (would maybe drop to 7/10 if snow was poor).

Arabba/Dolomites

Jan 2010, March 2011, Jan 2012 (10 days), Jan 2013 (2 weeks), March 2013 (1 week), Jan 2014 (17 days booked).

Pros

Excellent access to huge Dolomiti Superski area, impossible to get bored in a week (we did 220 km in 6 days last trip and didn't touch the sides....)
Excellent piste marking – very difficult to get lost despite huge distances.
Best challenging terrain in the Dolomites, fabulous reds/blacks from Porto Vescovo.
Access to excellent off piste (apparently, not quite at the level to take full advantage yet) IF the snow is good.
Scenery is like nothing on earth.
Food and drink is fabulous and reasonably priced on and off the mountain. Large choice of refugios, ranging from good to excellent.
Extensive snow making so can compensate if natural snow cover is poor.
Piste grooming is excellent, (apart from on the way to the Marmolada for some reason...)
Generally slopes are quiet/deserted but depends on timing.

Cons

Long transfer (3h+ from most airports).
Not many UK operators travel here (= good thing in my opinion).
Very small village so limited nightlife (pro in my book).
Not at all beginner friendly, progress from one blue is on to fairly tricky reds – stay in Corvara instead with a mixed group.
Slopes on Sella Ronda can get busy/ very cut up.
Dolomites can suffer from lack of snow so a risk very late season (though Arabba is best option as slopes north facing). Depends on season however, end of March 2013 we were skiing knee high powder ON piste (best weeks' skiing I've ever had). Same week the previous year was apparently a real problem in some areas.
Off piste is non-existent if snow is poor.
Expensive taxi home if you get stuck in a neighbouring valley (same is true of any area).
Need a car to access non-lift linked resorts on lift pass (such as Cortina, Kronplatz etc.) Not a problem unless you've skied out the rest of the area (500+ km). Access to Civetta is possible by bus but you need to know where you're going and check the timetables carefully as 1h+ skiing back from the bus stop (speaking from experience flooring it on mogulled runs as the lifts shut behind us, oops...!)

My second home, 10/10, can't fault it. Objectively 9.5/10 due to transfer, snow record and unsuitability for beginners. Dolomites in general perfect for decent intermediates who like to travel for miles.

Mayrhofen – Austria

January 2011 (1 week)

Pros

Some lovely runs directly above Mayrhofen and many more areas accessible via good bus service.
Pistes well maintained.
Cheapest holiday we have ever done. Food/drink reasonably priced and decent.
Good selection of bars/restaurants/accommodation.
Short transfer from Innsbruck.

Cons

Can't ski back to resort.
Lifts get busy if you time it wrong (going up or down).
Need to get on a bus to access many of the areas (which I prefer not to have to do.) Think I may find the extent of slopes a bit limited now without travelling to outlying areas.
Snow wasn't great when we were there.

This was the first trip back on skis for my husband following knee problems so didn't do as much as we normally would. Also lost 1 ½ days to very bad weather (complete whiteout) and another ½ as it was ridiculously warm/slushy and couldn't risk OHs knees, which didn't help.

Would I go back? Possibly for an extra trip if the price was right but not as our main holiday. 7/10

Morzine

March 2012 (1 week)

Pros

Lots of mileage, particularly enjoyed the runs in the Les Gets area.
Good for beginners, easy skiing around Morzine itself.
Short transfer from Geneva.

Cons

Low so snow isn't great at resort level or even above this. We went first week of March in a 'good' year and lower runs were very slushy by mid afternoon.
Access to rest of PDS through Avoriaz was dangerously busy when we went, to the point we gave up and went back to Morzine before one of us got hurt, THAT busy! Had skied out Morzine/Les Gets area in 2 days.
Piste grooming isn't great even on reds. All blacks were left as mogul fields (may be a +ve for many, not for me). Many lifts are old and slow.

We were full board and in an on piste hotel so can't really comment on food and drink or the town itself. Seemed pretty spread out but pleasant enough. Also I got food poisoning midweek (lost 1 day) and we had a very heavy powder day with poor visibility (so didn't go far) hence essentially 4 days skiing. May have rated differently if I could have experienced 'rest' of PDS but just didn't suit the type of skiing I enjoy. Bored with Morzine/Les Gets and going farther afield was awkward.

Probably wouldn't go back. 6/10 (but only as I liked Les Gets area so much, otherwise 5/10, maximum).

karen72 wrote:Is this it AllyG?
http://www.j2ski.com/ski-chat-forum/posts/list/8095.page

Thanks very much, that was very clever of you to find it :)

How did you manage it?

Yes I'd like to know the answer to that too, and find my previous reviews.

I just clicked in the drop down menu at the left hand side of your post and clicked on your profile. then i went to find all threads started by AllyG and scrolled down and voila! if you are looking for your own, you just go into my profile and on the find all threads started by me.

When i was at work today when I sent the post, I repeated the post twice because the internet connection is so slow but for some reason the drop down box at the left and right had disappeared. I had to actually go on my smartphone to edit the thread with the drop down boxes.