J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by andymol2

Why did France wait until after change over day. The rest of Europe closed in time to avoid wasted journeys.
We were lucky in that our week was Sunday to Sunday but we sore lots of people arrive in LaTania on Saturday.

Would have thought that Passo Tonale might be a bit on the pudding side by Easter. The Glacier runs at Ponte-de-Legnio should be OK but the runs in Passo itself go soft very easily. Having been there later in the season I probably wouldn't choose it at that time of year. To be honest it's Ok for beginners or early intermediates (and those who don't like to get lost as most of the runs are off the main road)

Don't know about Madonna - had a day there but it was rtoo foggy to appreciate!

Not skied in Sweden but have visited Stockholm.

Beware the beer - as I vaguely recall the beer was graded 1* 2* & 3* and after sampling too much 3* getting up the next morning was a challenge.

More of a challenge for a colleague of mine who woke up in th enight for a call of nature and mistook the bathroom door for the room door and found himself locked out of the hotel room at 4am in the nip!

flat country skier wrote:I've never seen any green marked slopes in Italy either but haven't been to Bardonecchia yet.

It's good for beginners and early intermediates wanting to expand their range of skills.
Quite small so an expert skier would find it a bit restricting compared to say the 3 Valleys or Milky Way. Lifts a bit antequated in parts and some of the nicer runs are at the top of long drag lifts. (One was nearly a mile long and very steep in places. Credit to Mrs M who got taken by surprise when it stopped on a very steep section slid back and fell over, however determinedly held on to the lift with one hand and managed to get back to her feet, put the poma back between her legs before it restarted and carried on. Never seen that before - I'd skied down from there)

There are short green runs near the ski school bases in both Campo Smith and Mezelet areas.

You could liken it to Passo Tonale without the need to cross the main road to get onto the slopes - similar sort of size of ski area but you feel you are going to somewhere, unlike Passo where much of it is going up and down the lifts to work your way along the valley. The accomodation areas are very much on the edge of town unklike Passo or Cormayeur where most of the hotels are short walks from the town centre cafes, bars and shops.

I would recommend it if you are taking relatively new skiers or beginners in your party.
I would not advise self catering as the shops are a bus ride away (when the busses are running).

Beg to differ Sleekpony - there are marked green runs at some Italian resorts.
Just come back from Bardonecchia where my daughter's boyfriend spent a deal of time on the greens in Campo Smith & Mezelet with Amy barking instructions tio him when he was out of ski school.

As a rule of thumb in Italy there is a bit more consistency about the grading of pistes compared to some of the resorts in France. (Where they have been known to label easier reds as blues so they can say there's a blue back to town!)

Just come back and there was plenty of snow in spite of it hardly snowing in January.

The town is relatively low but they have quite a lot of snow making to augment the natural if it doesn't come.

With reference to your question when do you consider to be early season? Not sure I would go before Xmas but Jan to March should be fine.

Aldi have had skiwear on offer recently. Cheap but decent quality.

Mountain warehouse is another option for sensibly priced kit.

The cynic in me says there is rarely a linear progression beteen price and quality where ski wear is concerned. Indeed it could be argued that in some cases you are paying most of the price for the logo and advertising and very little of it for the manufacturing.

Just make sure it's breathable and waterproof (The higher the better for both)

2 pairs of gloves are always a good idea so that you can have a pair drying out one day to use the next.

Morzine is pretty low and my experiences in skiing the Portes De Soleil and Milky Way is the latter is generally a better option late on.