J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by jastem

According to today's East Anglian Daily Times Business Section, Air Berlin is going to launch a new service between Stansted and Salzburg aimed mainly at skiers. Start date is 2nd December and they are open for bookings now.
Flights will leave Stansted at 2.10pm and Salzburg at 12.30pm (local times) each Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday until 31st March 2011.
They will operate an Airbus A319 with capacity for 144 passengers, with free transport of ski equipment and an additional 20kg luggage allowance.

Hello Les - apart from trying to find a bargain, it seems to be more important to find somewhere suitable for your party of mixed ability? Are you likely to be the only beginner? Resorts which have proved successful for us in the past with anything up to 12 skiers/boarders in the party from teenagers up to over fifties, have been Alpe d'Huez and La Plagne/Les Arcs in France but particularly Madonna di Campiglio.Folgarida/Marilleva in the Italian Dolomites.

Can't understand Mrs. Les preferring a sun/beach holiday over skiing!

Hi Sarah,
Like Nugget, I have stayed at the Kapriol twice and actually in Madonna once. We went for a 'welcome' drink in the downstairs bar in the Renzi and the people we talked to who stayed there really liked it. Folgarida is a small village but we really loved it there and would go back again. On both occasions that we stayed there, we had a mixed age group from early twenties to early fifties and a mixed ability group of beginner/able skiers plus a boarder. Everyone agreed on both visits that it would have been difficult to imagine a better resort for everyone and we all had a great time - plus it was easy on the budget. The beginners made really quick progress, but as Nugget says, the ski link to/from Madonna is via fairly tricky reds. There is a ski bus though and once a week (I think) there is a bus to Passo Tonale too. Madonna has fantastic skiing and is really worth the trip.
Folgarida has a little supermarket which is very well stocked, a post box which got a postcard to the UK in only 2 days (probably a fluke!), a couple of hire shops, gift shops, pizzeria, cake shop, doctor plus pharmacy and a cash machine.
If you do go, I hope you enjoy the place as much as we all did )

Tony, did you do either the boarder cross or the funny cross courses? A group of us recycled teenagers went down both and it was hilarious :D

Could well be the same man Tony - red ski jacket I think? Also saw quite a few other disabled skiers and their helpers - I got the impression that SC was very pro disabled skiers. As I said, a very humbling but positive experience.

During last week's trip to Serre Chevalier, I was trying to work out what was different about the skier in front of me getting onto a chairlift. I then realised that he only had one leg and his ski 'poles' were different. It was a very humbling experience.

We had a couple of seats together at the back of the plane and the aisle is very wide there so perhaps we were just lucky?
Agree that SC provides wonderful skiing and would recommend it to anyone.

Great report Tony and thank you for leaving Serre Chevalier in such good condition for when we arrived on 13th March :D We also travelled on the Monarch Airbus 300 - plenty of legroom and very comfortable.
Grenoble slightly less chaotic than on previous trips - but I may be biased as our luggage seemed to arrive on a carousel about half an hour before anyone else's for some strange reason :D This was our fourth trip to Serre Chevalier in 10 years and this time we stayed in Monetier - and we absolutely loved it. We stayed in the Hotel de l'Europe in a little square close to the church. We left skis and boots overnight in the Consigne close to the main chairlift - 17 euros well spent in our opinion.
We didn't queue for anything all week and had blue skies, sunshine and cold temperatures most of the week which kept the snow in superb condition. The red down to Briancon was like icing sugar by the end of the week however. The blacks Casse du Boeuf and Pylons were superb, but my favourite run has to be Cucumelles.
The whole area is very understated and the locals are so friendly. Some of the chairs/gondolas could do with upgrading but we would certainly return to the area - especially Monetier.
Lovely sunny day here at the seaside so the ski boots are having an airing in the garden :D