J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by acarr

Or the Schneeberger? :roll:

Does anyone know anything about the hotel Sonnschein? I've dithered around for so long that I'm not finding any availability at the Austria, but have found a good deal to the Sonnschein with Crystal. Is it very far from the nursery slopes, does anyone know (website says 5 mins walk, but with us in ski boots even that could be too far!)
Allie

Hi SuperEagle
Another newbie here! We're thinking of Niederau and are trying to decide between 31 Jan and 28 Feb. I'm keen to go 'cos I want to know what all the fuss is about )
I've been looking at the hotel Austria too - it seems handy for the nursery slopes (we're beginners).
If we decide to go on the 31 Jan, I'll post on here. Maybe we could say hello - I'll be with OH and 8 year old daughter. If we opt for the 28 Feb, I'll be keen to hear what the Austria is like.

Allie

We went to Rauris in Jan 07. It was our first time on skis in our whole lives. We stayed in the hotel St Hubertus, whose primary advantages are that it's beside the gondola station, next to the nursery slopes, and has a ski hire shop next door. It's a short walk from the village, which is quite small. We went with Neilson. A few points about our experience:

1. When we arrived, there was hardly any snow. The nursery slope was packed ice. However, that was a bad year for snow everywhere. It did snow during our week there, which considerably improved conditions on the nursery slope. I understand from speaking to other people that there was plenty of snow further up the mountain, accessed by the gondola.
2. There is one 6-seat gondola and, I believe, other lifts around the place, although we didn't see them. The nursery slope has a drag-lift which you pay for. We were very naive and purchased lift passes in advance from Neilson, but given that we never got off the nursery slope, this was a waste of money. We should have investigated whether there were points cards available locally.
3. I don't know how the slopes would be classified by a real skier (they all looked scary to us!) but my ski guide book classifies them as intermediate.
4. Rauris village is small and charming, with one supermarket, a few other local shops, some restaurants and pubs and hotels (mainly 3-star). Everyone is friendly and I met loads of lovely people on the slopes (including an elderly local gentleman on the nursery slope who told me not to be so afraid!)
5. There are 2 ski schools. I can't remember which one we were with. My 6-year-old daughter made good progress, although in the beginning she found the instructors a bit intimidating. She settled down once she got to know them. We had all pre-booked ski school with Neilson. I do have a criticism of our adult lessons, and I don't know whether this was Neilson's fault or the ski school's, but we had clearly stated that we were complete beginners and were put into a group with six other people who had all skied before. This meant that my husband and I were the only ones who kept falling over and after about a day of this, (clearly the group and instructor were getting frustrated that we were holding them back), it was politely suggested to us that perhaps private lessons would be more suitable for our level. We were able to swap the remaining group lessons for private ones, but also had to pay an additional amount, as private lessons are more expensive. We felt a bit bad about our lack of progress on the slopes, but did progress further during the private lessons (ironically with the same instructor!)
6. The hotel St Hubertus provided adequate, rather than luxurious, accommodation and the food was hearty. My husband is a vegetarian, but eats fish, and he was not well catered for.

I liked Rauris, it's good for families as it is small, friendly and quiet. Piste bashers might find it a bit limited. There is one particular pub (Shakesbeers) that is supposed to be where the apres-ski action is, but we were too knackered to investigate!