There are thousands of ski resorts across the world. Indeed, skiing is one of the most popular sports internationally, with new countries starting their own ski ranges, like Scotland. With the proliferation of the sport and resorts that offer accommodation next to ski runs, it’s becoming harder for skiers to pick the best spot for the sport, when they all claim to offer the best skiing in the world.
So we’ve done your homework for you to make your holiday preparation less of an ordeal. Peruse the following to find out where you should go to have a perfect ski holiday.
Pragelato, Italy
Europe’s second largest skiing area, La Vialattea, is set in Pragelato, Italy. Famous for hosting the winter sports for the Turin Olympics in 2006, Pragelato is one of the best Club Med ski holidays one can embark on. With 20 groups of chalets around the resort, specially designed by Remy Camoin, expect some cosy lounging around when you’re not sampling the slopes.
Pragelato is great for cross-country skiing. You’ll have the opportunity to try out the Olympic course yourself, which is supplied with snow-making systems over 10km.
Wengen, Switzerland
Wengen is one of the three ski resorts that are located in the Jungfrau region of Switzerland. Overlooking the Lauterbrunnen Valley, Wengen is accessed by a cog railway that goes towards Kleine Scheidegg. It’s a breathtaking ride to take.
The village is small, charming and unpretentious, along with being delightfully traditional. Expect a total lack of traffic with long and smooth ski runs. Nothing offers you luxury with tranquillity like Wengen does.
Valmorel, France
The Alpine resort of Valmorel, located in south-eastern France, offers premium luxury and possibly some of the best skiing experiences you’ll ever have. Fully equipped with luxury apartments, you’ll be housed near the slopes of the Tarantaise Mountains. Here, you can ski, snowshoe, snowboard, go mountain biking and even paragliding.
It’s hard to think of a resort that beats Valmorel. The Grand Domaine, the adjacent ski area, covers 3,600 hectares of ground, complete with 50 ski lifts, 315 snow cannons and two snow parks. You’ll enjoy a generous 150km of ski runs, eight of them black, 17 of them red, 38 of them blue and 22 of them green.
Although ski resorts are popping up in the most unexpected places these days, it’s quite clear that they still have a lot of catching up to do when compared to the slopes of Europe. It’s going to be interesting as the competition intensifies. But for now, Europe definitely still has the best places to ski in the world.