 Poster: A snowHead
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Hello guys
I posted a few weeks ago inquiring about an april destination. Plans have now changed so we will only go to ski end of jan / early feb 2027. That said reservations are opening up soon so i wanted to pick this forum’s brain
We are early intermediate skiers. Think blues and easier reds. 3V was a paradise (think jerusalem, pramint, creux, chamois etc) and i’m sure we’ll go back soon. la plagne was good too but wouldnt go there again when 3v is an option. But next year we want to go somewhere new. Ideally a beautiful / non purpose built village.. While this is still a very much a ski trip, we want to balance it with a beautiful town, a top hotel, scenery, spa and restaurants. Budget is not really a big issue.
Came to conclusion that both zermatt and VdI is a must see. Zermatt - everyone loves it and VdI i heard good things, loved the french system and there’s a particular hotel i want to stay there. But which one should i choose ski wise? I know neither is paradiski or 3v, and both are more challenging, but which one is closer to 3v experience (cruisy inter-connected intermediate runs) than for example verbier (which we been but limited skiing for our level). We will go for 9-10 days so it’s important it’s not a repetitive groundhog day every day with same 3 pistes
Thoughts very much welcome
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Long time since I was in Zermatt (2001 or so) but I never felt it offered skiing ‘convenience’ in the way that Val/ Tignes (visited last year) do: easy lift access, well invested, good pisting, long runs at all standards from green to black. I don’t think you could go wrong with Val for the type of skiing you describe and even Tignes is not all that bad looking nowadays.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Everyones taste is different from a personal point of view I think Val D'Isere is anything but a beautiful village . The vast majority of it is modern and not particularly attractive. There is very good gentle skiing at altitude but the runs to resort are not pleasant for most intermediates particularly as the day progresses.
If you want to cruise from area to area you have to go through Val D'Isere at some point and the runs to resort are not easy though downloading is straightforward and the bus service along the bottom is very reliable, if a little crowded at peak times.
Zermatt is a stunning area with decent skiing for most standards.
I wouldn't have recommended it for an April destination but for a trip at the time you want it is hard to beat the dolomites for the skiing you describe. The area is massive the pistes are perfect for intermediates it is well set up for good hotels spas great eating and the scenery is fantastic.
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| T Bar wrote: |
Everyones taste is different from a personal point of view I think Val D'Isere is anything but a beautiful village . The vast majority of it is modern and not particularly attractive. There is very good gentle skiing at altitude but the runs to resort are not pleasant for most intermediates particularly as the day progresses.
If you want to cruise from area to area you have to go through Val D'Isere at some point and the runs to resort are not easy though downloading is straightforward and the bus service along the bottom is very reliable, if a little crowded at peak times.
Zermatt is a stunning area with decent skiing for most standards.
I wouldn't have recommended it for an April destination but for a trip at the time you want it is hard to beat the dolomites for the skiing you describe. The area is massive the pistes are perfect for intermediates it is well set up for good hotels spas great eating and the scenery is fantastic. |
Amazing thanks
Where in dolomites exactly? It’s been on the list too but some hotels i’d like to stay seem to be a bit outside of main resorts. For example we’ve been to bressanone and whilst lovely it’s pretty limited ski wise
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I am a seasoned 3V intermediate skier 66 year old male. I went to Zermatt for the first time in January this year, and frankly if someone said to me that I could never ski anywhere other than Zermatt in the future I would die a happy man. I only wish I had discovered it sooner.
The village (town) is quite compact, so whilst the lifts or railways are in different parts of the town, you should be able to get to at least one pretty easily. If you are in a decent hotel they will have transport to all three lifts, which makes the process easier.
If you want lots and lots of miles then 3Vs or EK are great, but if you want a sense of journey, intermediate heaven, atmospheric village, tradition mixed with modern, and great mountain coffee and food stops then you should try Zermatt and imo January is perfect.
And as early intermediates you should still be able to get into Cervinia for a couple of days, which is incredibly cruisy and great Italian food.
In addition to this, if you are flying into Geneva or Zurich, travel by train, a lovely calm journey, you have a sense that you are already on holiday from the moment that you step onto the train.
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| DavidYacht wrote: |
I am a seasoned 3V intermediate skier 66 year old male. I went to Zermatt for the first time in January this year, and frankly if someone said to me that I could never ski anywhere other than Zermatt in the future I would die a happy man. I only wish I had discovered it sooner.
The village (town) is quite compact, so whilst the lifts or railways are in different parts of the town, you should be able to get to at least one pretty easily. If you are in a decent hotel they will have transport to all three lifts, which makes the process easier.
If you want lots and lots of miles then 3Vs or EK are great, but if you want a sense of journey, intermediate heaven, atmospheric village, tradition mixed with modern, and great mountain coffee and food stops then you should try Zermatt and imo January is perfect.
And as early intermediates you should still be able to get into Cervinia for a couple of days, which is incredibly cruisy and great Italian food.
In addition to this, if you are flying into Geneva or Zurich, travel by train, a lovely calm journey, you have a sense that you are already on holiday from the moment that you step onto the train. |
Oh thats amazing thanks a lot! I think it’s really a matter of which one i see first at this stage 
Zermatt map looks pretty red all around with very little blues. Are these reds mild? How do they compare to blues of 3v i mentioned? We can do most reds we attempt in 3v but if there’s an option we will just take blue because its more forgiving. Jerusalem and 3 marches are prob our favorites
And any good hotel reco in zermatt?
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| Occam10 wrote: |
| T Bar wrote: |
Everyones taste is different from a personal point of view I think Val D'Isere is anything but a beautiful village . The vast majority of it is modern and not particularly attractive. There is very good gentle skiing at altitude but the runs to resort are not pleasant for most intermediates particularly as the day progresses.
If you want to cruise from area to area you have to go through Val D'Isere at some point and the runs to resort are not easy though downloading is straightforward and the bus service along the bottom is very reliable, if a little crowded at peak times.
Zermatt is a stunning area with decent skiing for most standards.
I wouldn't have recommended it for an April destination but for a trip at the time you want it is hard to beat the dolomites for the skiing you describe. The area is massive the pistes are perfect for intermediates it is well set up for good hotels spas great eating and the scenery is fantastic. |
Amazing thanks
Where in dolomites exactly? It’s been on the list too but some hotels i’d like to stay seem to be a bit outside of main resorts. For example we’ve been to bressanone and whilst lovely it’s pretty limited ski wise |
I cannot personally recommend hotels as we self cater, though there are quite a few reports from happy Snowheads of different hotels in the area.
Personally I would go to somewhere with reasonable access to the Sella Ronda for seeing the different areas. The Val DI Fassa can get very busy form the base in my experience so I would go with Corvara , Colfosco La Villa Arraba Selva Santa Christina or places nearby. That is not in any particular order of preference. We have been returning to Corvara for quite a few years and it is very conveniently situated, we would doubtless enjoy other spots as much but have found an apartment that suits us.
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I would suggest that if you were happy on Jerusalem or Creux you will be fine … I have skied Jerusalem in the past when it was not great, other times when it was the best ever, but not quite the secret spot that it was.
It really is down to the snow conditions, but when we were there in January the piste preparation was better than 3Vs or perhaps just less traffic. You could start at the Sunnegga area to work yourselves in. We were doing around 40km a day, and some of our group never went on a black.
Cervinia is extremely easy, and don’t get intimidated by those who go on about the lifts closing in high wind, yes they do, but unlikely to change status through the day, just plan for a day with less wind and good vis.
Other resorts are available, but Zermatt does fit your brief.
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