Getting High
+ Guaranteed snow – ideal for early/late season trips
+ Long runs wth big vertical
+ Spectacular views requiring a few photo stops
– Can be very cold at the top
– Long journey times to get up there
– Can be unpleasant in high winds and white out conditions

The single most important factor in a trip to the mountains is snow. Most resorts now have extensive snowmaking to help out Mother Nature if there is a lack of the real stuff but it’s not quite the same is it? So how to guarantee snow cover? Head high to one of our 3,000m+ resorts:

High and large lift-linked areas include Alpe-d’huez (France) and Verbier (Switzerland)

High and compact lift-linked areas include: Engelberg (Switzerland) with nearly 2,000m vertical.

High and non lift-linked areas requiring ground transport include Chamonix (France), Innsbruck and Zell am See (Austria)

Into the Trees
+ More scenic than wide open bowls
+ Protected with better visibility in poor weather
+ Great fun in good snow cover
– At lower altitudes which could affect snow quality
– Shorter runs
– Pistes can be crowded in low visibility

Do you find runs on high open bowls a bit too similar? Then you need a resort to inject a bit of variety and that works best when you have tree lined pistes. You have to stay low to find the trees but this can make all the difference in poor weather. Try these forest friendly resorts:

Tree lined and compact lift-linked areas include Bansko and Borovets (Bulgaria) and Courmayeur (Italy)

Tree lined and mid-sized lift-linked areas include La Thuile (Italy), Schladming and Zell am See (Austria)

Tree lined and large-sized lift-linked areas include Serre Chevalier (France)