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Sound Advice!
For me, nothing compares with the thrill of throwing back the bedroom curtains to reveal a blue sky and snow-capped peaks bathed in early morning sunlight, says Felice Hardy, co-author of The Great Skiing & Snowboarding Guide 2006.
Sheer escapism is one of the great advantages of skiing holidays. It is impossible to worry about the bank manager or problems at work when all your thoughts are concentrated on the thrill of skiing – or simply being – in a snow-covered landscape. |
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France
France has convenient skiing (often straight from the hotel or apartment door), sophisticated childcare, gourmet restaurants and some of the biggest linked ski areas in the world. The Trois Vallées and Paradiski (from Geneva, Chambéry or Lyon airports), and the Portes du Soleil (from Geneva) have few rivals when it comes to sheer size and variety of terrain.
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| Credit: OT Les Arcs, Tarentaise, French Alps |
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Austria
Austria has some lovely little villages, with gentle slopes, family-run hotels and great après-ski. The ski areas are more modest in size and most people come for the ambience and some not-too-challenging skiing. Exceptions include St Anton (from Innsbruck), which has some of the toughest skiing in the world.
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Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is affordable, and resorts like Bansko in Bulgaria (from Sofia airport) are developing fast. It now even has its first five-star hotel, The Kempinski Hotel Grand Arena.
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Italy
In Italy, you can’t avoid the enticing aromas of homemade pasta and wood-fired pizza wafting across the piste. The Dolomites are arguably the world’s most beautiful mountains. There is enjoyable piste and off-piste skiing at Courmayeur and throughout the Aosta valley, little more than an hour’s drive of Geneva via the Mont Blanc Tunnel. A personal favourite hotel in the Courmayeur area is Auberge de la Maison in the quiet little hamlet of Entrèves, which has attractive rooms, and friendly owners.
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Whichever country you go for, the choice of hotel, chalet or apartment is as important as selecting the right resort. Proximity to the nursery slopes, the lifts and ski school is a great energy-saver, so work out the location of your accommodation before anything else.
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Andorra
Andorra used to be the bargain basement of Europe but is now going swiftly upmarket with smart hotels and a modern lift system. Lessons delivered in your own language are a massive advantage and a high percentage of the instructors are native English-speakers. The four-star Sporthotel Village in Soldeu (nearest airports Toulouse and Barcelona) heads the list of Andorra’s new-wave accommodation. At Arinsal (near Toulouse or Barcelona), Hotel Princesa Park and Princesa Diana is a mélange of eccentric styles, and includes a bar called The Bog.
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See also 
Where to Stay
Advanced | Intermediate | Beginners |
Families | Non-skiers |
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Norway
Norway offers the full Scandinavian experience of white, weatherboarded houses set in pine woods, with reindeer sleigh rides and local people who mostly speak perfect English. Geilo (near Oslo) is particularly suited to beginners and families, with an excellent ski school. For something a little different, the Skarsnuten Hotel in Hemsedal (near Oslo) is made from rocks, steel and glass and situated on a red run above the Skisenter.
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Finland
Finland is great for non-skiers and groups of mixed ability with some members who might decide not to ski every day. In Levi you can go snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, dog-sledding or take a reindeer sleigh ride.
Check this week's flight deals to Helsinki |
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