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International (Europe/Japan/Southern Hemisphere) Selva Val Gardena Feb. 17-24

Bolder

Out on the slopes
Skier
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Dec 1, 2017
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486
Thought I'd post this, as Val Gardena is an iconic European ski center.

My first time to Val Gardena, and it more than lived up to expectations. This was something of a luxe trip so we didn't pinch pennies. That said, VG can be relatively afforadable.

Travel: We flew from Paris to Milan on EJ, then rented an Opel Insignia wagon for the easy four-hour drive to Selva (autostrada for all except last 25 km). Only traffic was a tiny backup entering the valley at Ortisei. Roads were clear as there hadn't been much fresh snow in a few weeks below 1500 m.

Accommodations: We stayed at Gutonhof, an agriturismo/"wellness" spa run by Werner and Heidi Perathoner. He is a former WC skier. It's a working farm, with cows/goats etc. We had fresh milk, bread and eggs every day. There were 6 of us in a modern 2br/2ba apartment with incredible views down the valley and overlooking the town center. It was a bit off the main drag, so even though there was a skibus stop we just drove to where we needed to go. No complaints with lodging, and the spa was wonderful to ease sore muscles.

Skiing: We were 6 of varying ages and abilities (my brother and I, our wives, my two kids, 9 and 11), so required a bit of coordination. The skibus system looks good on paper (routes w/in Selva, S. Cristina, Ortisei, then buses up and down the valley), but in reality it's not easy to use, as there aren't timed connections. That was kind of a bummer, which meant we had to drive to various areas (we had 2 cars) and pay for parking or drop people off. If you were a couple or 4 people of similar abilities the buses would be easier to use. On the plus side parking was cheap -- no more than 7 euros a day anywhere.

Instruction: I like to take one private lesson everywhere we go, just to see how the various schools teach. I had a one-hour session (45 euros) with Mirko Perathoner from the Italian ski school, a local guy who like all locals speaks 4 languages (German/Italian/English/Ladin dialect). He gave me a few drills to keep my shoulders heading down the fall line. But the best part was talking about growing up in the area.

Various areas: Starting from top to bottom: Plan Gralba is perfect for beginners/intermediates/kids. It gets good sun until 2 pm, no hard slopes and plenty of side piste for those who like trees. The runs are not very long. My wife, who is a second weeker after decades of X Country, loved it. Can recommend the Baita di Sole and Passo Sella restaurants. It does give access to Sella Ronda, which we didn't do, as well as the rest of the valley, with connecting lifts. Selva/Ciampinoi lift: Steep reds and the Saslong DH: fun early in the day but got scraped off after noon. We mostly used this area for transiting. Too hard for beginners. Dantercepies: Super reds/blacks for high speed turns. Really good snow, but a bit limited variety. Skied this two times for an hour or so each time. Seceda: My favorite runs: reds/black you can just crank big GS turns on. My brother, who is an excellent all-mountain skier, said he'd never seen me ski so well. We didn't do the long run down to Ortisei as the weather was so good up on the plateau. Alpe di Siusi: this (the largest Alpine meadow habitat in Europe) was our biggest disappointment. The runs are great for beginners, and yet the blues are connected only with reds, for the most part. Makes absolutely no sense. However, it is beautiful, and worth a day for any intermediate on up.

The Val Gardena pass gives you access to all these areas, for 274 euros a week or 54 a day; the Dolomiti Superski gives you access to 1200 km of pistes, including Cortina, Arabba, Corvara etc, for just 294 euros, or 59 a day. Deal!

Snow: We had a few dustings overnight and one day of fresh 6-8 cm. Piste-bashing was excellent but a lot of the liaison runs were cut up by noon, as I mentioned. Best conditions were on the Seceda and Dantercepies.

Crowds: Yes and no. We never had to wait more than 5 minutes for a gondola/telecabine, but some slopes were really crowded -- the home runs back to S. Cristina from Seceda, the red down from the top of Ciampinoi etc. But for half term, was to be expected. Alpe di Siusi was empty.

Food: Is why we go to Italy for many vacations. Lunches were typical Sudtirol fare, dumplings/schnitzel/pasta/beer/wine/espresso. Think fresh pasta with bolognese sauce or polenta with mushrooms for around 11 euros. I had the best-ever tiramisu.

Infrastructure: With the exception of the skibus, many modern lifts, even some heated 6- and 8- packs, with plastic bubbles. The various elevators and conveyor belts were handy, as was the underground train in S. Cristina that gets you to Saslong from bottom of Seceda gondola.

après-ski: Didn't do, but the traditional haunts the Luislkeller and La Stua were hopping. Typical beery singalongs to "Sweet Caroline..." The Passo Sella stube up on the mountain has a stripper pole, which my 11 year old son noticed.

In sum: Italian food and weather with Germanic efficiency. What's not to like? The drawbacks were mainly that various blue runs were only accessible by red runs, which is counter to good trail design. However, intermediates won't have a problem skidding down some of the chutes.

Hardcore experts will probably want more, as there weren't any butt-puckering black runs, although doing the Saslong DH "camel humps" at even half-speed was terrifying. () I have a new admiration for WC downhillers. Even so, my 9 year old daughter had no problem with any of the blacks.

Val G is up there with Zermatt as something every skier should do once. The sheer variety of runs and ground you can cover is awe-inspiring, and the infrastructure can't be beat. Did I mention the food?
 

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