It’s every skier’s holiday nightmare. You turn up to the slopes and, instead of fresh white powder, you’re greeted by a mass of sludge slowly liquefying into green-brown mud.
The Alps have had a torrid season, with higher-than-average temperatures and heavy rain forcing many resorts to close, sometimes within weeks of opening. For long stretches it was too warm even to operate snow cannons, which can magic up artificial snow but require low temperatures to work. While snowfall has picked up in time to save the season in some places, in Italy alone there are now 200 fewer ski resorts than in the 1980s.
But there are still some pockets that can offer a reliable season. The key things to look at are the altitude of the resort (higher the better), whether there’s a glacier around, and what the average temperature is when you’re travelling.
Savills, the property company, uses these attributes and more (season length, average snowfall and general reliability) to compile an annual ranking of the most resilient ski resorts. Here we round up the five top-ranking European spots – and why they’re worth a visit.
Zermatt, Switzerland
Cost for a five-day adult lift pass: £268
This Swiss ski haven is not just the most reliable resort in Europe, according to Savills – it’s the most reliable in the world. Last year it fought off US heavyweights Vail and Aspen to retain its crown in the firm’s index for the third year in a row. With an altitude of 3,900m at its highest point, Zermatt is the highest resort in Switzerland. Looming over it is the Matterhorn, which has 14 pristine glaciers for skiing.
Aside from skiing, the area offers excellent snow-shoeing, winter hiking, sledging and ice-skating. Zermatt is also known for having the highest concentration of top chefs in Switzerland. It has 17 restaurants listed in the Michelin guide – of which four are starred. Prices are often steep, so this isn’t the destination for a trip on a tight budget.
It’s relatively easy to reach from both Zurich and Geneva, with regular train connections straight from the airports. Luxury rental site Le Collectionist has 20 chalets in Zermatt to choose from, with prices ranging from €2,600 per week to the hundreds of thousands.
Breuil-Cervinia, Italy
Cost for a five-day adult lift pass: from £202
Also in the shadow of the Matterhorn, Breuil-Cervinia (generally just known as Cervinia) ranked second in Europe for ski resilience. It sits at a higher altitude than any other Italian resort and, similarly to Zermatt, benefits from the nearby glaciers. The resort won’t be winning any architecture prizes and lacks charm, but it does offer very good value for money considering you get to use the same slopes that the chic clientele in Zermatt pay so much for.
Cervinia ranked in the ten cheapest European destinations in the Post Office’s Ski Resort Report, which compares the cost of ski and boot hire, lift passes, ski school, lunch and drinks to give an approximate price per adult skier for a one-week holiday. The average cost in the Italian resort came out at £710.99, excluding flights and accommodation.
The local hotel offering has been improving, too. With prices for a double room starting from £94 per night, Hotel Meynet is a strong option for ski-in access. There’s also a lively dining area and bar.
The nearest airport is Turin (less than a two-hour drive away) but you can also fly to Milan or Geneva if you’re happy to spend an extra hour in a car or bus.
Sölden, Austria
Cost for a five-day adult lift pass: from £211
Austria’s second highest resort has three different mountains on its doorstep – all of which soar beyond 3,000m. Sölden also has two glacier ski areas and enough variety to be extremely family-friendly, with 144km of slopes for all abilities. For those wanting a challenge, the BIG 3 Rally tour is a killer for the legs: covering 50km and all three of those 3,000m+ peaks (Schwarze Schneid, Tiefenbachkogl and Gaislachkogl).
The nightlife is buzzy – more local and not so glitzy as St Anton. In most places, you’re only a few runs away from one of the 33 huts doing hearty food and après. If you want a quiet night’s sleep, it’s worth staying a little away from the town centre and its late-night bars. The 3* Gästehaus Kneisl is a cosy B&B that is central but far enough away from the main strip to be peaceful. It’s run by a friendly Austrian family who do a generous continental breakfast. Rates for a double room start from around £70 per night.
Travel-wise, the most convenient option is flying to Innsbruck then booking the Ötztal Shuttle, which takes you directly from the terminal to Sölden.
Tignes, France
Cost for a five-day adult lift pass: £279
Tignes and Val Thorens (the resort which places just after it in the resilience rankings) are two of the cheapest options in France. The Post Office’s Ski Resort Report puts the cost of a week-long trip at £882 and £859 respectively – again minus accommodation and flights. Only La Plagne, Les Deux Alpes and Les Arcs come out cheaper – and none of them score so well for snow surety.
In Tignes you have access to the Grande Motte glacier, which only closes for a couple of months each year. The resort shares 300km of slopes with neighbour Val d’Isère and they are pretty evenly split between beginner and more advanced routes.
Tignes is made up of five different villages. Base yourself in Val Claret or Tignes Le Lac if you want shops, cafés and restaurants within walking distance. Ski Solutions lists 80 different places to stay in Tignes, with prices starting from £325 per person for seven nights.
The main gateway airport is Geneva, from which you can catch a bus that takes around three hours. Eurostar and Travelski have also started offering a direct train service from London to Bourg-Saint-Maurice. From there it’s only a half-hour bus ride to Tignes.
Val Thorens, France
Cost for a five-day adult lift pass: from £217
Even Val Thorens was forced to push back its opening dates last year – but this resort is usually known for being a stalwart of the French ski season, starting early and finishing late. It just sneaked ahead of Val d’Isère to make it into Savills’s top five.
The resort is popular with families and young people. There’s dog-sledding and snow-tubing for little ones as well as live music and dancing for the twenty-somethings. Residence L’Oxalys has family-friendly piste-side apartments from £304 per night (on a self-catered basis).
The nearest airports are Chambéry, Geneva and Lyon but here too the train can be a low-effort though slower alternative. The Eurostar-Travelski service also goes to Moûtiers – a 40-minute shuttle away from Val Thorens.
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