Top Ten Ski Resorts in Europe

Andorra
1. Grau Roig is one of the main centres for cross-country skiing, dog-sleigh rides and drives in snowmobiles in Andorra. Elsewhere in this tiny principality between France and Spain, you can try hang gliding (Soldeu), snowshoe walking (Coll de la Botella) and ski jumping or ski biking (Pal, Arinsal). There are modern ski lifts and excellent ski schools and the season is relatively long, with reliable snow, often under sunny skies. The pistes are well maintained and groomed and you can easily get from one resort to another.

Blafjoll
2. Iceland’s largest ski area, Blafjöll ski resort, is only 30 minutes away from Reykjavík and caters for all abilities from beginners to champions. There are five different skiing areas and the main slopes are illuminated for night skiing. Eleven ski lifts have a combined capacity of 8,100 people per hour. The three ski clubs prove overnight accommodation for 100 skiers and snowboarders. The nearby Kerlingarfjöll and Vatnajökull glaciers provide alternative skiing in the winter and the only skiing in the summer. Away from the slopes there is much to see, including the capital, Reykjavík, an attractive city with both modern buildings and quaint turn-of-the-century timber houses and an old fishing harbour. Blafjöll is a superb base from which to explore the rest of Iceland.

Bormio
3. More than 50 km of slopes and 14 ski lifts with a capacity of 14,000 persons/hour make Bormio, northern Italy, a great destination for skiers. One its slopes, the 4-km Stelvio, is considered ideal for the annual men's downhill race, whereas the Valbella and Betulle are favourites among those who prefer difficult slopes. Even for beginners there are easy slopes up on the mountain as well as down in the valley. Two new covered chairlifts to the top of the mountain were in operation for the first time in 2004/05. The Via Roma, with its characteristic little shops and frescoes on the walls of its houses, constitutes the heart of the two-thousand-year-old town of Bormio. The Kuerc, the main town square, dates from the 13th century.

Gleann Shith
4. Glenshee, or Gleann Shith (Gaelic for ‘Glen of the Fairies’), borders the highest public road in Scotland, which runs through the Cairnwell pass, formerly one of the main historic drove routes from the Highlands to the Lowlands. Skiing began here in the late 1930s, when a few enthusiasts who had learned to ski in Europe came here to practise the sport. Following the war, some of them returned to build simple rope tows, driven off the rear wheel of tractors. Sixty years on, Glenshee Ski Centre offers the UK's most extensive skiing and snowboarding facilities. The resort has 21 lifts and 36 runs over an amazing diversity of natural terrain for all standards of skiers and snowboarders. Other activities in the area include gliding, golf, fishing, walking, mountain biking, bird watching, 4 x 4 off-road, clay pigeon shooting, swimming, riding, castle and whisky trails and dog sledding.

Kitzbuhel
5. Kitzbühel, Austria, hosts the Hahnenkahm,one of the most treacherous and most famous of all of the downhill races on the world cup circuit. As a result it has earned much publicity, which it has exploited well. The resort and a number of other satellites present a formidable selection of ski terrain and diversity to rival anything in the Alps. In spite of its reputation for fierce competition, the notorious Streif race course reverts to a more sedate role as a family run and the Kitzbüheler Horn, the town's second classic ski area, is also suitable for beginners and improvers. The snow can be a bit unreliable, but in some recent years Kitzbühel has had the best snow record in the Alps. The picturesque medieval town, with its heavily buttressed walls and delicate frescoes, is full of history and charm, but it’s sassy as well, with expensive boutiques and luxurious restaurants.

Les Arcs
6. Les Arcs, France, was one of the first of the French ski resorts to capitalize on the snowboarding craze: there’s a specialist park with a variety of jumps and a border-cross course. The resort, which is not far from Bourg-St-Maurice, offers 3,500 beds in 2007, 30 shops and a shuttle service between its five villages. Les Arcs has recently been linked with La Plagne, creating the Paradiski area, with slopes totalling more than 420 km, which means there is something suitable for every level of ski or snowboard ability. It’s a glorious area too, situated below the Aiguille Rouge and with spectacular views of Mont Blanc.

Lillehammer 7. The Olympic Park in Lillehammer, Norway, is a fantastic starting point for rambling trips, providing you with close-up views of magnificent Norwegian nature. In the summer you can go wheel bobsledding – whizzing down the track at speeds up to 120 km/hr and experiencing the feeling of 5G. Or you can try a softer bob in winter on the ‘bobraft’, a sleigh that reaches speeds up to only 80 km/hr. Both are steered by a certified ‘pilot’. If you like your activities independent, then use the beautiful ski areas or visit the Lysgårdsbakken Stadion, a ski jump hill that hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1994 Winter Olympics. Out of hours, there’s the famous Maihaugen, the largest open-air museum in Norway, with 185 historic buildings from the town and surrounding area. A great place for all the family and reachable by low-cost charter flight.

Pamporovo
8. Pamporovo is the second largest ski resort in Bulgaria following Borovets. It lies in the Rhodopi mountains, some 1650m above sea level. Less than 240km from the capital, Sofia, it is Europe’s southernmost ski resort. Because of the influence of mild Mediterranean weather, Pamporovo’s temperature varies little through the day and the peaks surrounding the town protect it from strong winders and prevent snow on the ski runs from being blown away. The resort boasts a total length of 17.5 km of alpine ski runs, plus excellent modern ski and hotel facilities. Out of season there’s plenty to enjoy too – hiking, climbing and visiting the famous strangely shaped Orpheus Rocks.

Saas-Fee
9. The car-free village of Saas-fee, Switzerland, looks virtually unchanged since 20 years ago. It has strictly adhered to the old days in the Swiss mountains – and to a law that requires buildings to be forty per cent wood – yet with all the necessary modern facilities and nose for business that makes this a top-ranking modern resort, which plays host to a number of international tournaments. Great for snowboarding, the resort also offers skiing, carving, snowshoe trekking, canyon climbing, ice climbing, paragliding, hang gliding and tobogganing. There are 26 lifts and 100 km of cross-country track (30 km beginner, 45 km intermediate, 25 km advanced). If you like odd facts, you’ll want to know that the resort features the highest underground funicular railway in the world and the highest revolving restaurant in the world at 3,500 m. Sierra Nevada
10. Spain’s foremost ski destination is the Sierra Nevada, just two hours’ drive from the Costa del Sol and just above Granada, famous for its magnificent Moorish Alhambra Palace. It has the best snow and the longest season in the country, lasting five months. Sierra Nevada has 61 km of ski slopes with 45 pistes and 6 off-piste routes. As well as two cable cars, there are also 12 chair lifts and 5 ski lifts. Night skiing was introduced in 1994 with lighting along the 3-km El Rio slope (545 m vertical drop). Sierra Nevada is also a cool place to be seen, even if you don’t ski, and out of season you’ll find plenty of opportunities for activities in the clean air, including walking and golf.

To find the best holidays to any of these and other destinations, look for the UK-based operator AwimAway (020 7430 1766, www.awimaway.com) that offers adventure and experiential holidays around the world, customised to suit your desires and your budget.