Skiing in Europe

After spending the past 10 months in and around Europe, there is something that we have yet to do. We have toured the castles, seen the museums, and have enjoyed the food, yet, we still haven’t gone skiing.

Before leaving the United States we loved to go skiing any chance we got. We traveled to some of the countries best ski resorts and were always looking for the next great place to check off our list. And here we are in Europe with so many amazing places to go skiing and we haven’t been even once!

One of the reasons why our family of three has not hit the slopes in Europe is that we assumed that it would cost as small fortune. We assumed wrong! In looking at the ski and snowboard packages at SnowTrex we were surprised to see how cheap it is. In fact, in many places it’s actually cheaper than skiing at most of the popular ski resorts in the United States.

In the United States most people brag about how much vertical they have done in a single day. Many skiers and snowboarders race down the slope, take the lift up, and race back down the slope again and again trying to rack up vertical points. But if you want real vertical, Europe is the place to go! Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in Wyoming claims the most vertical in the USA at a respectable 4105 feet (1251 meters.) Having personally skied there you can rack up vertical points really quick with Jackson’s steep and extreme runs! But Europe, on the other hand, makes Jackson Hole look like a bunny slope! Many European ski resorts have over 6,000 feet of vertical. Chamonix, France claims the most at a whopping 9,186 feet (2800 meters) of vertical that will make anyone’s thighs burn. If you like long runs, Cervinia – Breuil in Italy has a run that is 20 kilometers long. If you are looking for long runs and vertical Zermatt, Switzerland boasts 7,250 feet (2,200 meters) of vertical with the longest ski run of 14 kilometers!

Besides having lots of vertical and long runs, Europe’s ski resorts offer something else that would make skiing there a lot of fun. Many of the ski resorts and mountain towns are interconnected. You can ski from one resort or town to another and take a lift or bus to get back to your starting point.

Everyone knows that Europe is famous for having amazing food. Well, from what we have heard that doesn’t stop when you go to the mountains. If you are hungry at an American ski resort your choices for food are generally burgers, fries, chilidogs, or nachos. At Europe’s ski resorts you will find braised lamb shanks, cheese fondue, world-class cheese and cured meats, wild mushroom risotto, or any number of other fine dishes.

And if après-ski is your thing we have heard that Europe is the place to be! After a long day of skiing you can enjoy beverages with family and friends while listening to music at the bars on the mountain.