CI Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 As we are on a bit of a budget this year we are considering saving some money by skiing in Scotland as opposed to an expensive overseas trip during the school half term Has anyone been skiing in Scotland ? Is it any good or not ? Which resort would you recommend (if any) Thanks for any info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MMFy Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 I went to Cairngorm (Aviemore) with a friend in December 2010 when the country was covered in snow. We drove the 594-mile journey overnight. It took 10 hours. I could have got to anywhere in Europe for that. We got to the mountain on the Friday morning at about 8:45. The road up to the car park was treacherous. It was closed to the public at 9:00 am and deemed unsafe. The whole country had rather a lot of snow that week, and Cairngorm was no exception. The winds were very high though, and the lifts stopped for about an hour at one point, with the operators at the Ptarmigan Funicular base offering refunds for those that didn't want to brave the -14C conditions or the 50mph winds. Scotland was a lot more humid than Europe or America, and a lot lore windy. It is not uncommon for the wind to blow a lot of the snow off the summit, making conditions particularly poor. We rode for three days, staying in a hostel at £15/night. Now this is a bargain - driving the 1,200 mile round trip in a diesel Focus cost us about £150, and £30 each for a couple of night accommodation made the trip about £105 for half a week's (considering you only ride for six days during a week's trip to Europe) holiday. Saturday night yielded an extra 10" of snow and the wind dropped off, making Sunday something of a bonus powder day. OK, an epic powder day! Scotland can be good if there is good snow, but the temperatures can fluctuate wildly, and prolonged heavy snow can often be blown into gullies or followed by rain, making conditions extremely poor. Friends have been to Scotland more than me, but unless you can go at the drop of a hat and don't mind where you stay, you can't guarantee that you will be able to ride when you get there. Cairngorm has got about 60km of trails, although there was only about 25km open during our trip. The lift pass was still over £30 per day, making it around the same sort of price as most of the larger European resorts. Europe is more likely to yield better and more reliable snow though. Colorado is normally far better than Europe, but I went last year for the new year (fourth trip out there) and the snow was dreadful - it was the worst snowfall for 20 years. I'm off to Les Arcs in a couple of weeks on a deal I have arranged for 8 people. I don't bother with package deals or agents, it's far cheaper to book holidays yourself. Have a look at the following sites and search for flights with www.skyscanner.net www.pv-holidays.com www.ownersdirect.co.uk www.homeaway.co.uk The place I am going in Les Arcs is £921 per person for half term for a package deal. I've booked it independently (two weeks before half term) for £360 per person. In conclusion, Scotland was good when we caught the excellent conditions, but if it gets a bit shit, you might find yourself spending all your days in the Winking Owl. Europe or America are going to be a lot more reliable if you want to spend your days riding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 I don't ski, but the missus does, and she advises as follows (and endorses MMFy's advice above, which she says is all true and excellent comment). Don't book a long way in advance. Scottish skiing is so weather-dependent compared to places with more reliable conditions, that you need to decide to go at short notice to take advantage of conditions. If you get the wrong weather, it will be unusable or else at best "scaffy" - Scottish term - you get the drift (see what I did there). Check the weather 5-7 days before, and decide then, or at less notice if possible. Weather might be better on the East or the West, there's no telling until a few days before. Generally, compared to Europe, runs are short, it's windier, the light is flat and conditions are cloudy so you can't always see bumps and dips clearly. So it can be good, and good value, but if you commit to set dates well in advance, you may be disappointed. Best is to come up for a weekend when it looks good, to see if you like it. Also best to pick a year when Scottish and English half-term doesn't coincide. Usually they don't, but I think this year they might. Not sure though. In Scottish half term, it's busy, queues are long, but the runs are still short. And have a plan B. Stay somewhere where you can do something else if it turns out conditions are bad. Like ice climbing at Kinlochleven, or lots of other things, if you can stay a few miles away and drive in each day. Basically, don't commit to a prebooked week in a place where the only thing to do is ski. Useful site to check: http://ski.visitscotland.com/ (and the individual centres' sites, accessed via that link). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted January 14, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted January 14, 2013 So Scottish skiing is basically the Euro version of Vermont or New Hampshire... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 So Scottish skiing is basically the Euro version of Vermont or New Hampshire... Scottish skiing, like most other things in Scottishland, is a test of character... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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