Despite a market contraction, UK demand is increasing for Japanese ski resort Hakuba.

Despite the contraction of the UK ski market over the past few years, interest in Japanese ski resorts seems to keep increasing with the Ski Club of Great Britain announcing new packages there this winter while specialist ski tour operator W&O Travel Ski Dream is offering the previously little covered resort of Hakuba for the 2010/11 season. Continue reading ‘Despite ski market contraction in UK, demand for Japan is strong’

Workers are working quickly so that skiers at Madonna di Campiglio will enjoy a new black run this winter.

Italy’s Madonna di Campiglio has announced they’re currently building a new ski run they hope will be complete ready for winter 2010-11.

The new Nube D’Oro run in the Spinale sector will be served by the Homonym chairlift and end in front of Montagnoli mountain hut. Continue reading ‘Madonna di Campiglio to unveil a new black run next season’

Too little too late? Environmentalists covered up 295,275 square feet of the Presena Glacier this summer in Italy in a bid to slowdown the melting.

Having lost 40% of its mass in the decade leading up to 2003 due to global warming, environmental authorities at the Presena Glacier above Passo Tonale attempted to cover the glaciar’s surface with an insulating and reflective ‘blanket’ this summer in a effort to slow the rate of melting. Continue reading ‘Italy’s Presena Glacier cover up’

An enterprising project to reopen a lift at Pejo will increase vertical by 50% and provide access to runs that have been closed for 25 years.

After the original lift ceased operating a quarter of a century ago, one of the most exciting projects in Europe of the summer has been the installation of a new cable car at Pejo, in the Italian Dolomites that will dramatically increase skiable vertical. Continue reading ‘Pejo’s super dolomite cable car to reopen 25 years after it stopped operating’

Glacier skiing is in full summer swing in Italy once again.

Looking to cool off in Italy this summer? Your are just in luck, following the re-opening of the country’s third glacier, Val Senales this past week.  It joins Passo Stelvio and the Presena glacier above Passo Tonale, which had one red and one black run open at the weekend but it likely to close in the near future.  However, Cervinia will re-open a week on Saturday for summer skiing and boarding keeping the Italian choices up at three.

Continue reading ‘Three Italian summer ski options are up and going’

Colorado's Copper Mountain ski resort.

Colorado’s Copper Mountain and Italy’s Val di Fassa have topped a list of the most satisfying ski vacation destination this season.

The numbers come from a poll conducted by TUI Ski, the company which owns Britain’s largest ski tour operator Crystal, as well as other leading brands Thomson, First Choice and Flexiski.

Copper Mountain in Colorado is the most popular overall, although as the company sends a limited number of clients there, the verdict is not based on the number of passengers. The company believes Val di Fassa would probably triumph if the number of forms returned was factored.

Continue reading ‘Copper and Val di Fassa top ski satisfaction survey’

During a long day on the slopes of Speikboden resort in Italy, skiing world renowned record addict Oliver Kern set two new world records.

He managed to total 60,874 vertical metres (200,000 feet) skied in one day, and in the process 5,550 (18.210 ft) vertical meters during one hour.

Along with the two world records, by the end of the record day, the 36-year-old German had skied a 5.5 km long run 58 times as well as additional slopes adding up to a total of 361 kilometres (226 miles) skied. Kern also took the 2,887 metre long gondola with a difference in height of 1,022m 58 times as well four additional chair lifts making a total of 520km (325 miles) in the gondola and on the slopes.

Continue reading ‘Oliver Kern breaks two distance world records in a day’