Austria has enjoyed an excellent snow recently, and the immutable Austrian ski holiday formula is still synonymous with fun in the mountains: rolling, tree-lined slopes above charming villages, jolly inns, foaming tankards of beer, lively bars and discos, and liberal sound-bites of accordion music.
Austrian destinations continue to provide excellent skiing and snowboarding for beginners and intermediates in an enjoyable environment.
Skiers constantly express their surprise at finding spotless pensions as well as lavish hotels in the tiniest of villages, and as one commented: "all I want from a skiing holiday is plenty of easy piste-cruising and a first-class hotel that doesn't cost a fortune. That is why I return to Austria year after year".
 | The old town of Kitzbühel is a walled, medieval settlement of heavily buttressed buildings painted with delicate frescoes, which survives the relentless battering of a nine-month tourist season with aplomb. |
 | Lech and neighbouring Zürs are the most exclusive resorts in Austria. |
 | Just an hour's drive from Innsbruck (so why not add an extra day to sight-see and perhaps take in some opera?) The Stubai Valley is perched high between the picturesque Tyrolean capital and the Brenner Pass leading into Italy, and comprises the village ski areas of Neustift, Fulpmes, Telfes, Meiders and Schönberg. |
 | Obergurgl, at 1930m (6,330ft), is reached by going as far as you can up the Ötz valley, a 20-minute drive past the area's other famous ski centre, Sölden. |
 | Just 10 miles or so north-west of Innsbruck, Seefeld is one of the most picturesque of Austria's mountain towns. |
 | Sölden is a big-ski, big-party town: you'll need lots of energy to get the best of it. |
 | St Anton is to skiing what St Andrews is to golf. |
 | Like Zürs, the small village of St Christoph is quiet and exclusive - the perfect place to stay if you want to get off the beaten track, but still have access to some of the finest skiing in Europe. |
Canada is one of the world's leading ski holiday destinations, with around 300 ski centres, spread across the country.
Canada's ski areas hold a variety of distinguishing features in North American and world skiing. For example, Revelstoke and Whistler in British Columbia both offer the biggest lift served vertical drops in North America. Whistler also has the largest ski area in North America and the longest ski season for a major resort, using its glacier skiing to stay open nine months of the year.
With a fantastic selection of ski resorts to choose from, top quality snow and wide, groomed pistes, not to mention the breath taking scenery...Canada will not fail to impress.
 | Banff and Lake Louise is one of Canada's largest ski areas, and one of the most beautiful ski regions in the world; the jagged peaks reflected in the clear glacier-fed waters of Lake Louise are perhaps the most stunning and memorable of a host of natural wonders. |
 | The majority of accommodation in Big White is ski in/out making this a perfect family option, but this is also a great powder mountain too. |
 | Fernie is one of the best resorts within British Columbia for the big powder experience. |
 | Situated among the forests, glaciers, frozen lakes and waterfalls of the beautiful Jasper National Park. |
 | Is one of North America's newest resorts; that offers 30ft of annual snowfall and some of the steepest terrain. |
 | Revelstoke is a new resort and is rapidly acquiring cult like status for it's steep terrain. |
 | This quiet, family-friendly resort has a tiny traffic free centre resembling a 19th century mining town. |
 | In recent years Whistler has been acknowledged internationally as one of the finest resorts in North America. |
Skiing in Chile and Argentina began with the building of the Central Trans-Andean railway from Valparaiso to Mendoza around the turn of the last century.As no roads then accessed the Uspallata pass, near the present-day resort of Portillo, the Norwegian and British engineers and workers contracted to build the railway were forced to ascend (and descend) on skis.
In the 1930s, the first ski clubs in Chile constructed mountain refugios, and by 1946 Portillo could boast the continent's first chairlift. Skiing spread quickly throughout the country, though operations remained modest until the 1980s, when a number of Chilean ski resorts improved lifts, services, and other infrastructure to world-class levels.
 | The explora Hotel is located just outside San Pedro de Atacama - an oasis town in the north of Chile, near the Bolivian border. |
 | South America's oldest and best-known ski area is perched 2850m above a collection of blue huts housing border troops in a remote and stunning valley. |
 | For skiers and riders in search of the more offbeat face of the Chilean Andes without sacrificing quality, this spa resort - which resembles a little Swiss resort from the 1970s - best combines the two. |
 | This is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful national parks, famous all around the world for its spectacular scenery, fauna and adventure activities. |
 | Valle Nevado, the closest resort to Santiago, bears a startling resemblance to Les Arcs. |
France has the best skiing in the world - the scale of the dozen top French ski resorts is truly amazing - and this may explain why more British snow-users holiday here than in any other country. Myriad ski resorts - 319 to be exact - have been developed in France over the past 30 years.
Unlike their Alpine neighbours, most French resorts are purpose-built stations de ski that provide ski-in ski-out convenience often at a high cost to the ambience. The majority of accommodation provided is in apartments not hotels.
However, the inescapable reason why more British now ski and snowboard in France than anywhere else in the world is because, taking every factor into consideration, there is simply nowhere better for quality snow and lift systems.
 | Chamonix is truly different from any other ski resort in the world. |
 | They say God made Courchevel for skiing!The magnificent Courchevel Valley is one part of the "Three Valleys" in France. |
 | So many British people holiday or work in Méribel - in the heart of the Trois Vallées - during the winter months that any attempt to order a drink in French can be met with a look of blank incomprehension. |
 | In 1916, Baroness Noémie de Rothschild decided to find a resort in her home country to rival St Moritz. |
 | Morzine is a market town with all the appeal of an old-style chalet resort set in charming, wooded surroundings. |
 | Tignes and the neighbouring linked resort of Val d'Isère are jointly marketed as L'Espace Killy, after Jean-Claude Killy, who swept the board of gold medals at the 1968 Winter Olympics. |
 | The quality of the skiing in Val d'Isère and the linked resort of Tignes is varied and demanding. |
 | At 2,300 metres, at the far end of the Trois Vallées, this is the highest ski resort in Europe. |
The "Zugspitzland" ski region includes the Zugspitze (2,962m) in the Wettersteingebirge and Ammergauer mountain ranges, shared by Austria. It is Germany's highest mountain, and provides the country's only glacier skiing. Beneath the German side of this iconic peak are the picturesque and historic Winter Olympic twin towns of Garmisch and Partenkirchen.
 | This is the ideal resort for a ski weekend for individuals or groups. |
Italy's recent development as an international winter sports destination owes a lot to prices that are appreciably lower than those in other Alpine countries.
Many ski resorts have now powerful, modern lifts and huge snowmaking systems. It has some enduring attractions, such as its good food and wine, jolly atmosphere and splendid scenery - especially in the Dolomites and the Aosta Valley.
 | This small, unspoilt village is tucked away in a fold of the landscape and is surrounded by some of the best skiing in Italy - the Sella Ronda in the Dolomites. |
 | Cervinia is Italy's most snow-sure resort, set at 2,050m in the Aosta Valley within easy reach of Turin. |
 | The introduction of a single ski pass covering the whole of the Aosta Valley has encouraged British skiers and riders based in Courmayeur and other Aosta resorts to sample Monterosa Ski. |
 | A mountain resort famous for its cross-country skiing, where the long tracks wind in and out of the splendid natural beauties of the Gran Paradiso National Park and its 4000 metre peak. |
 | If we had to single out one ski resort in the world for the sheer beauty of its setting, combined with an attractive town and a truly all-round winter-sports resort, it would be Cortina d'Ampezzo in the craggy Dolomite mountains. |
 | This pleasant Sella Ronda resort is strategically placed for some of the best skiing in the Dolomites. |
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Official UK Courmayeur Ski Desk No-one knows Courmayeur like we do, with a 26 year history in this resort, we provide a service that is second to none.
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 | The introduction of a single ski pass covering the whole of the Aosta Valley has encouraged British skiers and riders based in Courmayeur and other Aosta resorts to sample Monterosa Ski. |
 | La Thuile is an unspoilt resort which enjoys a huge ski area linked with La Rosière in France. |
 | Nestled in the sunny Spluga Valley is the beautiful Italian resort of Madesimo. |
 | With Cortina d'Ampezzo and Courmayeur, Madonna di Campiglio vies for the title of Italy's most up-market ski resort. |
 | A small sophisticated village with mainly new Dolomite-style buildings, San Cassiano is linked with Sella Ronda resorts of Selva Gardena and close to Cortina's Hidden Valley run. |
 | The Dolomites are home to one of the largest and most beautiful ski areas in the world - 200km of pistes served by 460 lifts in one region. |
 | This Olympic ski area is smartest resort with the most challenging skiing in the whole of the Milky Way, or Via Lattea, which straddles the border between France and Italy and is reached more easily from Turin than Grenoble. |
Switzerland is an increasingly popular destination for discerning skiers and snowboarders in search of authentic Alpine atmosphere and challenging, still-unspoilt mountainsides.
One reason for Switzerland's continuing charm is that environmental pressure has largely prevented the over-development of Swiss ski villages. Almost all Swiss ski resorts can be reached by train from Geneva and Zurich airports.
Swiss International Airlines Saturday flights to Sion in the Rhône Valley give speedy access to Crans Montana, Verbier and Zermatt.
 | Arosa is one of the truly all-round ski resorts in the Alps. |
 | This traditional Swiss village is set in dramatic surroundings within easy skiing distance of Avoriaz. |
 | Sunny in December and January afternoons and views to die for, making it a perfect family destination or for a ski weekend. |
 | Davos, in the canton of Grisons, is the European birthplace of downhill skiing. |
 | It means Angel Mountain - so welcome to heaven. |
 | Flims/Laax is a year-round destination in the heart of the Graubunden on the route of the famous Glacier Express train. |
 | The Jungfrau region is one of the most popular in the Alps. |
 | Skiing is only a decorative accessory to the charm of this low-lying resort. |
 | Klosters shares the slopes of the Parsenn with Davos. |
 | Les Diablerets is a quiet village whose skiing is linked to the larger Edwardian town of Villars. |
 | Mürren has few rivals as Switzerland's prettiest and most unspoilt ski village. |
 | Saas-Fee is a delightfully unspoilt and picturesque resort set against one of the most dramatic glacial backdrops in the Alps. |
 | An all-round winter sports resort located on two levels, above and along the shores of a lake in the scenic Engadine valley. |
 | Verbier ranks alongside St Anton, Val d'Isère, Chamonix, Zermatt and Whistler in the international skiing hall of fame. |
 | Villars, situated on a sunny balcony above the Ollon Valley, is reached either by a winding road or a quaint Edwardian mountain railway. |
 | Ski tourism started in Wengen with the Downhill Only ski club, a pioneer band of British skiers formed in February 1925 to race against their Kandahar Club rivals in Mürren. |
 | If you take your skiing with sugar and cream, Zermatt is the resort in which to stay - provided, of course, you have both the wherewithal and the luck to find a vacant room in a tourist centre that has no low season at all. |
The USA has about 500 ski areas spread across more than 40 states, including many of the world famous resorts such as around Lake Tahoe, Aspen, Jackson Hole and Vail.
America ski resorts are famous for their high service standards, the quality of accommodation, relatively deserted pistes and excellent, varied resort restaurants. Also, not to mention the good quality of snow and plenty of it! The majority of resorts sitting at high altitudes, typically receive between 6-12 metres annually.
For the British market there are three main ski destination areas on the west coast; California, Colorado and Utah. Plus another western state Wyoming with the likes of Jackson Hole. Whichever ski resort you choose, you are sure to be more than satisfied!
 | Ask most Colorado skiers what they mean by Aspen and they will say: the town of Aspen, coupled with Aspen Mountain, also known by the locals as Ajax, in the heart of the Elk Mountain range . |
 | Is an elegant and secluded resort located in Colorado's Vail Valley, just a 15 minute drive from the world famous Vail. |
 | Breckenridge was the beachhead for the British skiers' invasion of America in the 1980s. |
 | Despite an aggressive marketing campaign, Copper Mountain is currently still one of the best-kept secrets of Colorado. |
 | Deer Valley is Park City's neighbour, a 40-minute drive from Salt Lake City in Utah, the state that boasts the finest, driest powder snow in the world. |
 | Surrounded by the highest concentration of ski resorts in the USA is Lake Tahoe. |
 | In this remote corner of Wyoming the snow-capped Tetons rise like jagged shark's teeth from the valley floor with no foothills to reduce their visual impact. |
 | Attracts some 400 inches of snow annually and when it's not snowing; the sun shines for an average of 300 days each year. |
 | A group of distinctively different resorts make up the Park City ski area, a 40- minute drive from Salt Lake City in Utah, the state that boasts the finest, driest powder snow in the world. |
 | There can be few places where nature has combined the steep with the deep, better than Snowbird and next-door Alta. |
 | Home to the first televised Winter Olympics held in 1960. |
 | A Wild West town set apart from the ski area base. |
 | This old mining town in a box-canyon in the San Juan Mountains has a colourful history. |
 | Vail is the showcase of American skiing. |
 | Winter Park has the best snowfall record of all Colorado's major resorts with over 9m of snowfall annually. |
