Going to Soldeu end of Feb. Has anyone done any of the non-skiing stuff such as dog sledding, snow bikes etc? Also is it possible to visit the iglu hotel without staying there?
Cheers
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I did dog sledding at El Tarter a couple of years ago, it was fun mushing around the track.
There%26#39;s lots more non skiing activities available, check ou the link.
www.grandvalira.com/gv/main.aspx…
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Just come back from Soldeu so thought i%26#39;d respond to my own question for the sake of others. Skidooing was expensive and it got a bit repetitive going round and round a field in circles. The repetition was only broken by the really dodgy bits were the track was too icy or too dangerous for the inexperienced rider. Huskies were cheaper and much more enjoyable. Visited the Igloo bar in Pas but it was closed so cant comment. Had a free session at the spa in Soldeu which was brilliant, later in the week went to the Caldea spa in Andorra la Vella which was a rip-off and very poor in comparison. Hope this helps all of those other people who plan to do more than beat themselves up on the slopes.
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We%26#39;re thinking of going skiing there next winter. How was the skiing? Can you give me an idea of how it compares to St. Anton, Zermatt, Vail, Whistler, Utah, etc? How easy was it to get around the mountain to use the entire ski area? How was the tree skiing?
Thanks
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Dear dbldutch
Having been there, I can tell you that the skiing available at Zermatt and Vail is far superior to that available within the Grandvalira region - so if these are two of your most favourite places, and you are an experienced and good off-piste skiier, then Andorra is NOT the place for you.
HOWEVER, I stayed at Pas de la Casa a couple of years ago, and was very impressed at how good the ski area was. Pas is the better place to stay for experienced skiiers, as there are far more red %26amp; black runs here. Soldeu is mostly greens and blues. A %26#39;trek%26#39; from Pas to Soldeu though, makes a good day for experienced skiiers, and I found plenty of jumps and bumps on the edges of the blues to keep me happy, and improve the %26#39;motorway cruising%26#39;!!
Also, skiing under some of the chairlifts was fun for a bit of off-piste. The Grandvallira region is very well integrated lift-wise, has some good mountain restaurants and cafe%26#39;s and has fantastic scenery and friendly people.
NOT in the league of Zermatt (for fantastic glacial scenery). NOT in the league of Vail for %26#39;spread%26#39; or organisation of lift queues. NOT in the leage of St Anton for mountain village prettyness. BUT it has it%26#39;s place, and that place is pretty good!!
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EssexWanderer,
Thank you for the information. I think we%26#39;re looking seriously at Andora next February for our holiday. The kids love the bumps and trees around the edges of the slopes. I%26#39;m a little worried about Zermatt (we%26#39;ve not been skiing there but it is on our short list for next year) after out St. Anton vacation because we found that when the snow and winds hit there wasn%26#39;t really anyplace to escape to and keep skiing, most of the mountains were closed, it was difficult to navigate around, etc. I understand that Zermatt is more like Aspen (which I%26#39;m not particularly fond of skiing) which would have similar issues as St. Anton. Is this true? Also, it appears that off piste is the only way to go at Zermatt and I worry about avalanches with the kids.
When you said that skiing at Zermatt and Vail is far superior, what specifically were you referring to? Snow? Diversity of skiing for experts? Etc.?
Thanks,
Dbldutchtreat
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I%26#39;ve skied Zermatt and Vail, as well as other resorts including Soldeu.
I enjoy Soldeu and would have no hesitation in recomending the resort to anyone who wasn%26#39;t seeking expert level skiing, the ski school is excellent, and there are many KM%26#39;s of piste to suite intermediate skiers.
The slopes are often sunny and I have experienced mostly good snow conditions on my many visits.
However, the atmosphere and feel of Zermatt and Vail are better (imo ), and the snow conditions more consistant.
I%26#39;m a little confused by your statement about Zermatt being a predominently off Piste resort. There are miles of superbly groomed pistes in Zermatt, the resort also links with Cervinia in Italy which offers fantastic intermediate skiing, superior in my opinion to Soldeu.
Much as I love Soldeu, you are comparing it with two of greatest ski resorts in the world.
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I have not been to either Aspen or St Anton, so I can%26#39;t answer that bit!! BUT as said above^^ Zermatt %26amp; Vail are TOP ski resorts. Andorra has come a long way since 10 years ago, but still is not in that league. Zermatt has lots of lovely pisted runs, and lots of off piste too, it is not really a beginners resort though, and would be enjoyed far more by competent intermediates or better! You don%26#39;t have to be %26#39;fast%26#39; here, but if you can cope with most types of terrain and snow conditions, you would get much more out of this resort. A day in Cervinia makes a change, but there are a lot of %26#39;motorway%26#39; blues over there. Vail%26#39;s pisted runs are IMO not as %26#39;testing%26#39; as Zermatt, but there is loads of variety, some %26#39;wild%26#39; off piste, it is a big ski area with much beauty, and fabulously organised and looked after.
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My comment about the off piste is that it seems that if we%26#39;re looking for expert level skiing we need to go off piste in Zermatt based on looking at the map (I have not skied there as the only place we%26#39;ve skied in Europe is St. Anton). We often spend several days in the back bowls when we ski in Vail (which I consider only somewhat off piste), but that is usually without the children. I worry about serious off piste in Europe as we don%26#39;t carry anything for avalanches and the down side here seems to be higher.
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EssexWanderer,
I%26#39;m still getting the hang of the posting on this site. In your opinion, how is the organization of Andorra. If we stayed in Soldeu how much of a %26#39;trek%26#39; would it be to the pas area? How organized would you say Zermatt is compared to Vail? We found it tedious to get around at St. Anton and I don%26#39;t want that again. When I%26#39;ve looked at places to stay, it seems that the options at Soldeu and Canillo are greater than at Pas but I think you are right that the skiing at Pas seems more what we%26#39;re looking for.
Thanks
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We are really going %26#39;off topic%26#39; on the original theme of this thread, but I will answer again here, otherwise, see you on the relatively new %26#39;Winter Sports%26#39; forum!!
I stayed at Pas de la Casa, IF you go straight across the valleys of Grau Roig and El Tartar, you can be in the Soldeu region in 1-2 hours, depends how much you want to %26#39;play%26#39; on the runs on the way across, it is very easy to find your way there %26amp; back, the lift system is good.
Zermatt has either the Gornergrat Railway OR the funicular that is inside the Klein Matterhorn to take you up to the two seperate ski areas before you can start skiing. I must admit it%26#39;s many years since I have been there (so expensive!!!!) - in fact I think the Klein Matterhorn funicular had only just been completed!! - but I seem to remember the lift system was OK.
You WON%26#39;T find better organised lift systems though anywhere outside of the US, the way the queues are organised, the fast %26#39;quad+%26#39; chairs with bubble covers to protect you in grot weather, and the fact that the resorts are all %26#39;relatively%26#39; new, with carefully thought out pistes and lift systems takes the few resorts in the Rockies that I have managed to visit, in to a different league for user friendliness. At vail, they even had boxes of tissues at the lift queues for the %26#39;skiing%26#39; runny noses!!!
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