The offer brings the cost of skis, boots, poles and a helmet down to just 10 € / day, for standard sport skis of a guaranteed top brand, including Salomon, Roxy, Dynastar, Rossignol and Coreupt, and 15 € / day, main brand performance skis.

Ski Republic’s Lionel Favre, CEO and founder, said

“Since we launched in 2007 our aim has been to offer a simple, swift, online ski rental service with guaranteed high quality ski and snowboard equipment and clean, dry ski boots, without having to queue. For too long the world’s ski resorts were dominated by ski hire companies offering old equipment, a lack of choice and poor service.

Ski Republic has changed the face of ski equipment hire. This season we’ve taken it one further by offering two days for the price of one and prices that are less than even we were charging last season. Not only are we offering top quality skis and no-nonsense service, but all of are skis are checked after every single rental and either serviced in store or in our main servicing centre in Seez ”.

Ski Republic includes free use of a helmet with all equipment hire and insurance is available at an optional 1 euro / day for sport skis and 2 Euros for performance skis, or free for kids, covering theft, damage and cancellation.

To book, visit www.ski-republic.com

SKI REPUBLIC SHOP LOCATIONS

Val Thorens
Val d’Isere
Meribel
Meribel Mottaret
Vallandry
Les Arcs 1800
Les Arcs 2000
La Plagne Centre
La Plagne Bellecôte
Sainte Foy
Tignes Lavachet
Tignes Val Claret
Tignes Le Lac
Les Menuires
Courchevel 1850
Courchevel 1650
Les 2 Alpes
Valmorel
La Rosiere
Chamonix
Saint Jean D’Arves
Chatel
Avoriaz
Les Coches
Serre Chevalier

To book visit www.ski-republic.com

The Arlberg lift pass covers both the St Anton area and Lech and Zurs area so no need to stop to get a lift pass. What is essentially a large ski area, you will definitely need more than one day to do the area. We only had one day, so we decided to take the White Circle Route which takes a route “fleetingly” around the whole area. More about our day later, onto giving you a general idea about the Lech and Zurs area.

Lech (1450m) is undeniably Austria’s most exclusive resort, along with Zurs and high altitude Oberlech there are six large 5 star hotels here. However it is not entirely exclusive with a chalet in Lech or Zurs costing no more than a similar option in Val d’Isere, Coourchevel and other top ski resorts. Unlike St Anton round the corner, Lech has a refined feel. The hotels are of an excellent standard, and people are just as likely to be seem wondering down the river as they are skiing. However unlike other top resorts there aren’t arcade’s of designer shops here. The real luxury of the resort is it’s charm, with a river running through the centre, the pretty alpine architecture and the warm, friendly, family hotels.

Centre of Lech ski resort

The centre of the resort can however become clogged with traffic, especially at weekends with the base station of the Rufikiopf cable car from the centre. The other cable car from the centre is also the only access available to Oberlech and runs until 1am. Guests staying in Oberlech leave their cars in lech and get up their by cable car. There luggage is delivered through a series of underground tunnels, which in bad weather guests can use too.

Zurs, is the highest of the three resort areas, at 1716m. There is not much of a village here, just a collection of high end hotels built along the busy road. Zurs is the nearest resort to Haus Rauz so you can be in the St Anton ski area in less than half an hour if you’re based in Zurs. Buses are extremely efficient from what we experienced, so make sure you’re on time!  From Zurs you can also get the bus to Lech, as in actual fact the ski is a rather long one.

Zug is the last base in the area and is the cheapest of the three. You can link directly onto the wide pistes above Lech by a 2 man chair lift from Zug, which makes it a handy option.

Zurs ski area looking towards the Trittkopfbahn lift and the free car parks

The skiing in Lech and Zurs seems to contrast completely with technically difficult St Anton. There are only a couple of blacks here and the runs in general feel wider and flatter your ski standard! The snow record is excellent, and they reportedly receive twice the snow of round the corner St Anton (yes unbelievable I think!)  The pistes felt very very quiet, but then we found St Anton to be very crowded so maybe the pistes in Lech were just averagely busy. The lift system is a mixed bag, you’ll ever get high speed 4/6/8 seater heated chairlifts with covers, or old 2 seaters! Luckily these days it is more of the former than the latter.

The main collection of slopes are found on the Oberlech sector and are largely well pisted reds and blues perfect for motorway crusing. Like St Anton the piste map also marks off piste runs (called ski routens), these are marked by diamonds instead of circular piste markers. Most of these are to be avoided if you’re not into off piste, but several are worth a go for the intermerdiate skiier, including the run down from Zurs to Zug (33), part of the White Route. This was a slightly bumpy red run, but wide and with plenty of room to turn.

For off piste officianados then there are some options, don’t be fooled into thinking St Anton is your main option. Probably best to hire a guide to seek out the best areas, but the one thing that is better than St Anton is that it doesn’t all get tracked out within hours.  Off course if you do have time then the off piste in St Anton is legendary and you can take the trip back via the back of the Valluga which can only be navigated with a guide.

The White Ring (Der Weisse Ring) is definitely a great one day activity. It takes you in a circular route around the main areas of Lech sk area and it is this route that we took around the area. You can start from key points, all marked on the map, we started from Zurs. Here is an overview of The White Route as started from Zurs.

As for apres ski in the areas, then it’s certainly not as mad as St Anton, there’s no Mooserwirt equivalent, well not that we could find. Most of the apres ski centred on the hotel bars from the afternoon hotspot of the hotel Montana in Oberlech to almost any of the hotel’s discos. As most people tend to be on Full Board holidays the only restaurants tend to be in the hotels, rather than independent restaurants, but there are plenty of options available.

Personally I loved Lech and the areas around. The skiing really does have that free, expansive feeling, unlike local St Anton. I’d compare it more to Tignes, but perhaps without the difficulty, as it’s quite bleak, but with brilliant motorway pistes. It’s probably a great resort for anyone who’s skiied between 0 and 6 weeks, after that you may get a bit bored unless you’re already throwing yourself down off piste or are happy to commute to St Anton for some harder runs.

1. Head up the Zursersee or Seekopf lifts, then up the Madloch two man (from here you look over to your left and right to some short off piste runs, perfect for newbies to off piste).

The White Ring - above Zug about to do Ski Routen 33

2. Take Ski Routen number 33, which is not pisted but absolutely fine when we were there. This heads down into Zug and is a gorgeous run, one of my favourites from the day.

3. From Zug take the Zugerberg 2 man up over Zug and the forest. At the top is the Palmen Alp restaurant, which would be great for a pitstop (looked a bit expensive for us!)

4. From here there is a handy rope tow to lead you into the main Lech ski area.

5. Then you have a few choices, if you’re not in a rush spend some time enjoying the wide reds and blues in this area but if you’re on a challenge then head straight down Blue 34 which leads you all the way down to Lech.

6. Walk across the road to the Rufikopf cable car then back towards Zurs via red 38a or blue 38.

7. Take the Schuttboden drag then blue 38a.

8. Finally follow run 3 which will take you back to the car park in Zurs. 

The White Ring route in Lech / Zurs is marked with signposts all the way round if you get a little lost, or just want to take memento pictures of your day.

If doing the White Ring route for fun doesn’t quite do it for you, then every year in January a race is held. Around 300 competitors set off to complete the White Ring route in the quickest time. Currently the record is an amazing 44:35:07 by Olympic Downhill (2006) winner Patrick Ortlieb, although he was only a guest competitor rather than an official one – the record still stands.

Alpe d’Huez has a packed events schedule for the season…

Andros Trophy – 18^th – 19^th December 2009 – This annual party of sports cars on the ice reunites some of the greatest champions of the track: Alain Prost, Jean-Pierre Dayraut and Olivier Panis. There’s also a treacherous Pilot Motorbike race to get the pulses racing!

Energiapura Atomic Cup – 9^th – 10^th January 2010 – This is a huge slalom event with almost 600 children taking part in this 2 day event.

Skicross World Cup – 11^th-13^th January 2010 – Alpe d’Huez hosts a stage of the Skicross Wolrd Cup just one month before Skicross makes its debut in the Vancouver Olympic Games.

Festival of Alpe d’Huez – 19^th-24^th January 2010 – For one week, the Film Industry sets up in Alpe d’Huez, in a warm and joyful atmosphere and presents the newest comedy films in France.

Crystals of the Oisans  - 21^st March 2010 – This event brings together children from 5 to 12 years from all the Oisans region for one day of alpine competition on the slalom course.

COQ D’OR Skiopen – 24^th-27^th March 2010 – 1,200 young skiers take part in the Coq d?r Skiopen every year. This four-day event consists of the Skiopen pre-qualifiers (giant slalom), the Skiopen qualifiers (giant slalom) and the National Skiercross (technical courses), the final (parallel slalom) and an ESF Cup.

Mundialito – 3^rd-5^th April 2010 - Organized by Olympique Huez at the Sports and Congress Centre, an indoor football tournament between 12 teams (resort teams and national teams).

Comic Book Festival – 9^th-11^th April 2010 – For three days, the kingdom of comic strips will be presented by talented writers and cartoonists. The event will include Exhibitions, workshops, book signings, in collaboration with Éditions Glénat.

If you’ve only got time for a flying visit to the resort then why not make use of the bargain offer on 1 day ski passes and get a Saturday pass for just 29 euros. If only we lived closer!

Sugar bowl gets new chairlift for 2009/10: the new chairlift in the resort in California, USA will take people to the ridge top of Mt. Judah, dropping them off just below the summit.  While skiers and riders can currently access this skiable acreage by hiking, the new lift will allow the resort to maximize usage of, and access to, skiable terrain within the currently permitted boundary.

Heavenly improvements: The improvements continue in year two of Heavenly’s ten-year master plan that promises a steady stream of new lifts, on-mountain restaurants, lodging and base villages that will greatly improve the overall experience. Future projects that have been approved include replacement of an existing fixed-grip chair lift on the mountain’s Nevada side with high-speed, detachable lift technology; a 1,000-seat, LEED-certified, on-mountain restaurant with views of Lake Tahoe; 152 acres of new ski trails; and a skier bridge that will allow skiers and riders to ski from the Gondola top station to Tamarack Express.

Saint-Lary, France - The ski resort of Saint-Lary in the Pyrenees Mountains of France invested 14 million Euros this summer in the construction of a new gondola, diverting an influx of 1,400 cars, 50 buses and 20 shuttles per day. The new state-of-the-art ski lift will carry 3,000 skiers and riders to the top per hour in only eight minutes.

Since 2000, the ski area has reinvested 28 million Euros to modernize the resort and augment its snowmaking production, which now covers 80 percent of the marked runs.

Kananaskis Valley, AB - Nakiska, in the Kananaskis Valley west of Calgary, will debut a new high-speed quad chairlift this ski and snowboard season.

After much planning and implementation, the resort will be loading skiers and riders onto the only new ski lift in the Banff corridor upon season opening in early December on the 5th. The new Gold Chair Express will rise 468 meters (1,535 feet) in less than five minutes, carrying 1910 riders per hour along a slope length of 1460 meters (4,790 feet). The lift replaces the existing Gold Chair, which had a ride time of nine minutes.

What’s new in ski resorts 2009/10 part 1 can be found here.

Perisher Blue ski resort

So the snow on the other side of the World has been pretty epic this year if you listen to our southern hemisphere friends on Twitter. As I get the daily updates of how much is falling where, I started to think maybe I need to try a ski holiday over there one year. It might be getting too late to go out this year, but there’s no harm thinking about next year!

Australia’s skiing is limited to two states, New South Wales and Victoria, along with some skiing in Tasmania. Altogether Australia has about 12 ski areas, the major and most known ones are Thredbo and Perisher Blue in New South Wales, where Australias highest peak, Mount Kosciuszko (2228m) dominates the scenery. Perisher Blue is the largest ski area in the country and in fact is the combination of four ski areas that have linked together over time.

Coronet Peak ski resort

New Zealand definitely has a greater quantity of skiing, and in fact, Australians commonly pop over to take their ski holiday in New Zealand rather than frequenting one of their own resorts. The main areas in New Zealand to ski are Coronet Peak, The Remarkables, Wanaka, Methven and Cardrona (all on South Island).  Arguarbly the best ski area is Wanaka, though Cardrona suits well for beginners or off piste, so good for mixed groups. Alongside these major areas, there are a number of smaller areas such as Porter Heights, Mount Lyford and Rainbow many of which started out as club fields. All of New Zealand’s ski areas have virtually no on mountain accommodation, you have to drive to the slopes apart from on sone club fields.

One of the major reasons to go to New Zealand for skiing is for heli skiing in the Harris Mountains, Mount Cook and in the Arrowsmith Mountains.

Most ski resorts in Australia and New Zealand open up in June. The season will go on until September or early October in a good season. Some better lying resorts in New Zealand will go on even longer.

Go on, you know you need another ski holiday in the summer too!

Best known as an intermediate destination, La Plagne ski resort and neighbouring Les Arcs actually boasts more skiable terrain than the entire Epace Killy. You cannot actually ski from La Plagne ski resort to Les Arcs, and therefore you are most likely to spend your days in one resort or the other. Similarly to Les Arcs there is plenty of high altitude snow sure skiing in La Plagne as well as plenty of tree runs, guaranteeing skiing in bad weather and poor light.

La Plagne ski resort is certainly an intermediates playground with 60% blue runs and 22% reds in La Plagne itself and if you are an intermediate you probably can’t find a better place to improve your skiing. However it shouldn’t be overlooked by experts as La Plagne has an abundance of powder and the unpisted terrain means that this can be taken full advantage of. There are plenty of off piste opportunities, try staying right at the top of the glacier runs, walk for about 5 minutes and follow the ridge down past the Pointe de Friolin where you’ll find powder and 2,000m of verticle to play in.

There is plenty of accommodation in La Plagne ski resort, but the resort is split into a number of areas:-

Plagne Centre – the main area with shops and apres ski, shown right, La Grande Rochette, Aime La Plagne, where the ski train stops, Plagne Villages, Plagne Bellecote, Beille Plagne, Champagny and Montchavin. Got all that?!

Champagny and Montchavin are the most outerlying villages. Champagny is often overlooked. Facing Courchevel across the valley it has some great runs and is a charming village with a notable ice climbing centre. Montchavin has been given a new lease of life as the gateway into Les Arcs and is a good option for affordable accommodation.

We’d recommend staying in Plagne Centre or Plagne Soleil (part of Plagne Villages) which has a range of prettier more up to date chalets or in Champagny if you don’t mind being a bit further from the action.

A bus system does run through all the La Plagne villages, so you can get around if you go for one of the more outerlying villages. 

What can be said about La Plagne ski resort is that for the majority of areas it hasn’t got that much going for it aesthetically, however there is a large amount of ski in / ski out accommodation, so for those looking for the easy life, then La Plagne ski resort is really a good option.

For apres ski activities in La Plagne you can have a go at the Olympic Bobsleigh where you get plunged down in a 4 man bob, with a pilot of course! Speeds reach 100 km/h. Or go and have a go at the Ice Climbing in Champagny, it’s pretty impressive to look at even if you don’t fancy it.

La Plagne is not a mega big resort for evening entertainment, if you’re looking for that head to Val d’Isere instead. However there are plenty of bars and restaurants to keep you entertained all week.

The Ski C resort review in brief for La Plagne: All in all a good resort, with a massive ski area using the Vanoise Express. Perfect for intermediates and powder hounds.

For more information on La Plagne ski resort visit http://www.la-plagne.com/en/Resorts-En.phtml

I spent a season working as a Chalet Maid (sorry, Chalet host!) in Val d’Isere and it really was an absolute blast. It was bloody hard work to begin with, and you do get to the point where you never ever want to see an onion again, but it’s all worth it to be able to put on your skis every day.

If you love the sound of skiing every day but don’t know your emmental from your mascarpone (a very long story which I wont go into now but when i get really desperate for things to blog about I may well tell you about it!) then there are plenty of other jobs available in resort from Resort Accountant to odd job man to barman to pot washer!! Or if even that sounds too much like hard work then just rent yourself an apartment (you can get very good deals on season long lets) below an apartment of Chalet staff and you’ll get fed and watered all season for free (another long story!).

If you’re umming and ahhing then just go for it, you wont regret it!!