Posted on Tuesday, 25 October 2022

Italy has long been a favourite among downhill skiers, cross-country skiers, heli-skiers and snowboarders.

Why is Italy a popular destination for winter sports?

Italy blends well-developed ski resorts with good accommodation and, of course, fantastic food.

Additionally, it's generally more affordable to take a winter sports holiday in Italy than neighbouring countries such as France and Austria.

 

Here's our quick guide to the best places to ski in the Italian Alps this winter.

Winter sports in Italy: Skiing and snowboarding in Italy

Ski resorts in the Italian Alps are arranged across a number of distinct areas, each of which have a series of connected resorts.

Key areas for Italian Alps skiing include:

• the Dolomites (Trentino-Alto Adige and Veneto-Friuli regions)
• the Milky Way, near France in the western Alps
• the Aosta valley
• the northern resorts of Lombardy.
  
  

Dolimite Superski

The world's largest ski area is the suitably named Dolimite Superski, and encompasses the popular Italian Alps ski resorts of Campitello Matese, Canazei and Selva.

It includes 40 ski resorts across 1,200km and an amazing 450 ski lifts.

One of the many highlights is the Great War Route, which features the First World War battlegrounds where Italian, German and Austrian armies engaged each other.

All lifts can be used with a single pass.

Lombardy, northern Italy

In Lombardy you can choose from the northern Italy ski resorts of Aprica, Bormio, Livigno, Madesimo, Ponte di Legno (high altitude) and San Simeone (ideal for beginners).

Further west you'll find the Milky Way and the Aosta Valley resorts.

The Milky Way

Boasting over 200km of slopes, the Milky Way comprises Clavire, Sauze D'Oulx and Sestriere - resorts that, arguably, offer better value for money than French resorts just over the border.

Aosta Valley

From the Mont Blanc tunnel to Turin runs the Aosta Valley, located in the north west of the country.

Here you'll find the more exclusive - and expensive - Italian resorts: Cervinia, Courmayeur and La Thuile.

Cervinia

La Thuile connects to the French resort of La Rosire, which can be enjoyed using the same ski pass.

Cervinia is connected to the famous Swiss resort of Zermatt.

From Courmayeur you can experience the ‘Vallée Blanche', which runs down to the French resort of Chamonix.

 

Glacial skiing, year-round

Outside winter, you can still enjoy a spot of good skiing in Italy. Choose from Marmolada (Dolomites), Monte Bianco (Mont Blanc) and Monte Cervino (the Matterhorn) in the Aosta Valley.

 

Shorter seasons in Italy ski resorts

Note that most Italian slopes are located on the warmer south side, making snow conditions less reliable than those of most other nations in Europe.

This also means that, for Winter sports in Italy, Italian seasons are shorter than, say, France or Austria.

 

Snow machines and planning

But when there's not enough snow, the Italians simply turn on the snow machines - which provides a more-than-serviceable surface.

Ideally though, you should research what the snow conditions are likely to be before booking, or, if you don't mind missing out on early-bird savings, wait until the conditions are good, then fly out immediately.

Italian Alps food

Of course, no holiday to Italy is complete without sampling some of the culinary delights that this great nation has to offer.

As with many other regions of Italy, the Italian Alps are famed for spectacular food. Indeed, prosciutto, speck, and Fontina and Montasio cheeses all originate from this area of Italy and are protected by DOP status.

Naturally, in Italy delicious food is always accompanied by excellent wine!

Northern Italy boasts a wide selection of sparkling, white, and red wines, and in Piemonte, winter just isn’t winter without a glass or two of Vin brûlé, spiced mulled wine.

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