Where in Europe?!?!

Hey guys
I’ve finally decided to head north to continue enjoying some boarding early next year… the only thing I am having issues with is where exactly to start- booked the flights to Europe, but after that I’m not sure where! Where’s good? What’d you think? Any suggestions? Did you find work pretty easily??? Any suggestions would be awesome!
Cheers!

Snowfall wise, chamonix receives the most amount of snow in Europe, at around 9 metres a year.

yeah I was thinking there… other options were the Dolomites or the 3 Valleys. They were on my short list anyway!!!

Take it from me, I live in Europe.

Republik Oesterreich. Arlberg, Innsbruck, and the valleys around Mayrhofen are world-class stuff.

Dolomites are hit and miss snow-wise, but then again it’s bella Italia.

The Swiss resorts can’t be beat, Verbier and Davos are fantastic. I also recommend Zermatt for the scenery, and it’s the perfect introduction to the Alps.

you are spoiled for choice in europe! chamonix has excellent free riding including the vallee blanche which is completely “off piste” (and a MUST DO!), but the ski areas are quite far from each other (bus ride away) so convenience wise it is not the best

there are lots of interlinked resorts like the 3 valleys which is the largest interlinked ski area in the world and consists of 3 top notch areas: courchevel, meribel/mottaret and val thorens. VT is the highest and is mostly above the tree line so excellent on sunny days, plenty of off piste options but no good on white out days. Meribel/mottaret have some nice glades, chutes and faces both above and below trees, and courchevel is similar but in my opinion the least exciting of the 3

espace killy is also excellent comprising val disere and tignes which are both have great terrain and a glacier up at tignes. villages are not the prettiest but if its just good terrain you’re after they are awesome

there are also plenty of swiss and italian resorts which offer great riding but sometimes inconsistent snow. one that springs to mind is zermatt which has brilliant terrain if you have the snow cover, and also great views and a nice village. you can also stay on the italian side of the border (the italian resort is called cervinia) and literally ski across countries!

austrian resorts tend to be smaller than the big french/swiss resorts and lower altitude but they still have some standouts like mayrhoffen and kitzbuhel which both offer great nightlife as well as riding and have cheaper beer than their french compatriots!

i’ve not been to verbier but i’ve heard great things about it

in terms of a job, you may be best off applying through one of the UK companies that service many of the french and andorran resorts with staff and will be an easier way in if you dont speak french/italian.

what in particular are you looking for in the resort?

Vallee Blanche is a glacier run, and in many places it is very very slow going on a snowboard. Much better on skis.

That said, I went once, on my birthday, and it is some of the world’s most outstanding scenery. Do it once, but come in with the right expectations, it’s not gnarly challenging terrain, pick a good day and it’s simply a beautiful trip.

I wouldn’t worry too much about the language barrier, I personally don’t think it’s more inconvenient to DIY. The transport links from say, Geneva or Zurich Airports are excellent and easy to figure out, and for many of the resorts, you can hop on a train or bus right at the airport and be at your destination quickly. I believe that Swiss Airlines will even simplify your baggage transfer, check with them. And part of the fun of traveling is figuring out how to get to your destination and enjoying that process, which makes getting there all the more rewarding.

Don’t rule out some of the smaller resorts, where you’re going to get more or an “authentic” flavor, more locals, smaller crowds, and often still excellent terrain. In my view, snowboarding / skiing is the same everywhere, you go up a lift, you go down the hill, it’s flavored by the people and the languages and the scenery, and of course the quality of the snow. That’s the conclusion i’ve drawn from riding in 15+ countries.

cham och val and the other french resorts are going to set you back a shit load of cash for a season pass, thats probs one extra plus on the austrian side….all the smaller countries are cheaper.