Christmas ski holidays 2010

There can be few more magical places in which to spend your Christmas holidays than a snowy ski resort, where you are guaranteed a white Christmas. Other positives for most people are that you can escape the pressure and commercial excesses of Christmas at home by simply getting away from it all. Plus it's a great excuse to avoid spending Christmas Day or Boxing Day with the relatives but if you like your relatives simply invite them along!

Two concerns you may have are the cost of travelling at a busy time of year and the likelihood of good snow cover early in the year.

Costs

Christmas week is considered high season in most resorts, but is not actually as popular as the following New Year week or in many cases even the February school holiday periods.

Other cost considerations are that you can save a fortune on the cost of Christmas at home by avoiding the need for the huge Christmas shop by simply not being there and thus not needing that. The week before Christmas week is also considered very low season by most ski resorts so if you fancy a fortnight that's one way to do it affordably.

In a very few cases at exclusive luxury hotels in resorts like St. Moritz and Zermatt you are restricted to only booking the fortnight over Christmas and New Year, but these are the five stars with £5000+ price tags for the two weeks including gala festivals and black tie balls so won't be a major consideration for most.

Christmas events

Most resorts lay on special events including Santa arriving by sleigh, or even paragliding in, to excite any children you may bring along and firework displays are common. In the week or two before Christmas, traditional resorts, particularly in Austria, and German speaking areas of northern Italyand eastern Switzerland, may organise Advent events and Christmas markets.

Snow cover is, of course, unpredictable in most resorts, but the usual rules of visiting at the ends of the season apply: look for ski resorts at northerly latitudes or with high altitude, ideally glaciers.

So, where to go?

In the Alps, Austria has probably cornered Christmas the best, as its insistence that all its resorts are designed to 'Christmas Card perfect" architectural standards, with wooden chalets the norm, means that when the snow falls they're exceptionally pretty. A lot of the resorts and the ski areas are low, however, so you have to be slightly wary if you opt for places like Westendorf or Kitzbuhel, though they are going to be lovely, if the snow does come early.

A safer bet is Obergurgl, one of Europe's highest villages and open for skiing from November. Resorts in the Ziller Valley such as Mayrhofen have access to the glacier skiing at Tux if there are snow shortages, and other areas with high altitude skiing, sometimes including glacier areas - Finkenberg, Galtur, Ischgl, Kaprun, Lech, Neustift, Schladming, Solden, St. Anton, Zell am Ziller and Zurs.

• Austria Christmas ski holidays

Top 10 Christmas ski resorts

• Tignes, France
• Banff, Canada
• Borovets, Bulgaria
• Alpe d`Huez, France
• Pas De La Casa, Andorra

• Whistler, Canada
• Obergurgl, Austria
• Soll, Austria
• Val d`Isere, France
• Passo Tonale, Italy

France

In France the purpose built nature of many resorts makes Christmas a little less magical for some, although the altitude of the resorts usually makes them rather more snowsure. Traditional resorts that are pretty under snow include Val d'Isere, Morzine and La Clusaz. Meribel and Valmorel have been built to look traditional so they're quite good too.

• France Christmas ski holidays

Italy

Many of Italy's resorts are very atmospheric under snow at Christmas. The Fassaa Valley resorts like Canazei, Pozza di Fassa and Campitello for example, or Madonna di Campiglio. Val Gardena is another good choice and central Courmayeur Gressoney in the Aosta Valley are also very attractive with high altitude skiing nearby.

• Italy Christmas ski holidays

Switzerland

Most of Switzerland's resorts combine some lovely villages with the most stunning mountain scenery in the world. Saas Fee, Zermatt and Verbier all have glaciers. Grindelwald, Interlaken, Murren and Wengen have the spectacular Jungfrau scenery. Really it is difficult to go wrong booking here.

• Switzerland Christmas ski holidays

Scandinavia

Scandinavia does tick the boxes for Christmas magic of course, what could be more magical then being in Santa's backyard looking up at the northern lights as you watch for his sleigh on Christmas Eve? The only downside is that late December is the coldest and darkest time of year in northerly latitudes with probably only five hours of daylight and double digit negative temperatures. On the other hand that does mean you'll feel very snug and cozy when you're indoors around your chalet fire.

Another issue is that, unlike most countries, Christmas week IS the most expensive of the season at most north Scandinavian ski areas as they seem to have got savvy about the Christmas pulling power of the region. If you do head out there all the resorts are good, but Yllas, Ruka and Iso Syote have particularly seasonal log cabins available to rent.

• Norway Christmas ski holidays
• Sweden Christmas ski holidays
• Finland Christmas ski holidays

Eastern Europe and the Pyrenees

Eastern Europe and Pyrenees are perhaps more of a gamble for snow at this time of year and resorts are not always terribly picturesque. In Andorra, however, a beautification process has left resorts like Soldeu and Arinsal, if not Pas de la Casa, looking very attractive. In Slovenia, Lake Bled and Bohinjare also picturesque.

• Andorra Christmas ski holidays
• Bulgaria Christmas ski holidays
• Romania Christmas ski holidays
• Serbia Christmas ski holidays
• Slovenia Christmas ski holidays
• Spain Christmas ski holidays

North America

Most of Canada's ski areas have a frontier feel that adds a bit of excitement over the Christmas period. The western areas also have a reputation for deep snow from late November although, as in Scandinavia, it can be very cold and dark in mid-winter. Banff, Jasper, Silver Star, Fernie, Lake Louise and the more modern but tastefully designed Sun Peaks and Kicking horse are all recommended.

In the US, where Coca Cola invented our modern image of Santa Claus, most of the ski areas are modern and rather lacking in seasonal charm because of that. However they are definitely fun to stay in at Christmas, driving up from Boston to New England resorts you'll pass through villages with homes bedecked in spectacular Christmas lights. Cosy villages with character on the east coast include Stowe and Smugglers Notch, on the west Jackson Hole, Crested Butte, Telluride, Breckenridge and Aspen.

• USA Christmas ski holidays
• Canada Christmas ski holidays