Slovenia Positions Itself For First Time Skiers
Monday, September 14th, 2009
Slovenia’s national tourist office has begun marketing the small country on Italy’s and southern Austria’s Eastern border as the perfect choice for first-time skiers.
About 40 per cent of Slovenia is mountainous so skiing is a national sport. The country hosts the men’s and women’s World Cup slaloms every year (at Kranjska Gora and Maribor-Pohorje respectively) and offers dozens of other ski areas.
Located a two-hour flight from London, Slovenia offers plenty of gentler slopes suitable for beginners as well as being one of Europe’s most compact countries, making it easy to escape the pistes and combine a ski trip with a distinctive city experience in the picturesque capital, Ljubljana.
Visitors can take full advantage of their surroundings by trying some of the other popular winter activities on offer including cross-country skiing, snow-shoeing, dog sledding, ice-skating and ice-climbing. In the main tourist resorts, horse drawn sleigh rides are also available.
In addition, Slovenia consistently ranks among Europe’s most affordable skiing destinations – significantly cheaper than ski resorts in France, Switzerland and Austria. The World Ski Lift Ticket Price Report (2009) reported that last season, Brits paid an average of £168.98 for a six-day lift pass across all destinations. By comparison, the price of a six-day pass at Slovenia’s top resorts Kranjska Gora was €147 (approximately £128).
Slovenia’s ski resorts also stand out for their high quality, offering Western standard accommodation and service at Eastern European prices.
Although flights from London to Ljubljana, Slovenia’s capital, take only around two hours, the country still remains untainted by tourist influence or over-development and offers a traditional ski experience – off-the-beaten-track adventure with interesting cultural experiences.
Being slightly smaller than Wales in size, means that you can be on the top of a mountain within 45 minutes of leaving the airport in Ljubljana.
