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If you get the chance on your next ski holiday to Chamonix or Courchevel (or any number of resorts) and want to wander off track, then it may suit you best to try one of these wacky winter getaways. Now, these are not your traditional horse-drawn sleigh ride or ever-fun snow tubing. No, they are very real pursuits of the half-wits of the slopes who believe that regular snow pursuits just don’t provide the adrenaline rush that it used to. Be sure to either be ready to die, ready to get very hurt or, if lucky, survive to tell about these next tomfoolery exploits.

Sailing on the Ice

There are plenty of places in Europe where beautiful mountain lakes freeze over and fill to the brim with ice. An alternative to ice skating or ice fishing or anything sane for that matter is ice sailing. This involves forming a sail on a sled or other bladed contraction to go sailing (really flying) across the frozen ice and tundra. If you’re  a seasoned sailor, then ice sailing may come a bit more naturally to you; if not, then be prepared to zoom till you either collide with something or flip ass-over-kettle. By the way, there’s no real method to stopping!

Play Like a Polar Bear

There is a club of fellas and ladies who gather together to take a dip in freezing water. The Polar Bear Club has been around for several decades and baptises wannabe members by making them swim in below freezing water (well, it sure feels below freezing). The not-yet iced-over water makes a great escape from a day of turmoil and offers you to turn your body blue. The ice-shock to the body is said to be a cure-all for most any ailment. You won’t be playing as much as running for the nearest place to get warm.

Shovel Skiing

There was a group of workers who needed to get down from a day of labour from atop the piste when the lifts were non-functioning. One way they did it, in fact, was by riding their snow shovels down the slope. The fun caught on and today there are shovel sledding races all over the world, with dedicated shovel-athletes competing for the top prize—clearing the snow from the patio decks! (Just kidding). The best shovel skiers have designed their own shovels for the events, and often come up with some crazy designs. As long as you can shovel with it, you can ski downhill with it in competition.

Bike Skiing

It’s not as far fetched as the title would have you believe. There are bikes out there, for real, designed to go down and across snow. There’s even an association of riders who mount their favourite snow bikes and head out on a cold day. At any rate, ski bikes can have a back wheel and a front ski blade or a blade on the front and the back. Riders can pedal around or glide downhill and use the some mechanics as skiing to turn, stop and throw snow at passer-bys.

Blade Runner

This is not about the famous science fiction movie or novel. This is probably one of the most dangerous skiing pursuits tried today. Blade runners simply jump out of a plane and head down a course of tall pylons. The person who makes it through by touching less and staying hovered above the ground usually wins. There are measurements about how far or below the torso must be to the “blades” or pylons and participants often jump out of the plan several thousand feet above the ski slope before aiming perfectly downhill. This sport is not for the inexperienced, that is for sure.

More  Unique Adventures To Try in 2010

At the end of January I introduced you to some unique and even crazy pursuits to pursue and peruse this winter if :

A. You’re tired of skiing or snowboarding or the whole scene; or

B. You just don’t have the skills to be flailing down those impossible grades anyway. Now, I’ve got an activity for those with a problem.

C. You just aren’t into moving that much when on your ski holiday. Well, the kids aren’t the only ones who get to play from this day forward. Here are some other No Skills Necessary (not too difficult) Adventures (in their own way!) to try out this year.

Snowmobiling

If you like mounting a jet ski in the summer and riding over waves and pulling off 360s, then you’ll love snowmobiling; especially if you don’t want to have to do any work whatsoever. Snowmobiling gives you the chance to go out and about, cross-country style without the calorie-burning workout.

Everyone knows the Spanish love to get into a vehicle and go crazy, so odds are one of the best places to try snowmobiling this winter is in Spain or France. In the Sierras and near Malaga is where most Spaniards become suicidal adrenaline junkies. The area has some great inflatable tobogganing runs too—both unique minus the physicalness.

Dog Sledding

Though I’ve mentioned it before with horses, sledding with dogs can be one of the most No Skills Necessary approaches to having an exercise-free ski vacation. All you have to do is hold on and every-so-often yell, “Mush.”–Yep, that easy! If you want a romantic ride with a lover at sundown or organize an inter-familial race through the back country, both become possible behind a few mutts. They even make sit-down sleds that come with your own guide—talk about the ultimate of lazy leisure.

Ice Fishing

This does not mean you are looking for frozen fish. Ice fishing is probably the penultimate lazy leisure pastime, good for drinking hot cocoa, beer or other Russian-made mixed drinks containing 90% proof Vodka. The really cool thing about ice-fishing is you get your own little cabin, or you can share it with a couple friends. There’s not much to do but veg about when waiting on half-frozen fish to get hungry, so bring a book, a story-telling friend or a bunch of your favourite magazines and laze the day away.

Resorts such as Cortina d’Ampezzo in Italy and Kiruna in Sweden, along with anywhere that has lakes and ponds, but bring your own auger if you plan on going alone.

Igloo Building

If you’ve always wanted to see yourself huddled in your own snowcapped igloo, look no further this ski season. Igloo building may take a little more effort than ice fishing or snowmobiling, but if you take your time, you won’t work up too much of a sweat. Often, people carve castles out of the ice so it’s not too much to ask to construct your own dog-house size home in the snow is it?

The areas on the border of France and Spain in the Pyrenees is likely igloo central for some odd reason. Plus, your kids will really think it’s cool that you built them a snow fortress, even if it is just a pile of dug out snow. Snowball fights don’t exactly take too much energy as well. Make two igloos and use them as forts of protection during the snowball fight. I think it was Puy Saint Vincent in France that even has a igloo building competition each year, but I’ll have to fact check that for you. Have a happy No Skills, lazy leisure ski holiday this year!

Europe makes it easy to live an adventurous life. I mean, there’s so many fun things to do no matter the season, from hiking to mountain biking, skiing to snowboarding, kayaking to rock climbing, the terrain makes fun limitless. I guess if you’re still reading this, you want to hear more. The winter months, by all means, is no exception in finding that adventurous something to do. If life has got you pinned down and you’re looking for an adrenaline tap, then look no farther than these unique escapades. Though some skills are necessary to enjoy a winter ski getaway, what I’m talking about today requires no previous skills whatsoever.

No Ordinary Tobogganing

I’ve never really stopped to think what the world really thinks of an adult tobogganer. I mean, if you’re with the kids or being goofy, then it may pass as acceptable. If, however, you’re alone and suggest a day of tobogganing, you may get officially reamed by your friends.

Unless…unless you also mention that you’re going to Europe’s longest tobogganing slope in Val Thorens, France. Perhaps you’ve earned a smirk then. Anyway, this particular toboggan run runs for over 6 km (it takes me nearly 30 minutes to run this distance!) and is Europe’s longest (as far as I know). Instead of riding on an official toboggan, you’ll grab a plastic-y sled-like contraption from the Toboggan Chalet and hitch a ride on the next available gondola to the 3000 meter top. Though daunting at first, just sit down, hold on, and let ‘er fly—you are a proud adult tobogganer. Crashes and wipeouts are likely, by the way.

Update: Supposedly, there’s a 15km toboggan run in Grindelwald, and they use real toboggans-who knew?

Winter Zip Lining

One of the only places in Europe to winter zip line (again, at least as far as I know) is in Kronplatz Plan de Corones in the Dolomites (Dolmiti Superski) in Italy. They say that this is the biggest zip lining in the winter in Europe, and they might be right: With over 3000 meters of track and heights well over 100 meters and speeds in excess of 75 kph, this should break the ice cap from your adrenal gland in no time. The dome mountains in the background—the Plan de Corones—is dotted with great little retreats, villages, getaways and restaurants. Skiing and boarding here is easy if coming for one zip line tour seems too expensive. There are over 100 slopes to choose from and some late night skiing to enjoy after the apres-ski parties.

Winter Paintballing in Madrid

Did I mention, shirtless, if you want. If the rest of the family is off skiing, then you can take a no-skills-necessary trip to Madrid where paintball goes all year round, day and night. Though some may think that you have to have some previous experience, you don’t—just rent the best and fastest gun and the most paintballs and go ape-crazy. If you’re in some sort of cardio shape, just run, dodge and shoot like wild. You can try other strategies, but this will require skills, something I don’t suggest acquiring too soon. This shirtless escapade won’t last long if you’ve end up diving chest-first into the snow.

I’m not one to say that one ski resort is better than another. I think places like Courchevel and Chamonix have much to offer whether one has more slopes or more après ski parties than the other. When one person or family is looking for a quiet escape from crowds, another is looking to ski late and party hard. People take their ski holidays (like their alcohol) the way they like them, searching out one ski resort over the other for various reasons, sometimes a mix. I’ve picked three countries and several resorts to help you skier or snowboarder avoid having any merrymaking, pleasure or amusement of any kind this ski season.

Austria: If you like night skiing and incredible slopes, avoid hitting the Austrian ones ’cause then you might not have a bad time.

Bad Gastein (Sportgastein) is one of my favorite Austrian ski resorts because it’s so diverse and has so much to offer skiers of all levels. The hotels are fairly priced too. I often come here with a group of friends (when we don’t venture to France) and can find chalet accommodation that can easily fit us all. Plus, we can all come and go as we want, stay up late to party or enjoy some night skiing, but still plan activities—like watching the FIS Snowboard World Cup in January—together. Bad Gastein is set up to handle large crowds without getting backed up or feelings of claustrophobia. If you don’t like big crowds, then Bad Gastein is still a good choice but can get busy around the Christmas-New Year ski season. If you want glacier skiing this year, try the Solden Glacier resort just 100 km from Innsbruck. Avoid either place if you don’t like night skiing, a must try if you never have.

France: To have a lousy ski vacation, avoid skiing in France if you like good times and great selections of slopes

I’m not sure we’d have après skiing venues if it wasn’t for France (perhaps not the word anyway). So, among other things, like snails and Bordeaux wine, we have much thanks to give to France. Plus, we can thank them for the wicked skiing and wicked-er resort package deals. Isola 2000 (we can also thank them for putting the altitude after resort names too) is jammed packed with pistes. If you like to ski on a wide variety of greens, blues, reds and blacks, then avoid Isola 2000 at all costs, as there is 120+ km of skiing and over 20 lifts to choose from so you might just have to have a good time. Brides Les Bains should definitely be avoided if you want to hit the slopes early, as these tend to open in December, but the wait is worth it if you’ve planned a later ski holiday (especially for the high ski season) with 150 km worth of ski slopes.

Italy: For a terrible holiday, avoid snowboarding in Italy if you wish for some of the best riding experience in your life

Italy is iconic for having unsurpassed slopes, affordable accommodation and criminal snowboarding parks. If you hate any or all three of these, then it’s best to avoid Italy skiing all together. Be sure, too, to avoid Alta Badia, part of the Dolmiti Superski. The snowboard and freestyle park will really irk you if you don’t like boarding, as there’s a halfpipe, snowboard cross, jumps, humps and rails. Additionally, La Thuile in the Aosta Valley has an 11 km run that drops for a decent 1200 meters. If you hate long lasting descents, then La Thuile Espace San Bernardo is not for you either. Avoid these action packed places, moreover, if you hate life, parties, or the occasional all-nighter and tons of winter festivals.

I think I’m right when I say that the Trois Vallees ski area in France is not only Europe’s but also the world’s biggest skiing and snowboarding area. I want to go there this year, as France and the French Alps to boot are going to be the place to be this winter. My friends, though, think I’m wrong.

What They Think:

They think we should all go to Austria and spend our annual ski getaway somewhere different. Secretly, I think it’s because most of them are from California and root for Schwarzenegger and don’t really know the first think about skiing in Austria or skiing in France for that matter; they just want to sound manly when they say, “we’re going to Austria for some skiing.”

What I think:

I’ve come up with a list here of things that are going on in the Trois Vallees resorts in France this year (outside of skiing and snowboarding). In doing this I hope to convince my lifelong buds that they should forget about Austria, there is much more to do in France, especially since two of them will be toting the family along this year—so there’s plenty for the kids as well.

Courchevel, France:

The Ice-Skating Gala (Gala de Patinage) takes place on December 23rd this year and always gets a huge crowd for the Christmas season. Also, the twelfth anniversary of the The Week-long Olympics takes place from December 7th till December 12th (I know, not exactly a week but close). Plus, there is also a National Heritage Film showing, a totally new New Year’s Festival (Les Festives du Nouvel An) that lasts four days, a huge New Year’s Dance Party (one night only of course) on December 31st, the Fire & Nighttime Ski Show on New Year’s Evening, the International Festival of Pyrotechnic Art in February, and the X-Wing Rally in April. The winter time in Courchevel is packed with even more things to do than can actually be done by one person or family. This is why the Trois Vallees rocks!

Val Thorens:

Val Thorens offers so much during the winter ski season that I just have to be biased and put it here—plus the skiing is just too good to pass up. At any rate, starting on December  12th this year is the thirteenth Annual Ski Camp and Boarder week-long festival, the Alpine Skiing Cup competition on December 3rd, the Festival Val Thorens (Festi’Val Thor it’s smartly put) for two days in March, the North Face Ski Challenge in March for two days, the Luge Cup on April 13th, and who could pass up Gastronomy Week starting on the 18th of January, the Carnival Follies at the end of February, and too much more too simply list here. For a complete list of events and more information about Val Thorens, click here.

What you think:

The Three Valleys in France is so big that it’s near impossible to list all the events here. If you have any other argument in favor of Les Trois Vallées as a ski destination (OK, or arguments against it, or arguments in favor of Austria) then put them here. Cheers for the favor.

Take a look at these images of the SnowAttack party that took place in Puy Saint Vincent, France, last January.

Some said it was the best party ever, so see you there this year!

For summer 2009, Méribel offered Segway circuits to its visitor for the first time. Different activities using these ”standing scooters“ were proposed from initiation courses (5€ for about10minutes) to discovery guided tours (40€/person for 2 hours in groups of 5). These vehicles’ speed is limited to 5-6 km/h, which is the average human walk speed.

Since Méribel always keeps in mind the environment when developing activities for its visitors, Segway tours is a very suitable choice. These allow safe guided “walks“ that respect the calm and quietness of the nature, and are not disturbing for walkers and other users of the paths.

Méribel is studying the possibility to make its Segway fleet available for winter activities as well. Fiss, in Austria, started last year with this winter discipline, but Méribel would be the first French ski resort to offer it. To see what it would look like, here’s a video prepared by Fiss:

While it definitely would be interesting to try riding a Segway, I somehow feel it shouldn’t be considered as a “discipline“. I fail to see what’s the added value of using a Segway at 5-6 km/h to discover the natural beauties of a region, compared to a good old promenade on foot on the paths. More expensive, less physical, more attention put to going around and less on what’s going on around…

What do you think?

It’s time to plan!

This is a quick reminder to those of you who have been talking with you friends and family about celebrating the arrival of 2010 with your ski/snowboard gear on. It’s certainly not too late to plan it but do it quick.
Ski resorts and hotels/residences or apartments now offer New Year deals but the closer the celebration is, the higher the prices and the fewer the available accommodations. For example, the Puy Saint-Vincent ski resort now offers a 10% reduction in about 10 of its accommodations if reservations are made in September at the latest. You then get 5% off in October and pay full price after that. By experience, the bigger apartments (6+ people) are rented faster and if you are fussy about ANYTHING, you need to be quick because you might not find suitable accommodation later.

Take a look at what the celebration looks like in Tignes, France:

Isola 2000, in France, is part of the Domaine du Mercantour. It is located in the southern section of the Alps (Alpes maritimes), less than 100 km from Nice. Since the Mediterranean is so close—you can see it atop the summit of Sistron on a clear day—it is plausible to ski during the morning and have tea by the sea in the afternoon.

The resort might not be very big but offers all activities usually found in bigger resorts. During summer, visitors can go on different hikes (with or without a guide), rock climbing, horseback riding and fishing. The resort’s swimming pool caters for families and beautiful cycling paths allow the discovery of the resort. The more adventurous can go mountain biking or try the «Isoliane» adventure course.

The resort of Isola 2000 lies at 2000 meters and has 2000 hectares of skiable terrain to offer during winter. You’ll warp down the longest run for a nice two kilometers on over 120 km of pistes. There is one snowpark and 40-some combined runs. The breakdown of these is 30 beginner runs, 4 advanced and a dozen intermediate. See plan. There are 22 lifts to keep you chugging down all day long and if that’s not enough, there’s also snowmobiling, ice-skating, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and heliskiing and many more activities to keep everyone busy.

Isola 2000 can really be considered a discount family ski destination: there’s more beginners’ and bunny hill options here than in many bigger resorts, and no lack of ski schools. Plus, the resort never feels overcrowded, as the crowd almost always stays below what can be handled, and holiday apartments, the ideal accommodation for families, abound.

Because of all this, a family skiing holiday in Isola 2000 is really an affordable option in the Alps, even during high season.

1 area, 2 countries, 12 resorts-villages, countless activities included.

In my opinion, the Multi Pass Portes du Soleil is THE tool to fully take advantage of mountain holidays in the Portes du Soleil area, whether you intend to visit the French side, the Swiss side, or both. Valid until September 21st, visitors can by it at local lift and tourist offices. A day pass costs 6€ and a season pass, 50€, but if you stay at one of the numerous participating accommodations, it will cost you as little as 1€ per day of your stay to access all included activities.

The Multi Pass Portes du Soleil is valid in:
France: Abondance, Avoriaz, Châtel, La Chapelle d’Abondance, Les Gets, Montriond, Morzine, Saint Jean d’Aulps.
Switzerland: Champéry, Morgins, Torgon, Val-d’Illiez - Les Crosets -  Champoussin.

It grants its beholder unlimited access to the following installations in each of the above-mentioned resorts: tennis courts, swimming pools, mountain-lifts, bus shuttles, cultural sites and tourist road trains.

I actually fail to see why anyone would visit the Portes du Soleil area this summer and NOT get a Multipass, at least for a few days!