subject: Ski Accommodation - A Number Of Aspects To Deliberate Before Choosing [print this page] Before going on a ski holiday, you should give the type of ski accommodation you will be staying in more than just a passing thought. Where you stay during your vacation will have a huge effect on how much you enjoy yourself in the end.
Before you even start thinking about reservations, you should first think about what kind of resort you would like to go to. Get a couple of brochures from the different resorts and study what they have to offer and what there is to see and do in the immediate vicinity. During any ski break there will be days when you have inclement weather so you can't ski. On those days you will really appreciate a resort where there's other things to keep you busy apart from playing games on your laptop.
Generally speaking you have two kinds of ski resorts. The one type is near a town or city and there will be many interesting shops to browse during non-skiing days and many restaurants and pubs where you can while away empty hours or make new friends. Often the surrounding area also offers a lot of interesting sightseeing possibilities.
Then you get the type of resort that sometimes offers stunning scenery but is far away from any form of civilization. There will be a few hotels and other types of accommodation and not much else. Unless you go there to ski day and night, this type of place can get boring very quickly. It's great to go to a place like this for two or three days, but an extended stay might soon have you climbing up the walls out of boredom.
The more upmarket ski resorts, such as St Moritz, have a huge variety of accommodation options to choose from. There are certainly sufficient numbers of five star hotels to satisfy the jet-set crowd who only want to stay in top class accommodation. These hotels sometimes have their own little shopping malls and enough restaurants, gyms and saunas to keep you occupied during the days that you don't go out skiing.
Mid-range hotels provide a home from home for the bulk of middle class skiers. They offer perfectly acceptable accommodation to fit the budget of the average guy in the street. Facilities that you are likely to find here are private bathrooms, televisions, perhaps a small refrigerator and a kettle so you can make your own coffee or tea.
Self-catering options are available in and around most ski resorts. There is no better solution for the family man. Cost wise it's certainly the best option for a family. You will not only save money on the accommodation itself, but since these chalets will always have a kitchen, you can save a lot of money by preparing all or most of your meals at home.
When it comes to ski accommodation, the guest house has always been one of the best-loved places to stay. The reasons are many. Firstly their rates are usually very competitive. The best of them offer facilities that can compare to that of a good hotel, at a lower cost. And the experience is much more personal than what you will experience at the average hotel.
