Round-up of the latest Ski Safari news ahead of Winter 2014-15

Lift attendant Yongpyong Resort

As the 2014-15 ski season beckons, Ski Safari lines up another packed winter programme full of inspirational trips and some new incredible adventures.

The big news for Ski Safari is the launch of South Korea, as a standalone destination or as part of a unique multi-centre ‘Ski Asia Safari’, combining skiing in South Korea with Niseko in Japan.

On the other side of the pond, up there as one of the most amazing heli-ski destinations is Alaska, and this season sees the introduction of the resort of Alyeska with access to some awesome possibilities.

The Canadian resort of Sun Peaks is expanding its terrain and upgrading accommodation to become the second largest ski area in the country for winter 2014/15.

Closer to home the Scandinavian programme has been enhanced with the introduction of 4 new city stopovers and a new hotel in Åre, arguably located in the most prominent ski-in ski-out position.

Sun Peaks Expansion

The Canadian resort of Sun Peaks becomes the second largest ski area in the country for winter 2014/15. The British Columbia resort is adding 522 acres of terrain which will put it ahead of Banff and behind Whistler. It will have 4,200 acres for the 2014/15 season. There will be 110 acres of trails on West Morrisey and 412 acres of runs on the current back-country area of Gil’s, atop Mt. Tod. The current domain of 3,678 acres will be augmented as well as increasing the current vertical.

Sun Peaks has seen real development in the last year or two and has earned the nickname ‘little Whistler’ – the village certainly has a similar flavour. The excellent accommodation in Sun Peaks – in particular, the Sun Peaks Grand, previously known as the Delta Sun Peaks Resort, now completely refurbished means that you can stay in very high quality accommodation, not often found outside Whistler.
Call Ski Safari on 01273 224 060 or visit www.skisafari.com.

Introducing Alaska

With the introduction of Alaska, Ski Safari has lined up some incredible tours from the resort of Alyeska. Nestled in the Chugach Mountains in the heart of a glacier carved valley, Alyeska sits in the heart of Girdwood, surrounded by awe-inspiring scenery. Boasting 54 feet of snow annually and known for its deep snow pack, the resort also offers heli and cat-skiing, making it ideal for any dare devil seeking blissful fresh powder (heading over in February means you’ll be there for prime heli ski season). By twinning the Alyeska tour with a week-long stint in either Whistler or Mammoth and a night in the bustling cities of either Seattle or Los Angeles respectively, there will be thousands of acres of skiable terrain to explore, creating the ultimate winter getaway for winter sports enthusiasts.
Call Ski Safari on 01273 224 060 or visit www.skisafari.com.

Scandinavia Stopovers and New Åre Hotel

Ski Safari first introduced Scandinavia to its programme in 2012-13 and in two years has become the UK’s biggest ski tour operator offering ski holidays to Norway and Sweden. There are now a total of five ski resorts in Norway, including Geilo, Beitostølen, Hemsedal, Norefjell, Trysil and Voss and three resorts in Sweden, including Åre, Björkliden and Riksgränsen, as well as two Ski Safaris, the Åre and the Arctic in Sweden and Fjords and Mountains in Norway.

For 2014-15, Ski Safari will introduce four new city stopovers in Scandinavia, which are popular tourist destinations in their own right and worthy of a visit rather than being used as a gateway through to the ski resort. The cities include the beautiful historic city of Bergen in Norway, which inspired this year’s Disney blockbuster Frozen with its old Hanseatic wharf as well as the historic city of Trondheim and Norway’s capital Oslo. In Sweden, you can overnight in the cool capital of Stockholm.

Situated in one of the best ski-in ski-out locations in the entire resort, the 4* Hotel Fjällgården in Åre is a true skier’s hotel, with a six-seater chairlift on the doorstep and makes a welcome addition to the Ski Safari programme.
Call Ski Safari on 01273 224 068 or visit www.skisafari.com

Red Mountain Resort Expansion (Again!)

Last season Ski Safari introduced the new Red Mountain and Whitewater safari, set deep within British Columbia, offering some of the most compelling steep slopes, deep powder and diverse terrain in the world. Last year the big news was the Red expansion, adding a further 997 acres on Grey Mountain and increasing the total lift serviced area to 2,787 acres. This year the development continues at a significant pace with the addition of nearly 200 acres of cat skiing on Mt. Kirkup. Access to the terrain will operate as a cat shuttle from Grey Mountain on a first come, first served basis and costing a mere $10, if purchased with a lift ticket. This new terrain will access nearly 200 acres of gladed tree skiing, with an additional three newly cut runs on the south side of Mt Kirkup and has 1,600 feet of vertical drop, previously only accessible by hiking and ski touring. This latest development solidifies Red’s reputation, offering that deep powder experience and world class adventure.
Call Ski Safari on 01273 224 060 or visit www.skisafari.com.

Easy connections to US Resorts

From this season getting to the resorts of Crested Butte, Steamboat and Jackson Hole will be made a whole lot easier by the introduction of more one stop flights into regional airports. By flying with United into Gunnison via Chicago for Crested Butte and Hayden for Steamboat will effectively save up to 4 hours travel to these resorts and ultimately cut down on the cost of getting there too. A new evening flight from Chicago to Jackson Hole connects perfectly with the London to Chicago route, now making the journey less than 12 hours travel time each way.

South Korea and Ski Asia Safari

Full detailed information about the launch of South Korea to the Ski Safari programme was sent earlier this month and can be viewed on the attached pdf. In brief, Ski Safari has introduced South Korea, host to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018, to this winter’s programme. Ski Safari will feature the resorts of Yongpyong and Phoenix Park with skiing also available at the resort of Alpensia, which is not available through any other ski tour operator in the UK. For the ultimate winter adventure the Ski Asia Safari combines skiing in both South Korea and Japan with a city stay in Seoul.