Thoughts please! Any personal experience?
Printable View
Thoughts please! Any personal experience?
Xinjiang.Best powder skiing in the world from my personnel experience.Started snowing a few weeks ago.
I would also take a look at Japan.
Also there is cat skiing just over the border of Xinjiang (other side of Kanas NW Xinjiang) in Russia in a small town.Very cheap for cat skiing for a week.You want to know what your doing to do it though.
So Xinjiang, got any names of places? What costs for list pass hotel ski rental etc?
I had some real good skiing in Chongli (Zhangjiakou, Hebei) where they have currently 3 reasonable resorts. All three resorts are within 20kms of Chongli town, where you can find accomodation in various ranges. Chongli is about 240kms from Beijing, expressway all the way.Quote:
Originally Posted by ZMC888
Duolemeidi
http://www.duolemeidiski.com/
Nice skiing for one day. They have a European high speed chairlift but only two slopes, so it gets boring very quick. There was free shuttle service from Beijing, don't know if there still is.
Wanlong
http://www.wlski.com/
The best one in this area. Many very long slopes in excellent condition, an excellent place for a good skier. I wasn't able to get on all slopes within 1 day.
Accomodation on site, only 5kms from Chongli.
Secret Garden
http://www.secretgardenresorts.com/E...oject-Overview
Have not been there myself but it seems a very good resort, opened lat winter.
You can get in touch with Christoph from Hiddenchina, a Swiss ski instructor who lives in BJ for 10 years and who is very familiar with this area. He organizes skiing trips to this area on a regular basis.
Beijing area sounds good. I'm not whinging, but from personal experience, there are a few problems skiing China.........
-Problems arise with costs, hotel costs, lift passes and equipment hire. Depends on the resort. Going individually can be very expensive as there are always massive group discounts.
-Anything in Jilin and Heilongjiang can suck, mostly because it can easily be -20 to -30 degrees at sea level during CNY. Which means unless you have a very careful maintenance team you'd be better off with ice skates! Also any wind can be unbearable, the best skiing IMO is sunny and 0c -5c, I'm not demanding this, but it would be nice for there to be a possibility.
-Equipment hire can be terrible and you can easily end up with 80-90s ex rental equipment
"Xinjiang's Silkroad Ski Resort
There is nothing more pleasant than gliding down a slope surrounded by natural forest. While in big cities it is impossible for skiers to have this intimate experience with nature, in the open spaces of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region you can be as close to nature as you want.
The Silkroad Ski Resort is located within the Nanshan National Forest Park, some 38 kilometers from Urumuqi city. Capable of hosting ten thousand visitors at a time, the ski resort has trails catering to different levels of skiers from children and beginners to professionals. The resort also has instructors and a section specially designed for snowboarding.
However, what makes the resort stand out from the rest is its magnificent mountain views. The resort has a sightseeing cable car that climbs to the peak at 2280 meters altitude. Long distance visitors can also stay the night at the resort's wood cabins and try some Xinjiang delicacies at its restaurant.
The Silkroad Ski Resort opens from early November to the beginning of May the next year."
http://www.flickr.com/photos/10524006@N07/981996869/
Ok It can get abit cold in Xinjiang in winter but I'll take no crowds over warmer temps.
-25 every where else I've skied has meant bullet proof.Xinjiang I don't know why but even in those temps it didn't ice up and the powder stayed around for weeks.
I can do -25 if there's powder! Just not keen on ice, no biggie on a glacier, bit not fun on a regular piste with low grade rental skis!
ZMC888 where are you skiing this season.
No real plan yet, my holiday has just started and I've been warming up on some of the local 400 meter button lift slopes. Found that if the weather is 3-5c can ride my motorcycle 100kms before get too numb, may try to go to Shanxi. Much more fun with my own wheels.
I think, with the skiing available vs price a train ticket to Urumqi might be the best option.
Don't know if you've seen these articles:
Skiing in China
You are correct about Heilongjiang being cold and icy, although Yabuli is nice if you hit powder conditions, and it has decent equipment rentals (but pricy). It is dry, so you won't get the wet stuff in other locations. I tried a few others up there, and none impressed me.
Personally, skiing in Xinjiang strikes me as being more interesting, probably because I've never been there.
Good luck!
They have had alot of snow this winter in Xinjiang if that's any help.
Great information here, thanks!Quote:
Originally Posted by Lao Jia Hou
.Quote:
Originally Posted by bigdamo
But isn't Xinjiang the assehole of China?
Doesn't it have all them funny people there, with silly things on their heads?
Gra.
.Quote:
Originally Posted by ZMC888
You can get an overnight sleeper direct from Weifang, Zibo to Zhangjiakou.
Train No. K710/K711
Depart Zibo 16:38, Arrive Zhangjiakou South 05:55
13h17m
Hard sleeper, 176/182/188
Soft sleeper, 272/284
Gra.
Wow, GrahamQuote:
Originally Posted by Graham
Quite abrasive there.
Have you ever been to Xinjiang or just believing what people tell you ie A friend of a friend tells me.
Hey ZMC888 you might want to check that the Ski resort is open before you follow Grahams advice and do a 26hr round trip train journey.Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham
http://www.skiresort.info/ski-resort...i/snow-report/
Hmm yes that's a problem here, they'll close half the runs and still ask for the same money or just close the whole resort.Quote:
Originally Posted by damo
Update:
I had a 4 day ski a Wanlong, Chongli. Good sized resort, a tad expensive, but worth it. Works out around 500-600 RMB with pass and rental a day, but there is 1200 meters skiing on average top to bottom over a 600 meter vertical drop.
Attachment 10062
Some of the trails marked up from the top. Most trails were actually blue or red, maybe really only a few sections of one two could be considered black if icy.
Attachment 10063
View from the high speed chair lift.
Attachment 10064
Top of one of the trails.
Attachment 10065
Amazingly with this years snow you could ski under the silver birches, some spots with nice powder, real slalom.
Attachment 10066
Gets a little busy at the weekend only queuing for the lifts. The wide mostly powder-topped frozen-base main trails stay fairly empty.
My wife's sister lives up there.
Zhangjiakou, just north of Beijing.
They sent us loads of photos of them skiing, and renting the snow mobiles.
About last weekend, or maybe Monday or Tuesday they were there.
Gra.
That's sweet, local knowledge can get you much cheaper rental and lift passes.Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham
.Quote:
Originally Posted by ZMC888
Fay just phoned her sister to ask for me.
There are two main places they go.
1/ For experienced skiers, probably like your self there is Wan long
Entry ticket is 500 rnb total
2/ The other more easy place is Chang Cheng Ling
Entry is 90 rnb
Chair lift is free
Rent coat is 50 rnb
Looks like they had a great time, and only used the Chang Cheng Ling venue.
Gra.
ZMC888 what was the ski/board ability/level of the locals like.
If your looking for cheaper Shihezi ski resort is I think 50rmb including lunch.Skiing terrain is rather limited though.
Never really could identify any difference between Hebei 'locals' and Beijingers. However, I would say that most of the Chinese skiers were of upper-intermediate level or better, mostly because to go on the 'unbelievably far' 300km drive from Beijing to Chongli you'd have to be pretty 'hardcore'. There were plenty of 'blue run experts' and 'Saturday rich kids', but also some very solid advanced skiers and one or two really actually good Chinese instructors. Snowboarders were mostly show-offs, doing low down wide-arc turns on groomed blue runs.Quote:
Originally Posted by bigdamo
Really such a big resort needs a proper grind-rail or two, jumps and a half pipe, easily enough space for such insanity. :icon10: