We asked repeat guest Stephen Rooney for his comments and itinerary on his recent trip to Cervinia, in Italy, staying in the amazing all-inclusive 4 trident Hotel Cervinia and he's what he had to report:
Having skied for over 25 years, I have built up quite a repertoire of ski resort knowledge and in my opinion, skiing with the all-inclusive holiday module is hard to beat for hassle-free and value for money holidays. The Italian resort of Cervinia is now one of my favourite wintersports destinations; this high altitude resort is quite handily linked to the famous (and very swanky) resort of Zermatt and is ideally located at the base of the iconic Matterhorn.
This snow-sure resort at over 2000 metres offers some of the quietest and highest altitude terrain in the Alps, without having to pay the price tag of staying in Switzerland. The Hotel Hotel Cervinia offers a very comfortable level of accommodation and includes full area lift passes (which are NOT cheap here!), all day ski lessons (up to expert level), full board and alcohol, flights, transfers and 7 nights accommodation. The ease of paying for everything prior to departure cannot be underrated and I would highly recommend Club Med holidays to all types of skiers.
I thought I would run through a typical day at the resort to give you an idea of what to expect:
08:00 Wake up (rather groggily after potentially having enjoyed too many free proseccos at the all-inclusive bar last night). Wander down to the restaurant where there is a huge selection for breakfast – I opt for a plate of fresh fruit and pancakes. Appears that some people have chosen to have 7 courses just for breakfast… but who can blame them!
08:40 Head downstairs to the ski locker room where our equipment has been safely stored and boots have been warmed overnight. The usual struggle with the boots incurs, but thankfully all the children in the resort are in a separate room being looked after by hotel's GO’s (hotel staff to you and I). The drama is contained!
09:00 Walk outside to be greeted by my rather beautiful Italian ski instructor who gives us all a grappa to get us going (perhaps not needed!). The sun is shining and our group seem excited for the day ahead.
09:05 Whilst Cervinia is not strictly speaking a ski-in/ski-out resort, getting to the lifts couldn’t be much easier. A hotel GO takes my skis and loads them onto the back of the minibus, which we join for the 2 minute journey to the lifts. Easy!
10:00 On the slopes for the next couple of hours. My instructor (of Level 5) seems to prefer off-piste to the slopes, so we are challenged all morning exploring parts of the ski area we could never have found ourselves. With exhausted legs… it must be time for lunch..
12:30 We stop for our all inclusive lunch in a mountain restaurant contracted by the hotel. We are greeted with plates of anti-pasti and a glass of prosecco, and then a hearty, traditional 3-course Italian meal is served. Obviously the beers and wine are all still included (we are on a premium all-inclusive holiday after all!) and we take full advantage. Credit cards stay in our pockets!
14:00 After dragging ourselves away from sitting in the sun, we ski with our instructor for another couple of hours. This afternoon we tackle the park – a new experience for us all! A few of us take a tumble but it is all great fun.
16:30 We arrive exhausted back at the club after having skied down the easy red run back to the door. Boots and skis off straight away, we collapse in the sofas in the lounge and enjoy a beer. Children are collected by their parents and the crepe station seems to be keeping them very happy indeed…
19:00 Back in the bar after showering and we decide to try out the free cocktails. Mine’s a mojito!
20:00 Upstairs we go for dinner. This is a real culinary experience. The buffet serves a huge selection of dishes, along with 10 stations with chefs cooking various things in front of you. Tonight is a seafood buffet which is right up my street – I have oysters, prawns, sushi, salmon.. the list goes on. I finish with a trip to the chocolate fountain, obviously.
21:30 Back to the bar for the evening’s entertainment. Tonight is a cabaret show – however, as we are exhausted, we retire to a quieter area of the bar for coffees and liqueurs. Credit card still hasn’t been out of wallet all day…
23:30 Shattered, we head to bed. I make a mental note to book a massage for tomorrow afternoon. A good night’s sleep is required for another perfect day on the slopes tomorrow…
