AVOIDING THE CROWDS IN THE AOSTA VALLEY: CREVACOL
18th February 2020 | James Cove, Crevacol, Aosta Valley
Last modified on May 15th, 2021
It’s the busiest week of the ski season with crowded slopes, long lift lines and packed restaurants. But not everywhere. PlanetSKI reports.
The Aosta Valley in Italy has the well-known resorts of Cervinia, Courmayeur and Champoluc.
It also has some areas most UK skiers and snowboarders have never even heard of – Crevacol, Cogne and Chamois.
This half-term week here at PlanetsKI we are skiing the little-known ones from our winter base in the city of Aosta.
We want to avoid the crowds and busy resorts.
First up it’s Crevacol.
It was a clear road to the resort that lies about 20km from Aosta on the way up to the St Bernard Pass into Switzerland.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
And a single track turn off from the main road.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
So, what’s in store?
First impressions looked good with no queue for the first lift.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
A solitary snowboarder was our company on the second lift.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
The slopes were pretty much completely deserted.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
THE RESORT
We hammered round the slopes and with more than 800m of vertical descent and numerous routes down there was plenty to play with.
The stats do not do the resort justice:
22 km of slopes: 3 blue – 8 red – 1 black.
2 chairlifts – 1 magic carpet.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
And then lunch, where we finally saw a few people.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
A fabulous minestrone soup for the princely sum of €6 – eat your heart out Courchevel and every other resort where lunch requires a small mortgage.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
And after lunch?
Well, it was just as quiet out on the slopes though I did come across a couple of people.
Now of course the resort is not big enough for a week’s holiday – just the two lifts and 22kms of terrain.
But if you happen to chose Aosta as a place to say to access the resorts in the Aosta Valley then you miss Crevacol at your peril.
Also some of the bigger resorts in the Aosta Valley allow you to come here on your resort lift pass – I would strongly recommend it.
Not just to escape the crowds, but to step back in time and enjoy skiing old school.
Next time there is a decent fall of powder I am going to head straight here from the PlanetSKI base in Aosta.
Now as well as the quiet slopes, the views in this resort high up above Aosta towards Switzerland are seriously impressive.
Fabulous scenery in Crevacol
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
And in this part of the Alps people actually wave at you from lifts for no particular reason except to say ‘hello’.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
All too soon the day in Crevacol drew to a close.
Inside was one of the best Vin Chauds I have tasted – for the small matter of €1.30.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
Not much is certain in my ski life, but one thing is.
I will be back to ski in Crevacol.
Soon.
Very soon.
And apart from all of the above, there is another reason.
I know of no other resort where you can ski down on the roof of a motorway tunnel – that’s the road to the St Bernard Tunnel:
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
I will be back.
Crevacol, Aosta Valley, Italy. Image © PlanetSKI.
