Europe Explored » winter sports https://europeexplored.com Travel through the most beautiful places in Europe Sun, 08 Sep 2013 13:36:19 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=3.6 An enjoyable winter vacation in Austria https://europeexplored.com/2012/04/30/an-enjoyable-winter-vacation-in-austria/ https://europeexplored.com/2012/04/30/an-enjoyable-winter-vacation-in-austria/#comments Mon, 30 Apr 2012 07:00:26 +0000 Claire https://europeexplored.com/?p=7181 Austria is one of the most popular destinations for winter sports fans from all over the world. Especially the Arlberg Region attracts numerous visitors and ski enthusiasts every year. While skiing is on top of the winter sports list, there are also many other possibilities for an enjoyable winter vacation. Cross country skiing, sleigh riding, […]

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Austria is one of the most popular destinations for winter sports fans from all over the world. Especially the Arlberg Region attracts numerous visitors and ski enthusiasts every year. While skiing is on top of the winter sports list, there are also many other possibilities for an enjoyable winter vacation. Cross country skiing, sleigh riding, hiking tours through the snow or ice skating are only some other interesting options for a perfect winter holiday. In addition, families with children benefit from a variety of family friendly offers that include among other things skiing lessons for children in a children-ski club.

Alber Story
Photo by sport-alber.com

Ski rental in St. Anton/Arlberg

St. Anton and the surrounding areas are perfect for a winter holiday. In an area of around 50 km², winter sport fans will find a large variety of cross country runs, slopes, and ski lifts. For all those who do not own winter sport equipment, or who want to try out skiing or snowboarding for the first time, the Ski hire St.Anton and the Ski rental St Anton will be pleased to provide the necessary skiing and snowboarding equipment upon payment of a charge.

Snowboarding in St. Anton

The St. Anton Park is a true paradise for snowboard fans and all those, who want to try snowboarding for the first time. Especially designed for snowboard activities, the area offers a variety of challenges including natural pipes and many other possibilities for corner jumps, spins etc.

St. Anton invites you

If you opt for a winter holiday in Austria you will take many good memories home. Enjoy typical Austrian hospitality, excellent Austrian kitchen and take advantage of everything that the Arlberg Region has to offer you. Sleigh rides in the snow, a tour in a horse drawn coach through the winter landscape, snowboarding, skiing and many other activities ensure a perfect winter holiday for you and the entire family.


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Ötztal – ski on exclusive slopes with a great elevation in Austria https://europeexplored.com/2012/01/24/otztal-ski-on-exclusive-slopes-with-a-great-elevation-in-austria/ https://europeexplored.com/2012/01/24/otztal-ski-on-exclusive-slopes-with-a-great-elevation-in-austria/#comments Tue, 24 Jan 2012 09:29:56 +0000 Claire https://europeexplored.com/?p=6063 65-kilometres long Tyrolean valley Ötztal stretches in the Ötztal Alps massif. On its steep slopes extend exclusive pistes boasting a great elevation. Ötztal, or rather ski resorts that are located in this valley, offer the best of the Austrian Alps. Skiers will certainly enjoy a perfectly groomed slopes of all levels and lots of off-piste […]

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65-kilometres long Tyrolean valley Ötztal stretches in the Ötztal Alps massif. On its steep slopes extend exclusive pistes boasting a great elevation. Ötztal, or rather ski resorts that are located in this valley, offer the best of the Austrian Alps. Skiers will certainly enjoy a perfectly groomed slopes of all levels and lots of off-piste possibilities. You can also ski on the glacier here. There are several resorts situated in the Ötztal valley: large resorts Sölden and Obergurgl-Hochgurgl, medium-large Hochoetz Kühtai, and small resorts Vent, Niederthai and Gries.

Ötztal valley, Solden resort, Austria
Photo by oetztal.com

Ötztal Valley Resorts have a total of more than 300 km of ski slopes, which lie at an altitude ranging from 1377 to 3340 meters above sea level and thus can boast an elevation of nearly 2,000 metres. The most famous ski resort of Ötztal is exclusive Sölden, which offers about 150 kilometers of ski slopes, spreading partially on two glaciers and three peaks with a height exceeding 3,000 meters above sea level. This makes Sölden really a unique ski resort in Austrian Alps. More than 100 kilometers of slopes has another luxury resort Obergurgl-Hochgurgl. But Ötztal is also suitable for cross-country skiers as you can find here around 185 kilometres of cross-country trails.

Ski pass prices and opening hours
Lifts in the Ötztal runs from 8:30 to 16:30. One-day ski pass costs €45 in the most popular resorts like Sölden and Obergurgl-Hochgurgl, and six-day ski pass costs about €230.

Also an offer of après-ski activities is on a high level in Ötztal. In addition to restaurants, bars, shops, you can try out all sorts of winter sports and the icing on the cake is a luxury aqua park situated in the town Längenfeld.

For further info visit oetztal.com website.


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Estonia – Baltic pearl https://europeexplored.com/2010/04/28/estonia-baltic-pearl/ https://europeexplored.com/2010/04/28/estonia-baltic-pearl/#comments Wed, 28 Apr 2010 12:41:12 +0000 Claire https://europeexplored.com/?p=94 Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by the Russian Federation. The territory of Estonia covers 45,227 km2 and is influenced by a […]

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Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by the Russian Federation. The territory of Estonia covers 45,227 km2 and is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate.The Estonians are a Finnic people, and the Estonian language is closely related to Finnish.

When to go to Estonia?
The warmest in Estonia is in the period from May to September, but even the highest daily temperatures aren’t over 22 °C. If you experience heat in Estonia at around 30 °C, it is something unusual and it happens very rarely. The sea temperature in summer is between 16 to 21 °C. Since July and August are quite rainy months, the best time to visit Estonia is in May, June and September. There is a constant and pleasant weather, which only occasionally interrupts the storms. During the summer there are very long days which lasts 19 hours. During the summer months in Estonia you can visit a number of festivals and entertainment events. April and October are unpleasantly cold and windy months. Winter in Estonia lasts from November to March and temperatures are below 4 °C in some areas even freezes. Snow is common, and daylight lasts only a few hours. However, if you want to enjoy winter sports such as skiing, tobogganing or ice skating on frozen lakes, Estonia is ideal for you in winter season.

Passports, visas, documents
EU citizens do not need a travel visa to Estonia, but only if the planned duration of stay does not exceed 90 days. They must carry a valid passport or identity card with machine readable zone.

Health
EU citizens will be treated free in Estonia with the European health insurance card. Most health facilities in Estonia has a contract with the Estonian Health Insurance Eesti Haigkassa. If you were treated in private facilities / private doctor, who has a contract with the insurance company, you will be forced to pay the costs of treatment yourself. Do not forget to pack also a mosquito repellent, which is essential in summer. You don’t need any vaccinations unless you know that most of the time you spend in nature, it is good to be vaccinated against tick-borne encephalitis. Pharmacies are usually adequately supplied with Western medicine.

Money
Since 1992, the official monetary unit of Estonia is Estonian kroon, which is relatively stable. Although Estonia is a member of the European Union, yet it retains its original currency. In every city you will find currency exchange offices and banks where you can exchange cash. In case of theft it is a good idea to carry at least a small amount of traveler’s checks. They can be exchanged but only in larger cities. Most banks also accept eurocheques. In hotels, restaurants and shops you can also use credit cards.

Pets
If you want to travel to Estonia with your four-legged friend, you must obtain an international certificate of vaccination, including vaccination certificate against rabies. The animal must be identified by chip or tattoo. Dogs can also be transferred only through selected border crossings, those are the airport in Tallinn, Narva on the Russian-Estonian border and Valga on the Latvian-Estonian border.

Location and natural conditions
Estonia is the smallest Baltic country, which is located in Northern Europe and is bathed by the Baltic Sea. It borders with Russia and Latvia, and is separated from Finland with about 80 km wide Gulf of Finland. Nearly 10% of the territory consists of islands, the largest are Saaremaa and Hiiumaa. The country is covered with pine and fir trees, a large percentage of the surface occupy the marshes, swamps and bogs, which can reach depths of up to 7 meters. In Estonia, there is located the largest Baltic Lake Peipus. It forms a natural border with Russia and with its area of ​​3555 km2 it is the fifth largest lake in Europe. The largest lake located only on the territory of Estonia is Võrtsjärv with an area of ​​266 km2. Estonia is mostly a flat country. Only at the south-eastern part of the country you can find the highlands, where is the highest mountain of Estonia – Suur Manamägi, 318 meters heigh. The country has one of the greatest natural attractions, the Baltic Klint (also known as North Estonian Klint), which is 1200 km long limestone cliffs. The emergence of this unique natural phenomenon dates back 60 million years ago. In Estonia, there is also a relatively large number of national parks, reserves and protected areas.

Estonian cuisine
Estonian cuisine is largely influenced by German cuisine, and it is quite bold and quite unhealthy. As it is known, however, what usually is not healthy, it is very good. Further it may also influence Finnish, Russian and Latvian cuisine. The basis of Estonian cuisine is mainly meat, especially chicken, pork and fish. Popular delicacies are the puddings, smoked trout and other salted and smoked fish. Estonians often eat black pudding, sausages and all kinds of salami, potatoes, cabbage and many other vegetables. One of the most popular Estonian dishes are served cold marinated eel, called “Marineeritud angerjas”.


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