Pock'It Ski Instructor Books simple and fun

Visitor reviews for Cairngorm Ski Resort

---

---

• January 03, 2012
  Rob - Southampton from United Kingdom
  

  Just got back from a long weekend away in Scotland. We planned to ski New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

  We booked a hotel in Fort William as we planned to ski on the Nevis range but weather was pure rain and that resort was closed.

  We travelled 2-hrs to Cairngorm as their website and automated telephone service suggested there were around 10-runs open.

  When we got there, we paid £23 each (supposed half day rate) to ski one pathetic, hole ridden, cut up slope that was covered in ski schools and had one T-bar running - the lift broke, so rather than fix it they just closed the slope. No refund, no apology, nada.

  Seriously do not go there if you've ever skied at a decent resort. This is a classic case of rip off Britain - it's as if they think that because they have some snow and a bit of rope on a hill they can charge the European prices for a lift pass ... I might be wrong but I didn't see a chair lift there for when the resort is 'fully open'.

  I'm obviously disgruntled and my opinion has been made from poor weather, however, there was nothing that inspired me to consider returning there even if they could guarantee the weather. I'd say the Bulgarian resorts are better and that's putting up with the notorious thieves that work their slopes.

• Cairngorm Ratings

  Based on 5 votes. Vote

  Access: 4.0 (1) At least one overnight stop, (2) requires a whole day, (3) requires more than half a day – you may have time for a few turns (4) arrive by lunchtime and ski all afternoon, (5) there is a main airport within an hour of Cairngorm.	Public Transport: 4.2 (1) There are no buses or taxis to Cairngorm, (3) there are slow or infrequent buses / trains available, (5) getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections.
  Scenery: 4.2 (1) An ugly resort in a bland setting, (3) average mountain views and resort, (5) a spectacular setting and a beautiful / historic resort town.	Accommodation: 4.4 (1) No places to stay in/near Cairngorm, (3) a few places to stay in the resort, (5) a wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets.
  Cheap Rooms: 4.4 (1) No budget accommodation available, (3) just one or two hostels so book ahead, (5) several cheap hostels and pensions available.	Luxury Hotels: 4.6 (1) No luxury accommodation available, (3) just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead, (5) several up-market hotels in Cairngorm.
  Ski in/Ski out: 2.0 (1) The ski area is located far from any accommodation, (3) a free ski bus takes you to the ski area in a short trip, (5) Ski-in ski-out accommodation is available.	Childcare: 1.8 (1) There are no child care facilities at Cairngorm, (5) the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche.
  Snowsure: 2.8 (1) Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing, (2) is often closed due to a lack of snow, (3) occasionally suffers from a lack of snow, (4) rarely suffers from a lack of snow, (5) Cairngorm is snowsure even in the poorest seasons.	Snowmaking: 2.0 (1) Cairngorm relies entirely on natural snow, (3) there are just a few snow cannons, (5) there are snowmaking facilities on all pistes.
  Snow Grooming: 4.0 (1) There are no snow groomers at Cairngorm, (3) occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state, (5) all the runs at Cairngorm are groomed daily.	Shelter: 1.4 (1) there is nowhere to ski when it is windy or visibility is bad and lifts often shut, (3) there are some trees for poor visibility but main lifts sometimes close, (5) Cairngorm is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close.
  Nearby options: 2.4 (1) If snow conditions are poor at Cairngorm, it will be poor everywhere nearby, (3) there are good alternatives within an hours drive, (5) other locations on the same lift pass provide a rich variety of snowsure ski conditions.	Regional rating: 4.4 (1) Cairngorm usually has poor snow conditions compared to other resorts in region, (3) has average conditions for the region, (5) usually has the best snow conditions in the region.
  Lift Staff: 4.4 (1) The staff at Cairngorm are rude or unhelpful, (5) lift staff at Cairngorm are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help.	Crowds/Queues: 2.4 (1) the resort is always busy and there are usually long lift queues, (3) it is quiet apart from occasional weekends and school holidays, (5) it is uncrowded and lift queues are very rare.
  Ski Schools: 3.4 (1) No ski schools available, (2) one or two ski schools but local language only, (3) a few ski schools but book early for multi-lingual instructors, (4) plenty of ski schools and multi-lingual instructors available, (5) excellent ski schools with friendly multi-lingual ski instructors.	Hire and Repairs: 4.8 (1) Nothing can be sourced, not even ski-wax or ptex. (3) there are some ski shops but rentals need to be booked in advance, (5) good quality ski equipment can be purchased or hired and overnight repairs are possible.
  Variety of pistes: 3.4 (1) The ski runs are featureless and unvaried, (3) the ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week, (5) Cairngorm has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain.	Beginners: 4.0 (1) Beginners can only watch others ski and snowboard, (3) a few gentle slopes but beginners will get bored in less than a week, (3) Vast areas of gentle terrain.
  Intermediates: 3.8 (1) No intermediate terrain at Cairngorm, (3) intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days, (5) vast areas of cruising runs.	Advanced: 2.4 (1) Nothing for advanced skiers and snowboarders, (3) enough steep terrain for a few days with some good offpiste, (5) Enough steep terrain and offpiste areas to entertain advanced skiers for at least a week.
  Snow Park: 3.0 (1) Not even a kicker at Cairngorm, (3) average sized park quite well looked after, (5) huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails.	Off-piste: 3.0 (1) No off-piste worth mentioning, (2) off piste is out-of-bounds, (3) some varied offpiste that stays fresh for one or two days, (5) a vast array of off-piste routes that can stay untracked for several days.
  Cross-country: 3.2 (1) There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Cairngorm, (3) there are some cross country trails available, (5) the area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails.	Luge/Toboggan: 1.6 (1) No designated luge or toboggan runs, (3) there are toboggan runs that open quite often, (5) Cairngorm has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages.
  Mountain Dining: 2.8 (1) Nowhere to buy food by the pistes, (3) some places to eat up on the mountain but they are often busy and expensive, (5) there is a variety of excellent mountain eateries right next to the slopes to suit all budgets.	Eating: 4.0 (1) Bring your own food, there isn't even a shop. (5) A wide variety of places to eat and drink in the resort, from fast food to fancy restaurants.
  Apres-Ski: 3.6 (1) Nothing to do, not even a bar, (3) there are a few bars in the resort but nothing special, (5) clubs and bars stay open until very late and have a friendly atmosphere.	Other Sports: 4.2 (1) No sports facilities at all apart from ski lifts, (3) resort has just a small public swimming pool, (5) resort has all kinds of sports facilities, including a full-size swimming pool.
  Entertainment: 3.6 (1) Besides the snow and walking there is nothing to do here, (3) the non-skier will find things to do for few days but may become bored after a week, (5) the resort area is a fascinating place to visit, regardless of winter sports.	Winter Walks: 4.6 (1) Very limited walking and no snowshoe trails, (3) a couple of designated scenic walking/snowshoe trails, (5) extensive and diverse winter walking trails for all abilities.
  Ski Pass Value: 3.4 (1) A 1 week ski pass is overpriced compared to the number of lifts available, (3) the ski pass is averagely priced and covers a reasonable number of lifts, (5) ski passes are excellent value for money and cover a lot of lifts spanning a big area.	Value (National): 3.6 (1) Overall, Cairngorm is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the country and not worth the money, (3) overall represents average value for money, (5) overall offers the best value resort in the country.
  Value (Global): 3.4 (1) Overall, Cairngorm is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the world, (3) overall it offers pretty average value for money compared to resorts from other countries, (5) internationally the resort offers excellent value for money.

  Based on 5 votes. Vote

• August 26, 2011
  tommy from United Kingdom
  

  Great, great mountain with mostly very friendly staff...with one exception of a very incredibly rude tow operator...blasting heavy metal music from his operations hut......and being abusive towards my partner for struggling with the tow, full refund was given for that day of snowboarding as a full complaint was maid to the operations manager. However that did not ruin our time at the Cairngorms, would definitely recommend the Mackenzie hotel, family run by a lovely couple!, going back this season definitely!

• March 21, 2011
  john from United Kingdom
  

  Spent a couple of days on Cairngorm over weekend of 18th-19th. Snow and weather were great. Skiing was fantastic. If windy then several lifts are closed and so bottom lifts are packed. Avoid problems by getting to the car park before 8.30 to find a space and take cash to buy your lift pass at cash desk - no queues.
  If staying at Aviemore you could do much worse than stay at the Cairngorm Hotel - great, friendly place with possibly the best big cooked breakfast ever!

• March 06, 2011
  RICE from United Kingdom
  

  We, as a family, have been coming to Aviemore for years skiing. We can honestly say it is one of the best places to ski in Scotland. Runs are well groomed, food and facilities excellent, and most of all the staff very helpful and friendly. Stayed at the Scandinavian village, where everything was spot on. Thank you for making it a very enjoyable experience.

• February 28, 2011
  Mike from United Kingdom
  

  I have been to Cairngorm 6 times this year, firstly to get training from School of Snowsports (excellent by the way) then as an intermediate on my own. I love it, great mountain feel, some fab green and blue runs that can be strung together to make a long one (4km from top to bottom apparently) and friendly lift staff on the whole. Great coffee too!

  Down sides? Cairngorm can get very busy especially at weekends and then the lift queues are a bit of a nightmare frankly. Not sure what can be done but very frustrating!

  My advice on any day is get there early (like 8.15) for decent parking spot and some crowd free early runs.

• February 13, 2011
  The bandit from United Kingdom
  

  I went to Aviemore, Cairngorm, January and it was icy. They had groomed the runs but the wind turned them to ice in no time at all I took a fall and smashed my face on some rocks which where hiding and popping out of the ice (on a blue run) lucky I had a helmet on as it could of been a hospital job like the guy who was air lifted off the day before with a broken hip. Take care when you are up there enjoying yourself on a good day it is awesome. Have fun. The Bandit

• January 18, 2011
  Neil from Djibouti
  

  Been up Cairngorm 3 times this winter, once in November when they had only just opened and there was virtually no snow and you could hardly see 20ft in front of you, once in December when is was perfect bluebird and amazing snow, and once in January when it was misty, slushy and icy. All 3 were amazing fun days! Who cares if conditions are not so good or the organisation isn't the best, you're getting to ride a good mountain pretty much on your doorstep for virtually no money! Not so sure about this whole leash for snowboards idea tho...

• January 15, 2011
  Hendren from United Kingdom
  

  Returned today from a couple of days skiing at Cairngorm. My first visit and felt we just got in before it turned into a 'Water Park' as the snow is melting at a rapid rate on the lower levels.
  Yesterday (14/1/11) arrived at the top at 09.00 to find only ice to slide on down the Traverse as the 40-50kt winds had blown all the snow off the top of the hill. By mid afternoon only things I could see moving in the main area were the Trains, Fiacaill Ridge Poma (experts only, not me) and the Car Park T-Bar.
  Can’t make comment on west side lifts as only ventured there once, but must say the blue run from the Ptarmigan Restaurant to the Base Station was the best of the day for me, I just wasn’t prepared to wait for the length of time it took someone to decide to drive the train back up the hill.
  All in all, feel we got a fair deal from Ski Norwest with the Highlander Hotel/Meals/Ski Gear and Lift Passes but think I will spend extra next time to visit a better organised European venue with more likelihood of actual snow on the ground.

• December 20, 2010
  Tone from Lao People's Democratic Republic
  

  Lol to my country...love that, yeah on the plus side I learned to ski Feb 2010, mostly at Cairngorm. Fabulous days when I was able to get there from England and...I thought the staff were very warm, friendly, helpful people.
  I didn't think the same of some (not many) early twenties boarders who seemed to have an attitude of "I got hair, baggy pants and a board, rebel too so I don't queue". Some lift ops seemed to turn a blind eye to this! Infuriating! Queue jumping needs stamping on. If they won't queue they dont use the lifts. This season I encountered large ice sheets on geen runs...scary and painful, suggest snowmakers??
  What I am annoyed about is the suspension of season tickets, how dare they? Just because it looks like being a cracking season they want to milk more cash from the punters! Well, I hope this bites their butt and people go to other resorts for season tickets in future. Cairngorm, it's short term thinking. There will be poor seasons too and some people won't forget.

• December 12, 2010
  carver from United Kingdom
  

  The skiing is fantastic although limited at Cairngorm. The business is very, very poor. We were there for 4 days and when buying tickets I mentioned this. I was told the cheapest method was to buy a book of 4 vouchers, fantasic, so I did but then 3 days in, going up the funicular, an announcement was made: "if you're thinking of skiing tomorrow don't come here as we are closed all day for staff training", great! When I went back for a refund I saw the man at the counter and said I wanted a refund because they were due to be closed the next day and I was sold a 4 day pass (equivalent). The response was "are we?" so I informed him it was "staff training", "oh, I've been here too long for that". So I went to the Lecht for the day. They were far more organised and had more lifts and runs open even though they are a smaller resort and they were'nt even charging full price because a couple of drags weren't running. Am going to take some beginers back here in Feb.

  [note from the editor: review made shorter for purpose of relevance]

• December 09, 2010
  EliteBoarder from United Kingdom
  

  Basically, if you're a novice/beginner, go to the Lecht. A busy day on the Lecht is like a quiet day on the Gorm. The Lecht has a better beginner area (including a magic carpet), better system for hiring gear, and less wind etc. There is no point learning to ski/board on the Gorm on a busy day.

  If on the other hand you're a more advanced rider get to the Gorm as early as possible and always take your own gear. When you're up the mountain, ride out of the way blacks and reds (if available) because the queues for those lifts will tend to be smaller. The Gorm has interesting natural features with plenty of wind lips, mini cliff drops and powder fields (deffo get there early if you want to get some fresh turns!) resulting in some epic riding! If the road is shut up to the mountain then there is generally enough snow to ride around Glenmore, get yourself some snow shoes (either buy or hire from Glenmore shop) or XC skis and go exploring round the back of Glenmore particularly up Meall a Bhuachaille and down Creag Loisgte towards An Lochan Uaine. If there is a fresh dump of powder the tree riding is almost as good anywhere I have experienced in the backcountry of the Alps! Another option is to hike up towards the Lairig Gru taking the path at the Aviemore end of Loch Morlich. There are numerous steep powder fields on the way up. (Obviously, all relevant safety precautions should be met when out in the backcountry and out of ski patrol areas.)

• December 07, 2010
  scapa99 from United Kingdom
  

  Payment system badly managed. A typical example of how this country has no clue how to handle large volumes of people, however efforts to improve are clearly being made but this still not good enough and their system is not clearly advertised.

  We were told by a friend to bring cash (to Cairngorm) so we did, when we arrived staff were directing people cash only to go to separate window with a short queue – sweet we thought. When we got to the front we asked for lift pass and hire and the lady rudely told us that this was for ticket only as if we were supposed to know and how stupid we were for asking. I politely asked for an explanation why because this didn’t make sense, no explanation was given and we were again rudely told if you want hire get in the other queue. Whilst in the other queue I asked a passing member of staff why we cannot hire ski in the cash only window and he explained that they need your card details to ensure you return them plus you fill in a form for hire so this would defeat the purpose of a quick cash only system – perfect explanation, why could the cranky one at the cash window not have told us that instead of being rude to us (I reported her too).

  So to beat the queues:
  1 Buy and bring your own gear or hire in Aviemore before you get there.
  2 Bring cash for your lift pass.
  3 Book online (only for lift pass) pick up at rangers office.

  Booking on line sounds like a fantastic modern way to pay, however it is seriously flawed. First, again no ski hire is offered – why? You input your card details so that’s the gear insured – this clearly needs to change. Secondly the queue for the rangers office was small but the guy was taking like 10 minutes per person to serve meaning way slower than the cash queue so basically there is no benefit to book on line. Thirdly the snow gate gets closed regularly so if you book on line and its closed do you get a refund? – Nothing stated online.

  So we waited in the huge queue, an hour or so later when I could actually see the window I noted people have to fill in a form for hire. I watched as the cashier waited each time for people to fill it in, so I thought there should be desks and forms and pens on the way to the desk (like in airports) so when you get to the front the form is completed speeding up the process. So I went to the desk and asked if I could hand out some forms and pens to people in the queue. The lady was very nice and said that would be a good idea but unfortunately their forms are numbered and have to be input in sequence. Very frustrating my idea was sound this numbered sequence thing is clearly inefficient and needs to change.

  Another idea a mini cash machine. So many people just wanted a pass but had to wait in the hire & pass queue because they had no cash. Yes these mini cash machines charge you like £2 but compared to 2 hours skiing lost through waiting in queues a small price to pay. The companies that supply these machines make a huge profit with this; they would jump at the chance of installing one there.

  There you have it; I have no clue about running a successful business but have just improved the ski centre operations in a few paragraphs. Why can’t the simpletons in management see this, in my opinion they just don’t care, they think people have travelled this far so they will just have to wait and they are right; we do wait in the cold like total chumps while they sit back in their warm office watching the money roll in.

  Finally rant over. The hire staff were friendly and helpful, the skiing is actually quite good, snow perfect but visibility can be shocking and pretty unpredictable but hey – that’s Scotland for ya.

• November 30, 2010
  Adam West from United Kingdom
  

  We loved Cairngorm for skiing. No it is not a big alpine resort with hundreds of runs and thousands of ski lifts but it is small and intimate with amazing views. And there are all sorts of things to do if the road up to the mountain is not open. We brought the kids as I wanted them to try skiing without the expense of traveling abroad so that they could learn. We also took them to the raindeer centre and down to see the polar bears (a big hit with the 10 year old) and then a ride on the steam train. All great fun and I didn't have to remortgage the house. I would recommend it to any family or young or novice skier to find their feet. And the resort can be reached quickly from the UK if you just fancy a weekend away on the slopes. All in all, a fantastic experience.

• November 30, 2010
  Callum Reeves from United Kingdom
  

  I went to Cairngorm on Saturday 27th November. I arrived in Aviemore at 9:30am and it took 2 hours before I could buy my ticket. The road on the way up from Aviemore to the anow gates was horrible. However, the road was cleared from the anow gates up to the car park. Great job on clearing that road but what about the rest of it? It's a bit pointless since everyone was stuck at the hill by the clay pigeon hut! To add to the pain, their website had initially stated the price was £20.50 the night before due to limited uplift. Upon arriving however, it was now possible to ski from top to bottom so they whacked it up to full price. Now this I would accept but the uplift remained only with the M1 poma, a T-bar at the top and the funicular and it had taken me an extra 2 hours to actually manage to buy a full day ticket (couldn't get a half-day ticket since it wasn't 12:30 yet). So the queues were long and uplift remained limited. They had enough snow to open up all the lifts but they didn't. Please Cairngorm, this place has the potential to be fantastic. When I was out on the slopes, I was so happy to be snowboarding in 30 inches of powder, but the organisation gave me a bitter after-taste.

• September 25, 2010
  Gary Bamford from United Kingdom
  

  It will soon be another season on Caingorm and I wonder how many days will be lost by not having the right snow ploughs. and not getting the roads open; it's not good enough. All you see is closed. You need to update your road status throughout the night. To make matters even worse you drive past their antiquated snow ploughs and wonder if it's 2010. I would sack the lot and start again; the old school had a better idea. I live in Aviemore and the service is very bad: never open on time. Fed up about lots of snow on the roads and not open but you can always get there. Caingorm be fare, make a better service, open at night and get things sorted.

• August 20, 2010
  Jack kelly from United Kingdom
  

  Cairngorm is brilliant if you get the right weather and it can offer superb skiing and especially this season as it was like skiing in the Alps offering amazing powder and clear blue skies. The only things I think need improving are the drag lifts and the car park as it is always completely full and poorly managed. It would also be nice to see some chairlifts but really you can't complain too much as I live in Inverness and it only takes me about 30 mins to get there. So if the conditions are poor I just turn around and head home. I will definitly be getting a season pass again and if you haven't yet been what are you waiting for. Get yourselves up there!

• May 08, 2010
  Jim in Wrexham from United Kingdom
  

  Having never skied Scotland before I had two 3 day trips this winter. Cairngorm was the best of the 3 areas (the other 2 being Glenshee and Nevis) and the snow was as good as anything I have ever experienced in Europe. Yeah, the organisation isn't great but after years of poor conditions investment is going to be difficult. Maybe after this season they can put some of that extra income into new investment. Chairlifts would be nice but maybe would be closed a lot due to high winds? 6 days skiing for less than £500 in total (including both trips, fuel, food and drink and accomodation) cheap as chips. I am lucky to be in a job where I can look at the weather and set off at 24 hours notice, if you can do that it's well worth a visit.

• April 23, 2010
  jason from United Kingdom
  

  The Cairngorm is a good resort .But when I was there in Feb the railway had a breakdown and there were a lot of people there so the queues were massive. Had one run and gave up and went and asked for my money back. I just wish they would invest in some chair lifts and get rid of some of them old T-bars & button lifts so when the railway's not working you can get back to the top quickly. Been skiing many years and been to a lot of places. Cairngorm is the one place I have been where, if they have had a lot of snow, it takes 3-4 days to dig the train out and get the resort open again (the money they must lose). Reading all these reviews the same things keep popping up. Sort it out Cairngorm.

• April 18, 2010
  Gman from Afghanistan
  

  People should shut up and stop complaining. Cairngorm does the best it can on limited money and can offer great conditions on its day.

• April 01, 2010
  pm from United Kingdom
  

  I agree with some previous posters in that if you check the forecast in advance, you can get some fantastic ski-ing at Cairngorm. OK, I live in Inverness, so it's a lot easier for me to make a quick decision as to when to go, but I was up 3 times in March and it was brilliant. One other day, I turned up and they told us they were bombing the mountain to encourage avalanches, as there was too much snow! That day, we just got back in the car and drove to the Lecht. The conditions were good but I find the Lecht quite boring. On a good day (and we've had plenty during March) Cairngorm is excellent. If only they had some chairlifts (the West Wall poma is a bit of an endurance test when the wind is blowing)

• March 24, 2010
  Eleanor from United Kingdom
  

  Have you noticed that the negative comments have died down apart from 1 comment from a guy who hasn't been in the last 12 months. I live in Wrexham N.Wales, and went to Cairngorm for the weekend Feb 20-21st. We had an amazing weekend. Skiing from the top of the mountain to the lower carpark. There was a shuttle bus running throughout the day from the lower carpark back up to the funicular. From the weather reports I saw on the news in Jan and early Feb I am not surprised they were struggling with 2m of snow in one night in places etc. The only problem we had was when the funicular went down for an hour on the Sunday, other than that the pistes were world class with blue skies. We enjoyed it so much we're going to Cairngorm again this weekend. A great cheap skiing weekend. I highly recommend it.

• March 05, 2010
  lewis from United Kingdom
  

  Haven't been to the Cairngorm ski resort (ha ha) since last year. We got there at 0900hrs and had to park in the lower car park and waited 1hr for the bus to come from the depot then two turned up at once. When I joked about it to the guy who was managing the queue he then called me a w--ker. Now that's what I call good PR (or not!)
  I have entered the charity kilt ski tomorrow and I am dreading it after spending all this year skiing at the Lecht where everything is more organised and the staff are very friendly.
  All I would like to say is if my experience this time is the same as my last then I won't be back.
  Last thing is I think one of the reviewers must work for the organizers. It's the only resort I know of that when there's too much snow you can't get skiing (now that's a joke).

• February 27, 2010
  David Warner from United Kingdom
  

  I agree with another comment below. What I would recommend is not to travel to Cairngorm for a sustained ski holiday as they are not geared up for it. If you are lucky and have money to waste go for it. The resort is great for the locals who can check out the weather before travelling up there. The management do not update weather and ski run info properly. They don't go out at night to clear the roads so it is the next morning before they update the website properly. Not any good if travelling from afar for a day or two. I am from Edinburgh and would not recommend the place. For all those holiday makers keep your money and go abroad until management finally listen to paying customers. Sorry to everyone that likes the place but Cairngorm really is not geared up for travellers. Go abroad where service is everything.

• February 24, 2010
  Simon, Edinburgh from United Kingdom
  

  We were up at Cairngorm on Fri 19th Feb. The snow was in great condition, although hill cloud meant the top of the mountain was very misty. We arrived at 8:20 and got into the top car park, 40 min wait for ski hire but queues on the funicular were a max of 5 mins. Had a great day, really impressed with the funicular railway. It looks like the snow will last to May at Cairngorm.

• February 23, 2010
  mike from United Kingdom
  

  We had an excellent day at Cairngorm. Beautiful weather and snow to rival French Alps. Resort management let themselves down as usual - having paid £60 for 2 people for a days skiing, they announced they had no piste maps! Frequent list breakdowns and closures did not help impressions.

• February 23, 2010
  izzy from United Kingdom
  

  I think people who complain about the Cairngorm should check online for a weather report and to see if the roads are open before coming hundreds of miles and then moaning. I am from the Highlands and always check before travelling and we are just grateful to have got so much snow as we haven't had it this good for many years. I just hope it lasts 'till well into summer then we won't have to go to Xscape to ski.

• February 17, 2010
  Di from United Kingdom
  

  Having always skied in the US, France and Austria, we finally made it this weekend up to Scotland to ski. Having now experienced both the Lecht and the Cairngorms, I agree that the organisation is a little below par in the latter; by the time the snow ploughs had cleared the roads and we waited about an hour to catch the bus from the overflow car park, we could only get to ski for half the day. However, we were impressed with the conditions and the runs when we finally got to ski. My sons headed for the freestyle areas (a little small and lacking in kickers, but they managed) and loved the 'rollers'. We had to drag them off the runs at the end of the day! With a little bit more organisation and a little bit more investment (oh, and the right snow conditions of course) this (Cairngorm) would be a resort to rival many we have been to. I think we'll definitely be back - although we'd have to keep an eye on conditions first...

• February 11, 2010
  Will from United Kingdom
  

  Having said in my previous post (after much annoyance) that I would save my money and head across the channel, I couldn't resist the draw of a UK resort and returned 2 weeks later (29 Jan to 1st Feb) and had 4 great days of skiing/snowboarding at Cairngorm. The train was running on 3 of the days and it was really good - having seen the scale of the snow that had fallen onto the road I did have a little more sympathy. As the previous post says, with some more investment Cairngorm could be really good, and a real draw to the north of England/Scottish skiers where a drive across the channel is a little less convenient.

• February 09, 2010
  Simon from United Kingdom
  

  The people who have complained about the poor snow clearing and infrastructure at Cairngorm are completely correct. However, you have to remember that it is only the past two years that they have seen decent snow. Before that there were years and years of poor cover and the company running the mountain was struggling. Snow ploughs, and the operational systems to clear the road, need investment. Something that would not have been possible with the visitor numbers of the past decade. Hopefully, there should now be some money in the pot and things will improve. One thing that did annoy me when I was there at the end of January was the very poor bus link to Aviemore. One bus at 4.45 each afternoon is not acceptable. There is surely demand for a shuttle bus back and forth between 8am and 10am / 3pm and 5pm? A couple of quad chairs wouldn't go amiss either. Other than that Cairngorn is a fantastic place to ski. Let's hope the cold winters continue.

• February 08, 2010
  Iain Cassidy from Belgium
  

  I can understand the ire of those who queued patiently to get up the mountain at Cairngorm, when the bad weather struck in December/January. I was trying to get up there to work and the lack of clear information was frustrating. I wrote to the CEO of CML with some constructive suggestions and received a very polite and encouraging reply. I agree that pressure should be applied to HIE and CML, but it should be in the form of constructive criticism. I have skied all over Europe and Aviemore and on a good day Cairngorm ranks with the best. I would ask the doubters and critics to give it another try. It will get better.