Visitor reviews for Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan Ski Resort

• February 10, 2016
  Jason Roditis from Greece
  

  Am an experienced snowboarder, wife is an experienced skier. We are lucky to have skied all over the world with our favourite places: "Niseko", and the "Three valleys"
  Living in Greece with our 4 year old son and 2 year old daughter means that we try to get out for short trips to our local resorts when the snow falls. Recently, we had just spent 4 days of great skiing in the excellent Vassilitsa resort. After seeing Mount Voras from the summit of Vassilitsa we decided to do a day trip with the kids. My wife had been to Kaimaksalan before, however, I had not. So we woke the kids at 6am, and after driving for almost 3 hrs we arrived at a very bare, windy place, that had limited snow cover and a thick fog. Ok, weather is unpredictable, so we thought to make the most of it and rented skis for our son. My wife left to explore the mountain first, leaving me with the kids in the beginners area.
  This is where things started to go bad. A soon as I swiped my son's card and my own to walk over to the empty kids area, a man from the bottom of the drag lift walked over and bluntly told me I can not have my daughter in the beginners area. I had placed her on a small plastic sled so that I could have her next to me while watching my son practice the basics. I explained that I was alone and had no other option but to have her with me. He said he didn't care and that I had to remove the sled, ok. So I removed the sled and held her in my arms while watching/assisting my son. After about 15 minutes, the man walked back over to us, and asked me to leave. Shocked, I asked why? He said that I was not a skier and was not aloud to assist my son unless wearing skis! Incredibly rude and stupid. I explained that I was a snowboarder and that it would be dangerous and almost impossible for me to hold my 2 year old in my arms while strapped into my bindings, trying to assist my son.
  Anyway, he chased us out of the (empty) kids area and sent us to an area on the other side of the fence which was basically rocks and ice with a large pile of stones at the bottom of the short run (dangerous and out of the question for children).
  I packed up the kids and went to speak with the director of Kaimaksalan ski resort. His response was one of incredible indifference. He didn't show any interest or care about our treatment. He admitted that his staff had acted wrongly,but that was it. No action taken.
  My wife returned from her first session then took our son into the beginners area where he finally started to have some fun. I walked over to the first lift (drag lift) where the same man came out and told me flat, that I could not go on the mountain. When I asked why he said I needed a leg strap for my board. I was just speechless with frustration. I walked back to the directors office and was told that since the government took over the running of the resort that many new rules were now in place.

  I accept rules are rules. But rude staff and management who don't care about paying customers, together with a limited ski potential and often bad weather and worse visibility, means this resort is now the last place in Greece that I would recommend.

  Avoid if possible.

• Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan Ratings

  Overall: 3.5. Based on 41 votes and 28 reviews. Vote

  Access: 3.7 (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 Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan.	Public Transport: 3.1 (1) There are no buses or taxis to Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, (3) there are slow or infrequent buses / trains available, (5) getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections.
  Scenery: 4.1 (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: 4.0 (1) No places to stay in/near Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, (3) a few places to stay in the resort, (5) a wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets.
  Cheap Rooms: 3.5 (1) No budget accommodation available, (3) just one or two hostels so book ahead, (5) several cheap hostels and pensions available.	Luxury Hotels: 4.2 (1) No luxury accommodation available, (3) just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead, (5) several up-market hotels in Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan.
  Ski in/Ski out: 3.0 (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: 2.8 (1) There are no child care facilities at Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, (5) the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche.
  Snowsure: 4.4 (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) Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan is snowsure even in the poorest seasons.	Snowmaking: 3.3 (1) Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan 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 Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, (3) occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state, (5) all the runs at Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan are groomed daily.	Shelter: 2.9 (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) Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close.
  Nearby options: 3.3 (1) If snow conditions are poor at Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, 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: 4.3 (1) Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan 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: 3.9 (1) The staff at Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan are rude or unhelpful, (5) lift staff at Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help.	Crowds/Queues: 3.8 (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: 3.6 (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: 3.6 (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: 3.2 (1) The ski runs are featureless and unvaried, (3) the ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week, (5) Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain.	Beginners: 3.9 (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 Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, (3) intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days, (5) vast areas of cruising runs.	Advanced: 3.4 (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: 2.6 (1) Not even a kicker at Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, (3) average sized park quite well looked after, (5) huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails.	Off-piste: 3.4 (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: 2.8 (1) There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan, (3) there are some cross country trails available, (5) the area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails.	Luge/Toboggan: 2.7 (1) No designated luge or toboggan runs, (3) there are toboggan runs that open quite often, (5) Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages.
  Mountain Dining: 3.2 (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: 3.3 (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: 3.5 (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: 2.8 (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: 3.3 (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: 3.0 (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: 3.3 (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): 3.4 (1) Overall, Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan 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, Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan 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.

  Show all 35 ratings

• January 22, 2014
  Ourania from Greece
  

  After my first vist at Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan Ski Resort I can say that it's a nice place for skiing and have fun.

• January 07, 2014
  Kristijan from Macedonia
  

  Kajmakcalan is a good place for skiing and enjoying, especially in sunny weather, when the wind is in zero. But this situation sometimes is rare.
  Vigla Pisoderi is better place for enjoying and skiing because it is with woods. Also, Ski center Pelister is very picturesque place and lot of pines can make simple winter story. However, this region in Southwestern Macedonia and Northwestern Greece is very good for enjoying in winter. We have 3 very good ski centres in radius of 100km. There are Pelister, Vigla, Kaimakcalan

• November 17, 2011
  tommy from Italy
  

  Hey guys, good resort , nice only with good weather. Careful away from the ski school there, I am sure they don't know skiing!

• March 14, 2011
  tzeo from Uganda
  

  Very nice ski resort, only with good weather conditions but such a difficult thing to happen this. and be careful of the ski school there, they want only the money...

• December 19, 2009
  conman from Australia
  

  In a forum like this, people want to know about the resort and the snow conditions at resorts like Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan. I went up there for a drive about a month ago, but unfortunately only got as far as 6kms up the 20km drive because of the heavy fog. Next time I am in Greece, I will visit it for sure and hit some powder. Have fun on Kaimaktsalan (Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan), you're lucky you can get to see it.

• November 27, 2009
  Panos from Greece
  

  Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan is a real mountain. It is high enough with plenty of snow for everybody. Situated in north Greece in the perfecture of Macedonia (the land of the greatest Greek Alexander the Great) it can be easily accessed now from its capital Thessaloniki due to the new Egnatia motorway.
  It can be windy or foggy sometimes but not more often than other ski centres.
  I recommend Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan for everybody.

• April 03, 2009
  kiteavra from Greece
  

  This mountain (Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan) is perfect when it is windy as the mountain is suitable for snow-kites. No trees, no buildings, no cables. You do not need money as the lifts are useless for people who have kites. When the snow is like rock, you can go with your kite to a place with powder as there are sides on the mountain that, when it is windy, fill with snow. You can go to ride there. If you watch forecasts you can avoid foggy days and extreme wind conditions.
  Well, in conclusion, I believe that this mountain (Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan) is perfect for people who loves snow and wind. Hope you love it.

• January 28, 2009
  KOSTAS TSAKIS from Greece
  

  This ski center (Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan) has problems during the main period of skiing every time you visit it. The mountain is very windy and foggy many days of the winter. The only chair is going very slowly; a fact that makes you freezing because of the wind. I visited the center last time on 27/1/2009; the snow was good but the fog was too thick so that you could not see your face. I paid a daily ski-card but it was impossible to make skiing. The ski center would be closed, specially for safety reasons. The prices at the coffee-bar are extremely high .4.40 Euros for a cup of tea. I could recommend Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan ski center only to the beginners during spring when the other Greek ski centers are out of snow.

• December 21, 2008
  kostas from Greece
  

  Kaimaktsalan (Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan) has the best quality of snow in Greece and is one of the best in the Balkans. It also has the longest period of snowing in Greece (and not only) because of its location and altitude (2524 meters). It is the second most advanced ski resort in Greece after Mount Parnassus in Central Greece and it is close enough to Macedonia's capital Thessaloniki (2 hours) and its airport. Kaimaktsalan (Mt Voras Kaimaktsalan) is also a great place to visit at spring and summer too because of its beautiful nature!

  Veugeli, in F.y.r.o.m, is not even close to Kaimaktsalan (Monastiri is closer, but also far enough too) and the north part of Kaimaktsalan that belongs to f.y.r.o.m has smaller altitude and so, much smaller period of snow...