Roccaraso Resort Reviews

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Roccaraso Resort Reviews

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Visitor reviews for Roccaraso Ski Resort

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Roccaraso Ratings

Overall: 3.3. Based on 6 votes and 9 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 Roccaraso.

Public Transport: 3.5

(1) There are no buses or taxis to Roccaraso, (3) there are slow or infrequent buses / trains available, (5) getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections.

Scenery: 3.5

(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: 3.8

(1) No places to stay in/near Roccaraso, (3) a few places to stay in the resort, (5) a wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets.

Cheap Rooms: 3.2

(1) No budget accommodation available, (3) just one or two hostels so book ahead, (5) several cheap hostels and pensions available.

Luxury Hotels: 2.2

(1) No luxury accommodation available, (3) just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead, (5) several up-market hotels in Roccaraso.

Ski in/Ski out: 2.6

(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: 1.5

(1) There are no child care facilities at Roccaraso, (5) the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche.

Snowsure: 3.3

(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) Roccaraso is snowsure even in the poorest seasons.

Snowmaking: 4.0

(1) Roccaraso 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 Roccaraso, (3) occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state, (5) all the runs at Roccaraso are groomed daily.

Shelter: 3.7

(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) Roccaraso is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close.

Nearby options: 2.0

(1) If snow conditions are poor at Roccaraso, 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: 3.8

(1) Roccaraso 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: 3.8

(1) The staff at Roccaraso are rude or unhelpful, (5) lift staff at Roccaraso are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help.

Crowds/Queues: 2.5

(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: 4.0

(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: 3.8

(1) The ski runs are featureless and unvaried, (3) the ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week, (5) Roccaraso has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain.

Beginners: 3.8

(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: 4.5

(1) No intermediate terrain at Roccaraso, (3) intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days, (5) vast areas of cruising runs.

Advanced: 3.2

(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 Roccaraso, (3) average sized park quite well looked after, (5) huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails.

Off-piste: 2.8

(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 Roccaraso, (3) there are some cross country trails available, (5) the area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails.

Luge/Toboggan: 1.5

(1) No designated luge or toboggan runs, (3) there are toboggan runs that open quite often, (5) Roccaraso has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages.

Mountain Dining: 4.0

(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: 3.4

(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: 3.0

(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: 3.0

(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: 3.2

(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: 3.2

(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): 3.0

(1) Overall, Roccaraso 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): 3.0

(1) Overall, Roccaraso 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

February 14, 2011
Niccolo' from

Italy

Unbelievable what backcountry terrain you can get in Roccaraso! My special thanks to Giulio, Stefano and Gianfranco... sometimes we call it "rocCANADA"

January 18, 2010
patrick kearns from

United States

I skied Roccaraso a couple of years ago and was very surprised at how good it was/is. The hotel, the people, the food, the atmosphere were all very nice. Compared to many places in Europe and in the Americas it is not big but more than adequate for a 3 day weekend with good snow and terrain. A mountain top restaurant like Club Mortizino, from the Corvarra Sella Ronda area, is about the only thing you will miss here. The 70's vibe is still alive in Roccaraso.

November 26, 2008
judy and James marston from

United Kingdom

We visited Roccaraso in Feb this year and although there wasn't that much snow, this year it was o.k as they have snow cannons here on some of the main runs. I am a rubbish beginner and we went up in the cable car to the top for the blue run, but when we got there it was closed (a sign at the bottom might have been a good idea!) We had to come down a red run which was a bit much for me and I couldn't make the middle part of it but an instructor skied down to the bottom section with me on her back!! It was very embarassing, but she dropped me off around a corner, so at least I had my dignity intact as I skied the last part up to the bar. My husband thought it was a good varied resort, and left me at the bar whilst he went off on several runs. It is fairly large and the Italians hold some of the international championships here. I think there would be enough here to keep you interested for a weeks skiing. You have to pay for the car park as well here, and can buy a whole day or afternoon pass as well as weekly. We were lucky and a guy who had finished for the day gave us his passes so we could use them for the afternoon. There is also an indoor ice rink here. There are a few restaurants and bars dotted around as well. It is quite pretty, with pine trees, but a lot of it is quite open. I prefered Passo Lanciano but then I'm not a proper skier!!!

November 23, 2008
Annelise from

United Kingdom

As I originally come from Abruzzo, I may be biased in saying that there is nothing better for skiing in central Italy. Obviously, north of Italy is the real place to go for serious skiing but Roccaraso is quite cheap and the food is great. Really nice for a long weekend. Please note that Pescaras Airport is closer than Naples. Having said that a visit to Naples is worthwhile (or if you intend to shop a visit to modern Pescara and ancient Chieti is also quite nice).

November 30, 2007
Frank from

United Kingdom

The level of snow is fairly inconstant. 2 years ago they had more snow than anywhere in the Alps. However, last year the snow fall was pityful. When there's snow this is. In my opinion, the best place in central Italy to ski. I'm looking forward to see what the weather wants to do this season and with a bit of luck, it'll snow snow snow.

April 03, 2006
Matthew from

United Kingdom

Probably one of the best if rather strange resorts in central Italy. Most of it is straight out of the seventies, including the shops - I bought some great original 70s backstock cardigans for a few pounds. As for the lifts, the cable car is pretty quick, but otherwise there is only one fast chairlift. The rest are painfully slow. Snow is usually in fairly good condition - they often get more than the Alps here. The pistes are pretty good, though there is not a lot of off-piste. The resort is quiet with only a couple of bars, but Italian might be necessary.

February 19, 2006
Chris Alexander from

Italy

Roccaraso is nice and fairly cheap ($32-ish for an all-day, all-lift ski pass)with some nice little restaurants for lunch/coffee/etc. The town is also very nice and small. The people are friendly and accommodations are not outrageously priced. Highly recommended for a weekend getaway. If you're looking for the best skiing you can find, probably better to head to the Alps. If you're just looking for a fun day or two, nothing too serious, Roccaraso is great.

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