The web site of Valle Nevado says they have powder but all of this month they do not have powder since it has been warm (2-9 celcius), sunny, and has not snowed here for two weeks and none is forecast for at least two weeks more. They do make snow however. Read detailed information about Valle Nevado and El Colorado in our report at SouthernPacificReview(-dot)com
Excellent resort for a day trip from Santiago. I used ski total for the transfers, they offer a great service (no I don't work for them!) but suggest you bring lunch from Santiago as the food on the mountain is extremely expensive and limited to fast food burgers and fries.
Took the SkiTotal Bus up yesterday from Las Condes. Conditions have deteriorated to hard pack snow. Sunny in the morning and then around 2pm the cloud level dropped creating increasingly poor visibility. Left the slopes early to avoid injuring myself. Beautiful place though with tons of terrain. Can only imagine what it is like with fresh snow.
Valle Nevado is the bigger resort, great powder fun place to ride all day long and have an incredible view of El Plomo Mountain where a Inca mummey was found.
2 new pomma lifts this year!
contact [email protected]
All in all Valle Nevado is a really nice area. I only had 2 days for skiing in Chile, I am glad this is one of the areas I chose, One day I will return. It's a large area, and has well placed lifts so the skiing is all fall line skiing. The level of the runs are actually mostly blues and greens, even though they have blacks marked on the map. Expert skiers will enjoy this area if you're out looking for an easy day. It's an adventure to explore the vast expanse of the resort. They had a dump of fresh snow the night before I arrived so I was making fresh powder turns most of the day. Unfortunately I only had one day, it would have been nice to spend the night and try the adjoining areas of La Parva and Colorado as well.
We came to Valle Nevado for one week (28th of August) to celebrate my 50th birthday. We both suffered altitiude sickness for one day so were unable to ski. The Valle Nevado hotel was noisy; you could hear people in the next room and had to sleep with earplugs. It is not 4 star, maybe 2 star. The only restaurant where the food was edible was the French restaurant. There was no service and we got more help from the ski school staff who spoke good English. The skiing at Valle Nevado was ok but not very challenging. The slopes were empty and after a snowfall you could still find untouched powder at the end of the day.
For some reason, many foreigners suffer what we playfully call Chilenitis. It's caused by the tap water. Although it's not dangerous (definitly a drag), it should only happen the first time you come. In any case, if you come again, I recommend you stick to bottled water. This should be enough to avoid the loose stomach. Don´t worry about the meat and cheese. We have very strict sanitary laws which should allow you to eat without fear.
Just back from a week at Valle Nevado with one day at La Parva. My third time to Chile with at least a portion at Valle Nevado. Expected marginal snow this year, but lucked out with a major storm prior to our arrival. Stormy conditions with good snow/flat light on the first days. Mostly sunny on the rest. I'm a racing fan, so enjoyed teams training in the mornings. While skiing was great, 4 out of 5 of us had some form of food poisoning. Watch out for uncovered, recycled meats and cheeses? Overall, staff were friendly and helpful. Rooms at Hotel Sol would rate as adequate. Will still return to Valle Nevado because of the skiing, but will be more careful with food choices.