Heliskiing in Europe
Although heli skiing is banned in France, her neighbors Switzerland and Italy both have established heli ski operations which are quick and easy to reach from most European cities. While the heli skiing here is excellent in its own way, it is a totally different experience to visiting a destination heli ski lodge in the Canadian wilderness. For a start, you will be based in or near a major ski resort - which has its advantages, such as access to good resort skiing or riding if the weather is poor. Not an option if you are at a remote heli ski lodge in Canada. Plus, there is plenty of choice when it comes to bars, restaurants and apres ski. Another major difference when it comes to the actual heli skiing is that you tend to do fewer, longer runs in Europe (two or three on average), whereas in Canada it is normal to average eight to ten per day.
If we look a little further north there are also some thrilling experiences to be had such as skiing or riding under the midnight sun in Swedens Arctic Circle with ocean views. Here the experience falls somewhere in between the Canadian and European ones
We have highlighted two heli skiing experiences that offer you excitement and a refreshing change from the usual limited challenges of resort based heli skiing.
For those of us based in or close to Europe, the major advantages to heli skiing here are the short journey times, the ability to experience heliskiing as a short break and to combine it with skiing at a world class resort.
No one is pretending that Europe is the powder skiing Mecca that Canada or The Caucasus are but for what it is, it is an excellent experience and a lot more flexible than heli skiing elsewhere.
Heliski in Sweden's Arctic Circle
When you think of heli skiing, Sweden is not normally a country that springs to mind. Despite not having particularly high mountains, the snow remains reliable and cold temperatures persist with good powder skiing possible right through until the end of May
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Chamonix based heli skiing
Blistering long descents, jaw dropping scenery and some quite astonishing routes are what a skier will discover on this heliski adventure. That combined with true 5 star luxury and service and the numerous and varied facilities that Chamonix has to offer.
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