It took an hour or two, but we soon came to realise the true nature and potential of Aprica after a couple of false starts.

In short, Aprica provides a cheap family friendly ski experience on a quality selection of wonderful piste trails. That's it, enough said!

I will go on. False starts? We arrived from Tirano (fantastic place to visit) after having been in St Moritz for several days. To say the experiences are different is an understatement, but not necessarily in a bad way. We were immediately confused about where to park. For some reason the ski resort doesn’t connect / interact well with the town and parking is awkward on busy days as signage can be difficult to follow. We ended up on the main street, a short walk from the Palabione gondola. which was fine. One of our crew tried to go to the toilet near the ticket office - it was locked, with no key available! Not great. To add insult to injury, there are squat toilets in certain mountain locations which are are not great for anyone in ski boots. At least the males could stand up to complete most of their business!

So here's where a visit to Aprica is like stepping back in time to the glorious 1980s. The lift infrastructure & facilities are reminiscent of a multitude of Japanese ski resorts that haven't been able to update since their establishment in the boom times. Regardless, it manages to move skiers swiftly enough to avoid any major waiting times, even on busy Sundays. Interestingly, many of the lifts at Aprica date from the mid 90s with the latest one from 2004. Perhaps our perception of the aging Aprica infrastructure was coloured by the memories of the last ski resort we had been too a few days earlier, yep, St Moritz!

The Aprica trail map is deceptive. To look at it, one expects a wide range of open off piste. In reality, the majority of the ski resort is heavily wooded and the off piste within the resort area is limited to some upper mountain tree areas and a small area of treeless high alpine.

The on piste terrain is pretty good though (better than good), with fall line trails for all levels of skier. North facing terrain holds the snow well and despite having had no snow for over a week, we still skied some good quality snow above 2000m. The tree lined runs would be awesome during poor visibility.

There are four different sections on the mountain reflecting the different lift companies as the resort evolved. The ski area was only fully interlinked in 2008/9. One can tell it was an afterthought due to the many trail crossings. Be careful on all the ‘cross roads’ where traffic from opposite directions converge and cross – can be dangerous.

From west to east, the four parts of the resort are:
Magnolta (846m vertical). Comprises an 'old school' gondola & double chair, plus a few surface conveyors. The gondola is cramped and does not have exterior slots for snowboards or skis wider than 90cm & twin tips. The Magnolta inferiore run (piste trail C) is an awesome fall line screamer that runs 600m vertical to the bottom. Hang on to your helmet.

Palabione (1119m vert). The middle of the mountain has the most terrain to offer. Natural terrain off the top of G (Benedetti trail) is fun for jumps and yips and avoids the need for the resort to waste time and money on a terrain park. Skinning will reward the adventurous with ample fresh lines in the high alpine.

Campetti is the lowest elevation area at town level. A wide but short learn to ski area with a nest of 6 lifts comprising conveyors, T-bars and a chairlift. Provides a range of safe terrain &fun elements for beginners plus safe activities for children (tubing etc). A traditional restaurant at the top of the area makes a pleasant alternative to the busy row of eateries at the base.

Baradello ( 810m vert). A modern hooded quad chair provides a huge vertical and some long trails for all levels with the Superpanoramica for improving beginners being a standout. The advanced Valscesa Ovest trail turns into the Direttissima (trail W into U)for a steep 800m vert rollicking run that will test your nerve and edges as it gets bony down low. Yee har!!

Intermediate piste trails exist in all the areas. They are as fun and varied as any good ski resort.

Food wise the ski resort is a great place to have a drink! On mountain eateries are just OK - nothing to write home about. Cheap, but providing only basic food. The main street of town may provide better quality and options. The upper mountain restaurants/rifugios provide better food and ambiance than the lower ones. 

Avoid the resort on sunny weekends and school holidays as it can get quite busy, but come to Aprica & enjoy some cracking on-piste skiing for a cheap price.


See our video here