On the strength of a forecast snowfall and an Epic Pass, I visited 5 resorts in the Skirama Dolomiti Adamello Brenta ski region during early March 2024. I never really intended to ski the resorts of the Skirama Dolomiti region again because I don’t rate most of them as good Powderhounds destinations, but here I was nonethelesss. For better or worse, my home mountain is part of Epic Pass, so it behoved me to see how it worked in the Skirama Dolomiti region. Turns out it works just fine and assuredly allows for a better value week-long stay.
The visit highlighted to me the diversity of what is on offer, and whilst some of it is good (great even), other bits lack any appeal whatsoever. It continually surprises me that the region is one of the most popular & heavily visited in the world of skiing. Has it got some great attributes? Sure it does, but its strengths, whilst having broad appeal to the masses, are generally not as important to us. You can read our individual ski resort reviews for this trip via the relevant resort pages, but as an overview of my thoughts, the instructive titles ranged from 'For Lovers of Perfect Piste' (Madonna) and 'Quality Big Mountain Skiing' (Tonale) to 'Ski-in Ski-out, But .....' (Folgarida-Marilleva) and 'Meh ....' (Pinzolo). In summary, there is something for everyone, but less for some! Wonderful pistes & lifts systems, a diversity of villages & accommodation, good views, fine food, but not enough snow & quality off-piste terrain, plus far too many people. For us, Pontedilegno Tonale offers the most well-rounded ski experience, but more on that later.
I started the visit in Pinzolo, a ski area I had never been too before but had high hopes for (not sure why?). I was not surprised to find a snowless village, because its 770m altitude is incredibly low for Italy, but I was surprised to find an almost downtrodden vibe in the place. It was hard to be enthusiastic about skiing here. Raining down low in the valley, but snowing up top, riding a new gondola up from mid-mountain should have been a wonderful experience. Instead it delivered one to a cold, incomplete, concrete monstrosity far removed from the best traditions of Italian mountain refuges & hospitality. Hopefully when it is completed fully a better experience will be provided next season, but I won’t be back to find out! The skiing is limited to a range of uncrowded (midweek anyway), mainly intermediate on-piste trails that are quite fun once you get to know them. But are a few fun pistes enough of a reason to come here as opposed to somewhere more interesting? Probably not. There is some off-piste terrain, but it is short and sorely limited by a lack of natural snow. The lift system is comfortable, and generally efficient with only a few slow chairs to whine about! The gondola link to Madonna di Campiglio takes around 16 minutes one way, which is wonderful when one considers the distance. What is good about Pinzolo is that it provides some more affordable accommodation, food & drink when compared to its high-priced neighbour up the valley (Madonna di Campiglio). And that’s the reason to visit Pinzolo. The fact it has some snow up top, pistes and ski lifts that also connect to Madonna is a bonus.
Next was Madonna di Campiglio, undoubtedly Skirama's 'main course'. When the sun is not out, skiing here is fun on piste because many visitors won’t come out on the slopes unless the sky is blue. , and the food is fabulous, but prices are high compared to the lower ends of the valleys. Whilst efficiently lift interlinked with the disappointing Pinzolo & Folgarida-Marilleva, if staying in Madonna, there is little reason to ski to them. when the off-piste snow cover allows, but that coverage can often be limited. There are some undeniably good ski runs here, and incredible views to boot (not that I saw them on this visit!), but the village is a little too up itself for my taste. For the adventurous there are some fun sidecountry descents in the Brenta & inbounds off-piste if you know where to look, but it is way, way down on my list of ‘go to’ freeride ski resorts simply because the off-piste snow cover is not reliable. On mountain dining is infinitely better than Pinzolo, but that’s not hard! The town is ritzy, but no more so than other high-end ski destinations. It is comfortable for the expensive designer outfit wearing set that loves to be ‘seen’ but has less appeal for anyone looking for adventure. Come here if you want a high-end hotel & village experience with great on piste skiing.
Madonna’s other neighbour is Folgarida Marilleva. Never my favourite ski area, it continually baffles me how it gets by. A multitude of villages spread across the mountainside and a complex ski trail, gondola & road network awkwardly linking it altogether makes very little sense to me as a ski destination. What it does have is a lot of ski-in ski-out accommodation and a ski link into Madonna di Campiglio but is it enough to stay here? Someone clearly does, but it is just not our ‘cup of tea’. Its lack of off-piste terrain is a ‘nail in the coffin’ from a Powderhounds rating point of view.
Made a flying visit to Peio (Pejo). In reality a tiny ski area, it nevertheless always has the feel of a big mountain…… because it is! The ski trails are wonderful first thing in the morning, and the off-piste can be good too (even though not extensive). What to do after lunch though? And that is where its size becomes an issue. Drink wine perhaps. The ski resort base village lacks ambiance, but the authentic nearby villages certainly retain some. If you have a rental car and are looking for a small Italian mountain village experience that is central to a lot of skiing, in and around Peio is not a bad option.
From Peio/Pejo up to Passo Tonale is a drive into alpine terrain completely unlike the rest of the Skirama Dolomiti region. For a truly all-round ski experience with fabulous snow, lifts, pistes, off-piste & skiable vertical but without the price, crowds & pretence of Madonna di Campiglio, the place to go is Tonale (or more accurately Pontedilegno-Tonale). The village experience at Passo Tonale or at the bottom of the resort at Pontedilegno is quite the contrast to Madonna, but if you are here to ski, that probably doesn't matter, and in fact will be more relaxing.
As mentioned earlier, I skied here using my Epic Pass to get a free local ski pass for a week. Glad I didn’t pay for a Skirama Dolomiti pass as they are quite expensive relative to most ski resorts in Italy, and if you are spending that kind of money, go to Austria instead.
If you have never skied Europe but have an Epic Pass, by all means spend a week in Skirama Dolomiti. You won’t be disappointed. However, having seen and done lots, we would only revisit the region again to ski Tonale & Peio/Pejo (because we like 'small' ski resorts that ski big!). We would leave the rest to the lovers of piste, and in the case of Madonna di Campiglio, the wearers of fur!
See our thoughts on the pros & cons of the ski region via the Skirama Dolomiti overview page.