Soll

conno16

anyone been?
is it any good (skiing first and foremost, then nightlife etc)?

robinph

Ask me again in about 3 weeks. Until then, any info from anyone else would be good.

conno16

presumably you've done some research urself?
has it been snowing there like for starters

robinph

Limited research.

Few people on here mentioned it in good terms previously, I wanted somewhere for 2nd week of Jan (preferably not French, preferably not flying through Geneva Airport) so Austria came to top of my list and Soll seemed to be a decent enough gamble.

It has been snowing there now, although there was zero snow on the day I booked:
http://en.skiinfo.com/snowreport/skiwelt-wilder-kaiser-brixental-EATXBRIXENIM-100-en.jhtml

Plenty of time in the next couple of weeks for some more to fall.

hans aus dtschl

It's OK,

Little bit low down but with good artificial snow. Good lift system. Off piste is only so-so.

Parts of the skiwelt a bit disjointed, and you'll end up on the same few runs a bit, for better connectivity.

Parks tend to not be great, one good one in Westendorf and one mediocre one in Ellmau/Scheffau.

The town is nice and compact, nice little buzz about the place with a few good bars and clubs (salvenstadl, whiskey mhule)

The night skiing is good: worth a shot.

Not a bad spot overall, and easy to get to, due to the low-lying valley. Not the most snow-sure spot in the world though the cannons and piste maintenance are good.

groovey2012

Any recent reviews on soll!!

dylbert

Will be there myself on the 21st, never been before either but they've been getting plenty of snow the past few weeks, woop woop bring it on

Fattes

Punters resort for people who know nothing about skiing and who like drinking!

Major roadworks going on there this season building an underpass in the town.

If its your first or 2nd holiday and you have no huge expectations of challenging terrain and want a cheap ski hol to get boozed up on!

You have the right place

dylbert

Fattes wrote: »

Punters resort for people who know nothing about skiing and who like drinking!

Major roadworks going on there this season building an underpass in the town.

If its your first or 2nd holiday and you have no huge expectations of challenging terrain and want a cheap ski hol to get boozed up on!

You have the right place

:eek:, is it that bad?, was doing reds and blacks in Oberstdorf last year, looking to progress more this year.

Fattes

Its on the Ski Welt which has limited skiing for expert skiers. Söll does have the most challenging terrain, mostly off Hohe Salve down towards the connections to Hochbrixen and Hopfgarten. You can dip into the trees here as well. But most of it is aimed at average skiers.

Sorry I am really not a fan but with the extra snow this year it might be better

Markmmm

dylbert wrote: »

Will be there myself on the 21st, never been before either but they've been getting plenty of snow the past few weeks, woop woop bring it on

Same here, a buddy of mine was there last year, highly recommended it.

micko123

Spent a week in söll 2 years ago and had a great time. Covered the entire skiwelt which was great fun going from valley to valley. huge terrain.

I suppose it may not be great if you want to progress to difficult blacks or off piste yet there is the downhill run in westendorf which is challenging.

It all depends on your level. I'm comfortable on reds and most blacks but haven't much interest in off piste and I really enjoyed it. If that suits then you'll be fine. If there is a negative it's that the low altitude can mean poor snow cover during mild temperatures.

Mmmm_Lemony

+1 on Micko123

pros
As long as you get out exploring its great as there can be a tendency to feel you are doing the same runs over and over again, to get where you want. Conditions being good, some of the runs over the back heading towards westendorf are amazing, and really picturesque. I was there 2 years ago too, and the last day it snowed really heavy and it was one of the best days skiing I've ever had. The town is tidy enough, and a nice selection of bars if thats your thing. There are one or two tricky runs, enough to keep it varied.

Cons
There are an awful lot of traverses, and long narrow ones too which don't make it ideal for boarders. Its hard to avoid catching an edge, and I really creamed myself a few times. There is also only 1 board shop in the town (But the guy is very good). There is a bit of a trek to the lift too, even with the bus, which was really odd. There is very little for beginners too, apart from the wide plain at the bottom, which I imagine would make it very difficult to learn on (its flat as a pancake!). Theres also little for advanced, and virtually nothing in the way of off piste.

Overall, the conditions really make this resort worthwhile. So it can be very hit and miss. If they are bad, you might not enjoy it, if they are good you definitely will, but only if you are an intermediate skier. I probably wouldn't be back unless I was with a massive group.

hans aus dtschl

Basically, cruisey and relaxing with nothing too challenging.

The big drawbacks:
Not very high
Not very steep
You end up on the same runs regularly for access if you do any kind of distance

The big positives:
Fast lifts
Night skiing
Nightlife + transfer time

I'll echo everything Fattes has said, from a snowboard perspective (~15 years riding). Fine for intermediates and for party people. Conditions on the ground are particularly critical. Would not choose to go here regularly.

lyonsk3

Can be quite icey in places, what with it being at low altitude.
Depends on the crowd it can be quiet or hectic, only a couple of bars but can be quite good. Food is reasonably priced.

Fattes

Westendorf has a FIS Slalom Pist no downhill though.

emamcl

Hi, I'm going to soll on 21st with directski and literally counting the hours:D

We are staying on a b&b basis and just wondering does anyone know of any of the allocated pensions that directski offer - don't mind too much standard as its just place to sleep but want to be in town/village centre.

Cheers

Big Nelly

emamcl wrote: »

Hi, I'm going to soll on 21st with directski and literally counting the hours:D

We are staying on a b&b basis and just wondering does anyone know of any of the allocated pensions that directski offer - don't mind too much standard as its just place to sleep but want to be in town/village centre.

Cheers

Hey, just back in, was there all last week. Had a brill time. Was 3rd time skiing but previous times where in Bulgaria and Andorra so was far from great skier. Went into intermediate group but one of my mates was there the year before so we where in one of the top groups.

Frist day was New Years so we where all crap but over week worked out well. There was 15 in our group. From beginner to a few of the lads heading off on there own to Westendorf etc. No complaints around the group on skiing.

It started really heavy snow fall on Wednesday night so thursday/friday wasnt that good because some of the lifts where closed due to wind.

We stayed in Rubin hotel, close to start of lifts and was grand, apart from another group of plonkers who where in hotel from UK. They decided every night when drunk to try and get into everyone else's room. This was every evening. Idiots. We flew with Crystal who done nothing about it cause the rep knew one of the group so they ran a muck.

Bit of pain in morning to get up main lift. It was hectic and the pushing etc was a bit mad, meant you where getting up early to miss the rush.

Good bit of banter in pubs. We had a ball anyway.

Great hoil, if you do have any questions fire ahead

robinph

Chucking it down with snow since I got here yesterday. Would be great skiing if I could see the slopes through the cloud. Couple of the gondolas were closed because of wind today, still managed to get plenty of skiing done dispite not knowing where I was going.

Big Nelly

robinph wrote: »

Chucking it down with snow since I got here yesterday. Would be great skiing if I could see the slopes through the cloud. Couple of the gondolas were closed because of wind today, still managed to get plenty of skiing done dispite not knowing where I was going.

Was same thursday and Friday! heavy snow so visibility was poor!

TheTubes

Unbelievable snow atm.
In the apres bar now and its still bucketing down
If it doesnt rain we will b Sorted for the week.

emamcl

TheTubes wrote: »

Unbelievable snow atm.
In the apres bar now and its still bucketing down
If it doesnt rain we will b Sorted for the week.

Can't wait - sounds like snow is great..wish I was there now!

robinph

Just discovered that you can put your lift pass number into www.skyline.cc and it will tell you how many vertical meters you covered each day. Seems that my 13000+ I covered today ranks me in the top 35 of all people in the Ski Welt area so far this season, well that have registered their passes. If I'd known that I'd have done another trip up the gondola rather than hitting the bar.

The website covers loads of other resorts by the looks of it.

Big Nelly

robinph wrote: »

Just discovered that you can put your lift pass number into www.skyline.cc and it will tell you how many vertical meters you covered each day. Seems that my 13000+ I covered today ranks me in the top 35 of all people in the Ski Welt area so far this season, well that have registered their passes. If I'd known that I'd have done another trip up the gondola rather than hitting the bar.

The website covers loads of other resorts by the looks of it.

Sorry yeah was told this last week, also if you keep your ski pass and go back within the same 12 months or so you can reactivate it again and add your distance to it next year as well.

robinph

I was a bit slow today due to mildly overdoing it on the Jagermeisters last night, but all the lifts were on a go slow as well because of high winds. At least one of the gondolas was closed and they looked to be a bit too close to the pylons as we went up in another one.

But the snow has started again for anyone who is coming here next week.

I dont know

emamcl wrote: »

Hi, I'm going to soll on 21st with directski and literally counting the hours:D

We are staying on a b&b basis and just wondering does anyone know of any of the allocated pensions that directski offer - don't mind too much standard as its just place to sleep but want to be in town/village centre.

Cheers

@emamcl, any feedback on the Pensions? Has anyone else booked the pensions in Soll with directski without knowing where exactly they're staying?

We went to Soll 2 years ago and booked into a Pension via directski and it was grand, but we had the name of it before we booked and were able to check it up on tripadvisor etc.
They're doing a decent deal at the moment for pensions in Soll, but you don't know which one you're staying in until you arrive, which is worrying some of our group. It says they could be 'up to 2k from the centre of Soll' As i remember it, everywhere was within walking distance, just afraid in case its out of the village a bit, how likely would that be guys?

LadyBetty

I booked Soll with Directski one year, and the pension was allocated on arrival. It was perfectly fine, walking distance to town, run by two elderly people who spoke no English at all! The rooms were comfortable but no ensuite, we had to share a bathroom with a few other guests & that was annoying. The pension did the job, was cheap & cheerful.
Soll was good craic but I prefer the skiing & apres ski in St. Johann in Tirol, maybe take a day trip over while you are there & see what you think for next winter!

briN_s

Hi All,

I am heading to Soll in a few weeks. I am an intermediate skier & boarder. I booked boarding again this year but thinking I might be better off skiing instead. Seems like there is not much off piste and a good few flat stretches? Any ski & boarders out there recommend one over the other for this resort? There are no other boarders in my group.

Thanks
Brian

Mmmm_Lemony

briN_s wrote: »

Hi All,

I am heading to Soll in a few weeks. I am an intermediate skier & boarder. I booked boarding again this year but thinking I might be better off skiing instead. Seems like there is not much off piste and a good few flat stretches? Any ski & boarders out there recommend one over the other for this resort? There are no other boarders in my group.

Thanks
Brian

If the level of your group is beginner to intermediate, the likely hood that you will move around alot will be low. I found Soll very flat in places, and to move at all you need to travel on alot of narrow passes which are too long and flat to manage on a board without getting off and walking.

So if its beginner to intermediate, go with the ski's, and if not and you plan to move around the skiwelt, the board will be ok.

digger2d2

briN_s wrote: »

Hi All,

I am heading to Soll in a few weeks. I am an intermediate skier & boarder. I booked boarding again this year but thinking I might be better off skiing instead. Seems like there is not much off piste and a good few flat stretches? Any ski & boarders out there recommend one over the other for this resort? There are no other boarders in my group.

Thanks
Brian

I'd ski if I were you, I've been there a few times, great place for a mixed group to ski together on blues and what are mostly easy reds. Flat enough in spots and although I don't board, I have remarked to my Daughter that it looked like a bit of a pain in the h0le for boarders.

Who did you book the gear with, I know the guys I use have the option of switching between both codes with no extra cost.

I dont know

I boarded there 2 years ago and am going again on 16th Feb. I'd consider myself a beginner/intermediate.
There were just 2 blues that really pissed me off, but my friends(skiiers) quite enjoyed.
If you look at the map below, its Slopes 40 & 43a, both on the Soll side
http://www.skiwelt.at/en/download.asp?Fid=3856&Path=content

There were plenty of other blues that were manageable to keep going, but at certain parts of the above two, if you stopped at all you were fecked!

If you like to board, there are plenty of wide reds to improve on

briN_s

Thanks for the replies, looks like I will be switching to skis! The gear was booked through Directski, hopefully there wont be any issues changing. Should have done my research before booking!

robinph

Off to Soll tomorrow.

Lancaster7

robinph wrote: »

Off to Soll tomorrow.

Keep us posted! I'm there on the 12th Jan, our first time in Soll so not sure what to expect!!

i_steal_sheep

Fattes wrote: »

Its on the Ski Welt which has limited skiing for expert skiers. Söll does have the most challenging terrain, mostly off Hohe Salve down towards the connections to Hochbrixen and Hopfgarten. You can dip into the trees here as well. But most of it is aimed at average skiers.

Sorry I am really not a fan but with the extra snow this year it might be better

+1

We went there last year at the very end of the season on a spur of the moment deal. It was grande but it's more about the booze than it is about the ski. I will not stay there again. It's on the SkiWelt so you really cannot go wrong. Upgrade to the all-star pass and you can ski to Ki-West and get the ski bus and you then have access to Kitzbuhel etc. That's a good days skiing but well enjoyable. Hohe Salve is a nice black first thing in the morning but by 12pm its a pure mogul-field. The trees are good too

robinph

It does get very cut up and bumpy by the end of the day, but get up on the first lifts and by that point you'll not give a damn. Pretty much the same in any resort. There are not much in the way of blacks, but enough reds around to practice on. The lift pass clocked me as doing 50km today, and I gave up shortly after 3pm. Plenty of runs to keep me amused for the morning, then have a beer at lunch and that then makes finding your way back interesting as well.

dzer2

robinph wrote: »

It does get very cut up and bumpy by the end of the day, but get up on the first lifts and by that point you'll not give a damn. Pretty much the same in any resort. There are not much in the way of blacks, but enough reds around to practice on. The lift pass clocked me as doing 50km today, and I gave up shortly after 3pm. Plenty of runs to keep me amused for the morning, then have a beer at lunch and that then makes finding your way back interesting as well.

Not on holidays without a beer with your lunch:D

Leinstersqspur

Any update on conditions there folks?

I'm heading over to Soll for the first time on Feb 2nd. I read it's a pretty small town but the posts below appear to suggest the apres is a big event..?!

Used to French resorts for the last few years so looking forward to smashing up some Austrian powder;)

dzer2

Leinstersqspur wrote: »

Any update on conditions there folks?

I'm heading over to Soll for the first time on Feb 2nd. I read it's a pretty small town but the posts below appear to suggest the apres is a big event..?!

Used to French resorts for the last few years so looking forward to smashing up some Austrian powder;)

Lots of snow over the last week about 300mm fell in the skiwelt area. With more snow forecast over the next 4 days and then a spell of fine weather but it is nearly impossible to get it right for more than 3 days with the mountains

briN_s

Hi dzer, where do you get your weather forecast? I was checking onthesnow.com, and they show no snow for the next few days. I only used that site because its the first that came up in google. Maybe there are more reliable sites out there?

Thanks

dzer2

briN_s wrote: »

Hi dzer, where do you get your weather forecast? I was checking onthesnow.com, and they show no snow for the next few days. I only used that site because its the first that came up in google. Maybe there are more reliable sites out there?

Thanks

We just came back from Kitzbuhel:( wish I could go again and they had the forecast done for the next week as they are hosting a World cup race this week if you go on to the website they have a weather forecast there.

The Big Gig

Leinstersqspur wrote: »

Any update on conditions there folks?

I'm heading over to Soll for the first time on Feb 2nd. I read it's a pretty small town but the posts below appear to suggest the apres is a big event..?!

Used to French resorts for the last few years so looking forward to smashing up some Austrian powder;)

i'll let you know on Sunday! heading on Saturday!

Leinstersqspur

The Big Gig wrote: »

i'll let you know on Sunday! heading on Saturday!

Cheers dude, have a good one!