The resort's full name is Skiarena Nassfeld Hermagor. It is located near to the town of Hermagor in the Carinthia region, close to the border with Italy. One part of the resort actually is in Italy.
The main parking lot and the starting point are located in Tröpollach, a village that is 7 km away from Hermagor, the site of the popular Millenium Express gondola. The gondola ride will take you about 10 minutes, including two stops. The parking lot is huge and pretty far from the ticket office, but there's a train on wheels that will take you to the starting point. The resort is reachable from either the Nassfeld village of Tröpolach or from Sonnleitn village. These are tourist villages located at the very resort, that is, on the hill, so you could have a rough time while trying to reach them during bad weather. But, on the other hand, the road is clean and passable most of the time.
According to Nassfeld brochure, the resort has 101 km of ski runs, which is a realistic number. It spans from 1300 – 2000 m above sea level. The runs are rather long and will prove satisfying for both speed addicts and those into short turns, as well as for those enjoying beautiful views. However, beginners cold have some objections. Particularly, there is a baby lift, but it is illogically located at almost the top of the resort. The runs are mainly marked as red and are very versatile. They are all enumerated, which is great because orientation on the slopes gets easier this way.
As for the ski lift system, the resort is equipped with 7 chair lifts, 18 anchor lifts and 5 cabins. The runs are always in good condition and almost completely equipped with snow cannons, so you don't have to worry about the lack of snow. The runs are covered in a mixture of natural and artificial snow, which works well at higher temperatures as well and enables the season to last even throughout March despite the low altitude of the slopes. The only thing that could unpleasantly surprise some skiers and, especially, snowboardes, is the fact that the Nassfeld runs are almost always hard packed (especially on the west, shadowy side of the resort).
The runs which deserve special attention are definitely the run No 1, the run No 4, and the runs marked from 70 -75.The 7 km long Milenium run, leading all the way to the Millenium Express gondola loading station. Its configuration is not too spectacular (there are a few flat, long sections), but you'll definitely enjoy this long descend to the valley.
Although the resort is always well visited, and its parking lot is almost always full, the runs are never crowded due to their extensive number. The only place that gets crowdy is the Millenium Express gondola dismounting station at the top of the resort, where you'll see rivers of people descending down the slopes on all sides of the world. The gondola dismounting station is situated at the very center of the resort, so from there you can take any direction you like.
Off-piste devotees won't be disappointed by Nassfeld, but they also won't find it thrilling. For snowboarders and freestyle skiers who want to try out their skills, there are two snowboard parks and a halfpipe.
The resort is abundant with restaurants, mostly self services. However, the prices are rather costly. Also, there are lot of ski rent and ski service stores. The accommodation is cheaper in Tröpollach or in the neighboring villages such as Nötsch or Pontebba (situated on the Italian side).
One day ski lift tickets costs EUR 38 (EUR 5 deposit).
The resort is reachable in a couple of ways. The first one, the safest and the most expensive is through the Karvanke Tunnel and the town of Villach. The second one, which is a bit cheaper, is from the direction of Slovenian Kranjska Gora and the town of Podkoren. You ca also reach Nassfeld from the Italian town of Pontebba, but take this direction only if you are into slanting, serpentinous roads.
To sum up, this is a very nice resort and a must-visit for any passionate skier. However, snowboarders should opt for it only if they're into hard packed snow.
www.ski-mag.com
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