According to many, skiing is one of those hard and expensive sports that’s worth every penny and every minute you invest in it. Once you master it, the feeling of “flying” on the slopes can’t really be described, it’s an exhilarating sensation. Because it relies on snow, skiing couldn’t be practiced anywhere, at any time, but that all changed when our resourceful species invented the indoor skiing resorts. Now people can enjoy this wonderful sport even in the hot deserts of the Middle-East.Here’s a look at the five best indoor skiing resorts from around the world.
Ski Dubai (Dubai, UAI)The world’s most luxurious indoor ski resort lies in one of the most unexpected places. Snow wasn’t a familiar world in the middle-east until the opening of Ski Dubai in September of 2005, but since then it has become one of UAI’s greatest tourist attractions. It offers 22,500 square meters for skiing and snowboarding as well as 3,000 square meters in the Snow Park, a place where anyone can just play in artificial snow.
The most important characteristic of Ski Dubai, is its innovative insulating system, able to maintain a temperature of -1 degrees Celsius during the day and -6 degrees Celsius during the night, when the snow is fabricated. It’s very impressive when you think there are always over 30 degrees Celsius outside.
Ski Dubai is an impressive luxury complex complete with fancy cafés, themed restaurants and a professional snow gear shop, practically anything you need to feel you’re at a mountain resort and not in hot Dubai.
Snow Funpark (Wittenburg, Germany)One of Europe’s largest snow fun-parks opened in Germany in December 2006 and it spans across 30,000 square meters. The most impressive aspect of the fun-park of Wittenburg, is the half-pipe installed here that allows professional competitions to take place, it’s the only covered ski resort to have a half-pipe for competitors.
One of the main purposes of the Snow Funpark was to attract competitors and host international events, that’s why it uses top of the line snow-making machinery to ensure it’s in perfect condition for challenges. Still, Snow Funpark is a fun place for the whole family with all kinds of slopes, from beginner difficulty to professional, luxury hotel able to accommodate over 250 guests, a restaurant area and a 2,400 square meters sports shop.
SnowWorld (Landgraaf, Holland)Stretching over 35,000 square meters, SnowWorld Landgraaf is the world’s largest indoor ski resort and it’s also one of the best. It features five slopes (two green, one blue and even a red one) and five lifts that make for a variety of descents. The longest slope is 520 meters long with the other four stretching over 500 meters and there are rails, jumps and kickers for all freestyle skiers and snowboarders that want to give them a go.
All the restaurants in the SnowWorld have a direct view of the slopes, so you can enjoy a nice meal while your friends or family have fun in the snow. The cafés here serve great hot chocolate and they are decorated to make you feel like you’re vacationing in the Alps.
The artificial snow at SnowWorld Landgraaf is said to be the best of all indoor ski resorts, with no ice and lush, it’s almost like the real thing. There are those that say skiing on the slopes of SnowWorld is even better than going down a mountain, but you’ll have to try it yourself to know for sure.
SnowPlanet (Auckland, New Zealand)If you’re ever in New Zealand and want to enjoy a nice skiing session on a hot summer day, head over to SnowPlanet in Auckland, the largest and best indoor snow-sports resort in the Southern hemisphere.
SnowPlanet is a great destination both for experienced and beginner skiers, offering a huge snow-hall covered with 50 cm of cool snow, three lifts, a Big Jump and a special park for snowboarders as well as a 1,200 square meters area for beginner training.
The snow is great, the temperature remains constant at a cool -5 degrees Celsius, there’s the Mountain View café, where visitors can relax, the only thing missing is a great view of the mountain, but you can’t have everything.
SnoZone (Milton Keynes, UK)
Located inside the Xscape, one of Europe’s award-winning entertainment destinations, SnoZone is the best indoor ski resort in England. It’s not very big, the slope is just 170 meters long, which is not much compared to the resorts above, but it definitely compensates in fun.
The SnoZone is covered by 1500 tones of fresh snow and just like any top winter-sport resort it has special slopes for beginners and novices where they can work on their skills before advancing to the pro area. Kids also have their special park for tobogganing and ice slide sessions, so you don’t have to worry about them getting bored while you ski.
The Xscape entertainment center present a large number of fun activities for the whole family so if you get bored of skiing you can go bowling, see a movie, anyway you’ll enjoy your visit.