Where's the best skiing in Scotland?

The famous advice given in Mr Punch's 1845 Almanac to those about to get married , was "Don't"; what a shame that has to be the same advice to someone thinking of skiing in Scotland. :(

It is understandable though, as snow has become scarcer and even more unreliable than ever. "Don't" is wise advice if you have to book ahead and commit a week of your hard-earned holiday entitlement. If, however, you are in the position of being able to grab ski bag and skis and head to the Scottish hills given (short) notice of good snow and good weather, then it is well worth doing just that. March/early April has always been the best time for Scottish skiing. I would head for Cairngorm as a preference, but Nevis Range has plenty to offer given good cover. You can base yourself conveniently to go to either for the day.

The best skiing in Scotland is undoubtedly on the television.

Braehead Xscape indoor ski centre

Hello,
I ski every weekend in Scotland if the snow is good enough and worth at 5am start! I always leave very early so I get to the slopes for half 8 (latest). As the car park can fill up very quicky and I'm not really a big fan of walking the length of the car park to get back to my car for a spot of lunch.
I would say I prefer Glenshee the most out the Scottish resorts as It's only about an hr drive from Perth and motorways all the way from Glasgow or Edinburgh. And it is the biggest resort. Glas Maol is quality on a good day.

If you are going to try skiing in Scotland make sure you check the reports the night before.

http://ski.visitscotland.com/conditions/

As they can give you a fair idea of the conditions for the next day and what lifts r expected to open.

Staying that I am booked up for a week in Austria in March and cant wait :)

Swal

Glenshee is fine but like the Lecht the season finishes early. Cairngorm is much more likely to have snow later in the season, and by the end of March into April the car parks are much quieter.

You guys have gotta keep it in perspective this year has been a good snow year for you, which is excellent, but you have to agree that it is inconsistent from year to year, next year there maybe zero snow :cry:
and thats because of the height, it will always be inconsistent snow cover in scotland 8)

Ian Wickham wrote:You guys have gotta keep it in perspective this year has been a good snow year for you, which is excellent, but you have to agree that it is inconsistent from year to year, next year there maybe zero snow :cry:
and thats because of the height, it will always be inconsistent snow cover in scotland 8)

Ian, please refrain from commenting too much on a subject you only really have press-based knowledge of :wink:

This year has been a bad snow year, in terms of skier days it has been passable, better than the last few days perhaps but only passable.

It just happens that this year the good snow coincided with half term and the 'credit crunch' to create the numbers to turn a profit, other than that it has been pretty dreadful. Last year was FAR better but the good snow did not coincide with the holidays as well as it did this time round.

Making good money is more complicated than just having good snow, it has to come at the right time. If it doesn't it can be a "HORRIBLE YEAR FOR SCOTTISH SKIING" but a great year in terms of snow (especially when I only live an hour down the road).

Pabs I was chatting to a keen Scots skier last week, and he reckons that Glencoe is in the black on the balance sheet for the last 2 winters. is that correct?

I do remember being on Cairngorm one Easter Sunday, and 10,000 lift tickets were sold that day, pre-funicular though. Never, since then, have I queued for a T-bar in ranks of lines :shock: