It’s been almost two decades since I was last in Italy. Oh my, time has flown… I can’t believe that I’m almost 20 years older.

Anyway, we had been very much looking forward to this trip – for the food, wine, culture, and of course the skiing.

Nothing disappointed, even though this hasn’t been the best season for skiing apparently, especially compared to last year. It didn’t snow the week leading up to our trip, nor the five days we were skiing. Still, the slopes were beautifully groomed and the runs soft and buttery for the most part. No complains!

We stayed in the Val Gardena area, and had access to a huge expanse of routes circling the Dolomites. We clocked roughly 50km a day on average, exploring all the interconnected ski resorts, via the main Sellaronda circuit. It’s been four years since we last skiied, so our legs were screaming by the end of each day, but what fun!

We made sure to stop by the huts for a proper sit down lunch everyday too. When in Europe, do it Apres style! One of our most memorable meals this trip was a lunch we took mid slope, with incredible views of the Dolomites in the backdrop. Jeff had nocchi, I had ravioli in duck consume, washed down with a delicious glass of Amarone. Life couldn’t get better than that!

And when my legs were really screaming in protest on the last day, having pushed like mad to get off the mountain before the chairlifts closed (and failing, but luckily there was still an alternate route we could take back to our car!), we explored the trails off the main ski runs. There were churches and huts for hikers in the summer, along with random benches that we luxuriated in, and enjoyed the warmth of the sun on our faces.

Stay: Villa Martha, a lovely, adult only bed and breakfast by the St Christina trail: http://www.villamartha.it

Ski: https://www.dolomitisuperski.com/en