Badia Ski Resort Guide & Reviews Badia Ski Area- Dolomites, Apres-Ski, Accommodation, Other Activities
Overview
Badia is an authentic alpine village at the entrance to the Alta Badia valley. It is a pleasant holiday resort away from all the hustle and bustle of larger traditional ski resorts. Time seems to stand still in Badia and everything is laid back doing things at your own pace.
The beauty of Badia however, is that it is linked to 6 other resorts in the Alta Badia Valley which in turn, are also linked to the largest ski system in the world via the Dolomiti Superski pass giving access to more than 1220km of piste!!
Badia provides relatively easy access to the Sella Ronda via La Villa and on through to Corvara - a 24km circular tour of the Gruppo Sella taking in resorts such as Cortina, Arabba, Val Gardena-Selva and Canazei. The scenery of the Dolomites is truly spectacular with 3000m jagged peaks in every direction.
Après-Ski
Alta Badia is a paradise for those who love their food. Their are 3 Michelin-starred restaurants and the dishes combine South Tyrolean and Italian cuisine with local Ladin specialities. Compared to Corvara and Colfosco which are the liveliest villages in Alta Badia, Badia offers a more quite and sophisticated après-ski scene.
| Key information (whole area) | |
|---|---|
| Altitude | 1348m |
| Top lift | 2778m |
| Family | |
| Beginner | |
| Intermediate | |
| Expert | |
| Piste (km) | 130 |
| Longest run | 8 km |
| Off piste | |
| Cross country | 38 km |
| Season | Dec - April |
| Snowboard parks | 2 |
| Heli Skiing | ✘ |
| Summer skiing | ✘ |
| Glacier skiing | ✘ |
| Babysitting | ✘ |
| Creche | ✘ |
| Apres ski | Relaxed & Informal |
Skiing around Badia
This skiing area is known throughout the world, not only due to the unique landscape in which it is part of, but also due to the state-of-the-art lift facilities.
In the valley of Alta Badia there are 51 ski lifts, 130km of pistes and 38km of cross country slopes.
The local ski area around Alta Badia gives plenty of opportunities for beginners and early intermediates to improve their technique before heading out into the vast ski terrain covered by the Dolomiti Superski pass delivering some 1220km of pistes (1100km have snow-making machines) of which:
- 30% - Blue / Green
- 60% - Red
- 10% - Black
The famous Gran Risa ski run can be found in La Villa, well known for its World Cup Slalom race. The lovely Valley of the Stella Alpine can be reached from the village of Colfosco and you can admire the breathtaking view of the Valley of Mezdi. From here you can start a magnificent all day ski tour to Lagazuoi.
The Sella Ronda also takes you to Corvara and Colfosco and you can easily reach the adjacent valleys.
Beginners
Badia has a few gentle slopes for beginners to practice on before heading up to La Villa and beyond for the wide cruising blue slopes.
Intermediate
For the intermediates, the local and entire Super Dolomiti area is heaven with literally miles and miles of piste at your finger tips. One of the best days out is to ski the Sella Ronda - it can take up to a full day depending on your ability, fitness and the number of pit-stops but definitely worth it.
Advanced
The local area is pretty limited for the serious skiers although there are some good off-piste runs under La Villa's Piz La Ila gondola and under the Vallon chairlift.
If you head over to Val Gardena in the direction of Ciampinoi / Sassolungo between Selva and S. Cristina, there are some challenging runs and certainly some of the best off-piste closest to La Villa, where we would recommend you take a guide to get the best out of what is available.
Further afield, its definitely worth the trip to Arabba via the Podroi Pass - it has the most blacks around the Sella Ronda circuit.
Cross-country
There are 5km of local cross-country trails of which 3km are floodlit if you fancy a bit of night skiing. Further afield, you can connect with the forrest trails above Madonna di Campiglio where there are some 21km of skating paths.
Snowboard
For boarders, there's the fun park at Busa di Grual with tables, slides, jumps and a half-pipe.
Other ski holiday activities
If you want a break from skiing or the weather isn't that great, Pinzolo has lots of other activities to try...
- Ice skating
- Ski mountaineering
- Snowshoeing
- Husky sleigh riding
- Ice climbing at the frozen Nardis waterfall
- Paragliding from the Doss del Sabion
- Swimming
- Horse riding
Featured Badia ski chalets
Badia accommodation
The majority of the privately owned accommodation in Badia is self-catering holiday rentals that includes chalets, apartments and farm houses. There are also many good hotels and several guest houses so there is plenty of choice to suit all budgets and tastes.
Our views on Badia ski resort
- A trip to the Hidden Valley with its frozen waterfall and horse pulled tow-ropes at the bottom to take you back to the ski lift
- A long ski from Badia to the bottom of the Marmolada glacier takes you to the Sottaguda gorge - this is definitely worth the burning legs getting there but you definitely need to be on the first lift to make it!
If you like Badia, you could also try Pinzolo in the Brenta Dolomites.
