Chiesa Valmalenco, Sondrio

Picturesque old village with modern swimming pool complex and excellent Italian cuisine. The main ski area is a high altitute plateau from Alpe Palu offering a snowsure base for beginners.'Boarders in Chiesa can now access all the key sectors by cable car or chair lifts, including two high speed detachable quads. There's a lot of open fun 'boarding terrain both on the big powder basin above the trees and on some of the reds and blacks complete with bumps, natural canyons and walls down through the trees. Beware of flats in some key areas however, most notably on the longest trail, the 6km (4 mile) blue Super G run. The resort has also built a fun park with 100 metre half pipe, the Primavera. Off the slopes (and on) prices are reasonable and the atmosphere relaxed, not hedonistic.