Holiday in Slovenia
We’ve just got back from a ‘proper’ family holiday in Slovenia. We stayed in Kranjska Gora in the NW of the country. It is a small resort town, aimed at snowsports in the winter and wlaking and biking in the summer. We were there at the end of the winter season so the snow wasn’t great whilst we were there, but we did manage to snowboard every day, and then on the last day it snowed properly so at least we got to see it in ‘Winter Wonderland’ guise.
Overall we had a great time. Morgan enjoyed the kids club and the swimming as well as playing in the snow. Anna and I had fun snowboarding, although Anna ended up with a few more injuries than I did! The hotel was nice, the locals friendly and we made friends with some other holiday makers there. I managed to do some geocaching whilst there as well.
Getting there
We flew from Manchester and the drive up went without hitch. We parked at a budget parking place which only cost £13.99 for the whole week and were mini-bused into the airport. We were extra early so had a bit of a wait in the airport but that was our own fault. We then got on the plane and found out that one of our fellow passengers had decided they were too ill to travel, so all the luggage had to be taken off so that they could find their luggage. This meant we missed our take-off slot and were sat in the plane on the runway for an hour and a half.
On arrival in Salzburg we had a small issue getting our luggage as the baggage handlers didn’t seem to know which carousel it was one. After being told it was on a different carousel 3 times by the airport staff and waiting at each carousel for a while it eventually turned up in a pile in the corner of the airport. Once reunited with our luggage we got on the coaches ready for a 3 hour transfer to Kranjska Gora.
On the coach the First Choice rep went through our booking for snowboard hire and lesson and informed us that I hadn’t booked board hire. I definitely had, but they were certain I hadn’t so we decided to sort it out in the morning at the meeting with the reps. Not a great start as we were now worried that I wouldn’t have a snowboard and would have to pay again to hire one.
The Hotel Alpina
Once at the Hotel Alpine in KranjskaGora it was getting on for midnight, so we had had a long day which started at 5am in Ynyslas. Thankfully there was some cold meats, cheese and bread waiting for us along with some biscuits and a drink, so after eating that we fell into our beds. The hotel was really nice, fairly plush, but nothing too special which is just the way we like it as it allows us to relax without worrying about too much. Breakfast was good with a choice a cereals, sausages, bacon, eggs, cold meats and cheese, yoghurts, croissants and bread, along with juice and various coffees etc.
We were booked in for half board and the dinners were nice too, plenty of choice and plenty of it as it was a buffet dinner. Coffees and cakes from the bar were also really nice, and the hotel was well situated just a little way up the hill overlooking the town and right on the edge of the ski slopes. The kids club was also in the hotel and there was storage facilities for our snow-boarding kit.
First Choice – Second Quality
As already mentioned, the snow wasn’t great and things weren’t looking good on the way to the meeting with the First Choice Reps. At the meeting we argued our point that I had indeed ordered and paid for board hire, but they were having none of it and were trying to get an extra 70 Euros out of us. We didn’t give in and headed off to the hire shop anyway, already stressed and ready to argue our point there. As it happens the locals in the hire shop didn’t even look twice and simply gave us the board so we were glad we hadn’t given First Choice an extra 70 Euros! We’ve since double checked our booking and it clearly states Board and Boot hire as separate items, so we did definitely order and pay for it and First Choice were the ones in the wrong.
The meeting also confirmed that the snow wasn’t great and only a couple of lifts would be open. 3 out of the 19 available. One of those was on the world cup downhill black run so out of our league and the other two were on the same slope, so really only one run was open. Of course First Choice were willing to sell you excursions to higher slopes, but not with any discounts, so that would cost another couple of hundred Euros for each day and wouldn’t have worked for us anyway as Morgan was in the Kids Club at Kranjska Gora so we couldn’t head off elsewhere.
We had other issues with First Choice too, as I had booked separate snowboard lessons and kit hire rather than a ‘learn to board package’. This was supposed to give me separate lessons at a higher level to the learn to package, but as it was the end of the season there weren’t enough instructors so I was grouped with the learn to group and therefore didn’t really get any lessons at my level. I brought this up with the rep and he said he’d meet me at the ski-school the next morning. he didn’t turn up and was also never present in the hotel at his allocated times, so I was unable to sort this out. The instructor himself was fine and did towards the end of the holiday try getting me to do a little extra, but overall I didn’t get the instruction that I had paid for, and the First Choice reps did nothing to rectify the situation.
Kids Club
The Kids Club was in the hotel and although Morgan was a little tearful to start with he enjoyed it there and had fun. This was also run by First Choice, but was better than the rest of the service we had from them. The staff were friendly and nice to Morgan and they did plenty of activities depsite the lack of snow.
Snowboarding Lessons
Despite the lack of snow and me being in a learn to board group the group and instructors were good. The first day was a bit of a wash out with slushy snow, rain and an instructor who was a little difficult to understand, but things improved the next day and the group (Me, Anna, Tom, Isobel, Kate, Anna and Estelle) all got on well. I had already boarded a bit so could already do the basics, Estelle had to. Tom picked things up quickly as did Kate and Anna, and Isobel was a skier so caught on quite quickly too. Anna doesn’t normally do these sorts of sports so picked things up a little slower and ended up with more bruises than everyone else, but still enjoyed it and could turn in both directions by the end of the holiday. To start with Tom, Anna and Anna struggled with the button lift and Anna even said that her aim for the week was just to get to the top, but she managed that earlier in the week and from then on didn’t look back. until hurting her arm and having to sit out of the last day of lessons.
Apres Ski
The hotel we were in was part of a chain of about 6 hotels in the resort and we were allowed to use the facilities in the other hotels, so afternoons were generally spent in the swimming pool at Hotel Larix. Morgan loved the pool and the hot chocolates afterwards, and the hotel itslef was right at the bottom of the slopes so we could watch people on the slopes from the pool
Kranjska Gora itself is ideal for families, the whole resort is compact and the main slope that we were on meant that everything was happening in the same place all with easy access to the things we needed. This may have been a little different if all the slopes were open, but for the week we were there it was ideal for use and would be good if Morgan was in ski school too.
I went on a few early morning walks to find some local geocaches too.
We went sledging and built some snowmen too and Morgan enjoyed the snow even though there wasn’t much of it. Typically, just after we gave our hire kit back on the last day, it started snowing heavily and on the morning of our departure the new snow was knee deep, so Morgan and I donned our snow-clothes and got out and played in it a bit before setting off on the coach. It was a shame the new snowfall didn’t come earlier in the week, but I guess there is little we can do about the weather.
We can’t wait to have another winter sports holiday, we would go back to Kranjska Gora again, and may even o with First Choice as they were the cheapest, but we would make sure they get the booking right and wouldn’t rely too much on them for the hire and instruction etc. However, if going to Kranjska Gora again we might go a little earlier in the year to get better snow, or may look to go elsewhere where snow is more likely.
Overall it we made themost of the conditions and the location and had a great holiday, but it could have been spoiled by First Choice if we had let their inefficiencies get to us.
Full details of my snowboard and geocaches sessions can be found in my diary entries at Forces-of-Nature and here are a few photos
