9 brilliant ski resorts in Italy for the 2024/2025 season

Best for: guaranteed snow cover

Lying at the foot of the Matterhorn (Monte Cervino in Italian), Breuil-Cervinia is Italy’s most snowsure resort, offering skiing virtually all year round. The winter season kicks off in October and runs through to May, while between June and September you can ski the vast Plateau Rosa glacier. The runs here are wonderfully wide, making the resort a great choice for intermediates and boarders keen for some gentle cruising – and, with links to Valtournenche and Zermatt in Switzerland offering a total of 360km of slopes, you won’t have to worry about skiing the same run twice.

Where is it? Valle d’Aosta, northwestern Italy

Stay here: Hotel Meublé Gorret is a warm and cosy family-run hotel perfectly located for the slopes.

Best for: actually great restaurants

With its gentle blues and reds snaking along an undulating plateau, Alta Badia offers laidback and unhurried skiing that’s perfect for beginners, intermediates and families – and avid foodies too. The area is home to gourmet and Michelin-starred restaurants as well as over forty alpine huts serving top-notch local specialities accompanied by fine regional wines. Base yourself in pretty Corvara, which offers exquisite scenery from its slopes – it’s linked to the Sellaronda circuit, with connections to Arabba and Selva.

Where is it? South Tyrol, northern Italy

Where to stay: the family-run Pradat offers warm alpine interiors a short walk from the slopes, complete with sauna for a little post-skiing regeneration.

Best for: quintessential alpine vibes

The trilingual Val Gardena is made up of three, mostly Ladin-speaking villages – Ortisei (St Ulrich in German; Urtijëi in Ladin), Selva (Wolkenstein in German) and San Cristina, each offering direct access to the Sellaronda and Dolomiti Superski areas. You’ll find lots of cruisy, open runs such as the famed La Longia, Val Gardena’s longest slope where you can whizz down from Seceda to the pretty alpine village of Ortisei, refuelling with traditional Ladin dishes between one skiing session and the next.

Where is it? South Tyrol, northern Italy

Stay here: Ortisei’s family-run Stua Catores offers contemporary rooms and a restaurant serving traditional South Tyrolean dishes.

Best for: pretty mountain villages 

Offering stunning views of the Dolomites, with their jagged rockfaces dusted in snow, this resort area comprises seven villages linked via the Sellaronda circuit, with gentle reds and blues running around a plateau mountain that you can ski clockwise or anticlockwise. It’s all part of the sprawling Dolomiti Superski area, the world’s largest ski area offering 1200km of slopes. Base yourself in the pretty mountain village of Canazei, which has a large Ladin population – you can pop into the Museo Ladino in nearby Pozza di Fassa for an insight into Ladin culture.

Where is it? Trentino, northeast Italy

Stay here: the wood-clad Chalet Vites in Canazei comes with cosy rooms and a small wellness centre.

Best for: freeriding

The Monterosa massif – which includes the majestic Monte Rosa, the second highest peak in the Alps – offers 100km of skiing across three valleys. The wide and mostly red runs, along with the tranquil and authentic laidback mountain vibes of Champoluc and Gressoney, attract families and intermediate skiers. Alagna, meanwhile, is a magnet for advanced skiers and boarders who come to ride its steep couloirs and powdery bowls – this is one of the Alps’ best freeriding spots, offering off-piste and heli-skiing galore.

Where is it? Valle d’Aosta & Piedmont, northwestern Italy

Stay here: Mirtillo Rosso offers plenty of family-fun, with games and indoor-outdoor swimming pools with slide.

Best for: smart, clean slopes

Courmayeur is an elegant alpine village that lies at the foot of Mont Blanc, offering runs that snake through wooded valleys and wide slopes that are best suited to intermediates. Hop onto the SkyWay Monte Bianco cable car to reach Italy’s highest point at Punta Hebronner (3466m), with revolving glass cabins offering truly awe-inspiring vistas of Europe’s highest peak. Ski passes also cover Chamonix and Argentière in France.

Where is it? Valle d’Aosta, northwest Italy

Stay here: Hotel La Grange has a peaceful location in the hamlet of Entreves, and comes with an attached petting farm.

Best for: endless runs

Created by Giovanni Agnelli in the 1930s and host to the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics, this purpose-built resort sits at the heart of Piedmont’s sprawling ViaLattea (Milky Way), which connects seven mountain villages via 400km of runs. Sestriere may not be your chocolate box mountain resort, although it is one of the Milky Way’s most snowsure destinations, offering a variety of runs that will appeal to all levels of skiers. If you time it right, you may be able to watch pros swoosh down its famous Kandahar run, which regularly hosts international slalom competitions.

Where is it? Piedmont, northwest Italy

Stay here: with plenty of natural woods and stones, Etoile des Neiges lies steps away from the slopes of Sauze d’Oulx, which is connected to Sestriere on the Milky Way.

Best for: families

One of the host resorts for the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics downhill events, Bormio offers Italy’s longest vertical descent, with the Cima Bianca to Bormio run dropping 1800m. The majority of the 180km of runs here are reds, making this a good choice for intermediates. The pretty mountain village of Bormio is ringed by three spas fed by natural spring waters – the perfect way to soothe aching muscles after a long day on the slopes.

Where is it? Lombardy, northern Italy

Stay here: Agriturismo San Gallo offers warm rooms and a restaurant serving hearty specialities from Valtellina.

Best for: après-ski spa recovery

Also part of the Dolomiti Superski area, the five villages that make up the Val di Fiemme are less crowded than the nearby resorts of Val di Fassa. Most runs here are reds and blues, making this a great choice for families. The scenery is beautiful, with the striking razor-sharp peaks of the Pale di San Martino plateau serving as backdrop. With over 150km of cross-country trails snaking through the wooded valley, the area is also a magnet for keen cross-country skiers.

Where is it? Trentino, northeast Italy

Stay here: Alpuris in Cavalese is a sleek spot offering stylish rooms with a contemporary alpine streak.