Trafoi Ski Resort Italy
Trafoi all'Ortles (a.k.a. Furkel) is a quiet outpost with a small local ski hill deep in the Italian Alps near Solda-Sulden. Part of the diverse Ortler Ski Arena & on the road to the summer ski area of Passo Stelvio, it is surrounded by incredible scenery. Glaciers drape the amazing landscape, distracting one from the old rattling chairlift ....
Ancient access chairlift aside, Trafoi has its place on any good powder hounds SSSL (Super Secret Stash List). With some of the region’s best hotels at its base, the ski area is uncrowded, affordable & has a nice skiable vertical, which is all a good start for when the snow comes.
Pros & Cons for Trafoi Ski Resort
Pros
- Amazing valley location surrounded by glorious peaks & glaciers.
- Long skiable vertical of 1,000m.
- Uncrowded most days - totally off the radar.
- Lovely off-piste turns when it snows.
- For a small village, it has an exceptional range of quality accommodation.
- Close to large number of other quirky ski areas in the Val Venosta.
Cons
- Limited on-piste trails.
- The access chair is incredibly slow.
- Difficult to get to by public transport & parking is awkward for day-trippers.
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- Its quiet here, incredibly quiet. The loudest thing you might here is an avalanche rumbling off the Ortler peak!
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lift & Terrain
The resort is never going to win accolades for modern & speedy lift infrastructure or amount of piste trails, but its raw, remote feel, spectacular surrounds plus lack of crowds make it a skiing & snowboarding experience that is increasingly rare in the Alps.
The Trafoi ski trail map reflects the relaxed approach to skiing in the area, even though the high alpine terrain above it requires an altogether different approach!
For beginners & children, the ‘Church Run’ is a simple sheltered slope near the village & church (surprise surprise!) served by a conveyor. A short walk away & across the road, the main chairlift heads up to the alpine zone at a leisurely pace (it is over 40-years old after all!). On a clear powder day, the views across to the 3,905m Ortler Peak are worth the journey alone, but it is up the next double chair, the new-ish Schönblick, & beyond, where Trafoi shines. Skinning a short distance up the ridges, one can easily attain peaks of over 3,000m, providing fun off-piste descents.
Where is Trafoi Italy?
The Trafoi ski area is located below Passo Stelvio in South Tyrol (Alto Adige) Italy. The resort is not accessible via the Stelvio Pass in winter, with all travel required from the east. The closest major town is Merano/Meran, 61km to the east, but the Val Venosta is replete with minor towns including Malles/Mals, Silandro/Schlanders & gorgeous Glurns/Glorenza. The town of Prato Allo Stelvio/Prad am Stilfserjoch is the closest village of note with useful services, 11km (55min drive) east of Trafoi. Solda-Sulden ski resort is 16km (24min) by road.
Gateway airports for Trafoi are a lottery. Nothing is quite convenient, but Innsbruck (INN) is the closest at 156km or 2¼hr drive via Reschen Pass. Munich (MUC) airport is the best option for international visitors. Train connections from Munich to Innsbruck are excellent and will add 2hr to any journey.
Public transport to the general region is OK via trains from Innsbruck or Verona to Bolzano, Merano & finally, Malles/Mals or Sponding. Trains from Merano to Malles take 1⅓hr (less to Sponding) with services every hour throughout the day & into the night. From either station the route 271 bus travels to Trafoi around three times per day, taking between 45min for the journey from Sponding. The convoluted journey of at least 3 trains & a bus may prove too much for most. Bus links between Trafoi & nearby Solda-Sulden are more regular.
Driving to Trafoi is relatively easy compared to many Alps ski resort journeys. We recommend renting a car (from Austria, preferably Innsbruck) to explore Trafoi, nearby Solda & the broader Val Venosta/Ortler region. Avoid renting cars in Italy as they are rarely winterised.
Trafoi Accommodation
Trafoi might not be on too many people’s ‘must stay locations in the Alps, but maybe it should. For a small town, Trafoi bats well above its average. Accommodation in the village, surrounded by the mountain splendour of the Ortler ridge, includes four fabulous hotels: the 4-star traditional Hotel Madatsch, ultra-modern Tannenheim Nature and Style Hotel, plus the highly rated Hotel Bella Vista & Stelvio Residence Hotel Apartments.
Search & book here for all Trafoi ski accommodation.
Nearby Ski Resorts & Attractions
Trafoi is in the Val Venosta (or Vinschgau), a South Tyrolean, predominantly German speaking, part of Italy which rises west of Merano (Meran) & Bolzano (Bozen). Val Venosta’s stunning combination of incredible glacier-draped mountains, ice bound lakes, drowned bell towers, gorgeous ancient walled villages, castles, monasteries & ski resorts make it an all -round European ski safari location to be reckoned with.
Nearby ski resorts are all part of the Ortler Ski Arena & include the family-friendly Belpiano (Schoeneben), smaller local ski hills like Watles, plus the glaciers of Solda-Sulden & Val Senales (Schnalstal) to name a few.
See here for the Ortler Ski Arena resorts map.
Once in the upper valley, Austrian ski resorts are a short drive away via the easy Passo di Resia (Reschen Pass). Nauders & Serfaus Fiss Ladis lead to the Inn valley via Landeck Zams & on to the best resorts in Austria.
The gorgeous town of Glorenza (a.k.a. Glurns) in the centre of the valley is like a window into the past. A walk down its perfectly preserved 16th century cobbled streets revealing fortifications, tower gates & porticoed arcades. A stay here is why we ski Europe. No cookie cutter ski village, but a perfectly preserved walled town, only 15min drive from the San Valentino gondola which connects to Belpiano. Throw in the amazing 12th century Marienburg Kloster in Burgusio (on the way to the nearby Watles ski area) & the 1,200 years of human history at the St John’s Abbey in Müstair (10km/12min drive west just over the border in Switzerland) and Glurns starts to seem like a European ski & culture holiday hotspot. Trafoi is only 18km (20min) to the south of Glurns.
A symbol of the upper Val Venosta is the 14th century bell tower of Curon that juts remarkably from the waters of Lago di Resia. In winter it is possible to walk (or skate) across the ice to see it firsthand. The lakes in the upper valley are well set up for ice skating, kite sating & ice hockey, particularly the Lago della Muta (Haidersee) just south of San Valentino.
Review
The Powderhounds checked out Trafoi in 2020. We adored the isolated feel of this mountain enclave & it is on our SSSL watchlist. Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read our review!
See how Trafoi compares to the rest of the Italian ski resorts on the Italy ski resort ratings page, or compare to the rest of Europe on the European ski resort ratings page.
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