- Details
- Written by: Tristan Kennedy
Choosing a resort with a short transfer time can make a huge difference to your skiing holiday — especially if you're going away for a long weekend (rather than a full week) or if you're skiing with kids. Depending on the time of your flight, a shorter transfer can convert to more time on the slopes, but it's also just more pleasant.
No-one wants to spend hours stuck on winding mountain roads, and as anyone who's got little ones who are prone to car-sickness knows, ski resort transfers can be a vomit-inducing nightmare! So, the less time spent on them, the better.
"No-one wants to spend hours stuck on winding mountain roads"
Turin Airport (technically Turin-Caselle Airport, TRN) is a great option for those looking to avoid lengthy car journeys. It's got a ton of direct flight connections from UK cities, including London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Bristol. More crucially, it offers quick access to a whole swathe of excellent ski resorts in Italy's northwest—including some of the big names in Piemonte and the Aosta Valley, many of which are among the best ski resorts in Italy.
Here, selected by our expert editorial team are six of the best resorts that are near Turin, ordered by driving time from Turin Airport. And if short transfer times are your number one priority, check out our list of the best ski resorts with short transfers from Geneva Airport too.
Ala di Stura
Transfer time from Turin Airport: 1 hour
Ala di Stura probably isn't a resort that many Brits have heard of, and with good reason: it's pretty small. With just four lifts, seven marked runs, two off-piste itineraries and a vertical drop of 890m, it's definitely got a "local ski hill" vibe. Here at SNOW, we view that as a positive, however. And if short transfer times are your priority this one is hard to beat—it's just one hour from the airport, door to door.
It won't compete with the vast linked domains of the Milky Way, but that's part of its charm. The uncrowded slopes are ideal for beginners and families, while confident intermediates can enjoy quiet red runs or (if there's snow) explore the lengthy un-pisted descent back down to the carpark. At 1890m, the top of the resort isn't high, so the season is relatively short, but the pistes are covered by snow canons. The village is arguably our favourite thing about the place—small and friendly, with a properly authentic Italian mountain community feel. If the snow's good and you're short on time, this is worth checking out.
Bardonecchia
Transfer time from Turin Airport: 1 hour 10 minutes
Bardonecchia combines Italian mountain charm with excellent accessibility, sitting just over an hour from Turin Airport at the end of the A32 motorway. Internationally, the resort is most famous for hosting the snowboard events at the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics—the Games where Shaun White, then in his "Flying Tomato" era, lead a US clean sweep of the men's medals. The resort still boasts one of Italy's best terrain parks, and with 100km of pistes spread across three distinct sectors, there's plenty of regular on-piste skiing for everyone.
The lifts top out at 2,800m, meaning there's a reasonable amount of above treeline skiing, and advanced skiers will enjoy the steeper runs on Monte Jafferau. But Bardonecchia's main suit is cruisey reds and blues through the trees. The town feels like a proper town, rather than a purpose built resort, with excellent restaurants and pretty. characterful buildings.
Read our resort review of Bardonecchia here for more info.
Sauze d'Oulx
Transfer time from Turin Airport: 1 hour 10 minutes
Sauze d'Oulx is the beating heart of the vast Via Lattea (Milky Way) ski area, giving access to more than 400km of linked pistes stretching across Italy and into France. Long regarded as one of Italy's best après ski destinations, the village used to be seen as a sort of Andorra in the Alps—a bit cheap, very cheerful, and lots of fun. But in the past decade and a half its shed that reputation, and moved upmarket.
In terms of the skiing, intermediates are particularly well served, with mile after mile of fun reds, while beginners have excellent learning areas close to the village. Advanced skiers can venture across to Sestriere, Sansicario and Claviere, making this one of the country's most varied ski holidays—all within easy reach of Turin.
Read our full review of Sauze d'Oulx for more info
Sestriere
Transfer time from Turin Airport: 1 hour 20 minutes
Sestriere, Italy's first purpose-built ski resort, remains one of its finest. It was created in the 1930s from scratch by the Agnelli family, Turin industrialists who made their money as the founders of Fiat, and their name as the longterm owners of Juventus. Like Tignes or Val Thorens in France, the village sits high at over 2,000m, giving it one of the most snow-sure locations in the Alps.
As the flagship resort of the Via Lattea, it offers direct access to an enormous network of pistes linking Sauze d'Oulx, Sansicario, Cesana and Claviere. The high altitude makes it particularly appealing later in the season, while advanced skiers will enjoy its World Cup race slopes. Despite its sporting pedigree, there are excellent nursery areas and plenty of motorway style intermediate runs, making it a resort that suits lots of different ability levels.
Read our experts' review of Sestriere for more detailed info
Claviere
Transfer time from Turin Airport: 1 hour 25 minutes
Perched on the French border, Claviere is one of the quieter gateways into the Via Lattea ski area. Its peaceful village atmosphere makes a refreshing contrast to its busier neighbours, yet skiers still enjoy seamless access to hundreds of kilometres of pistes, including those around neighbouring Montgenèvre in France.
The gentle, wooded slopes above the village are perfect for beginners and families, while more experienced skiers can spend days exploring the wider circuit. With traditional stone buildings, excellent mountain restaurants and remarkably short lift queues, Claviere feels like one of Italy's best-kept skiing secrets.
Read our full Claviere ski resort review for more info.
Champoluc
Transfer time from Turin Airport: 1 hour 35 minutes
Champoluc is the principal village of the Monterosa Ski area, one of the Alps' outstanding destinations for confident skiers. Linked with Gressoney and Alagna, it offers around 180km of pistes, huge vertical descents and some of Europe's most celebrated off-piste terrain.
Unlike the more commercial resorts around Turin, Champoluc has retained the atmosphere of a traditional village, with timber chalets, excellent food and spectacular views of the Monte Rosa massif. Beginners are well catered for around the village, but it's the long cruisey reds and legendary freeride opportunities—particularly over the ridge in Alagna—that make Champoluc a favourite among experienced skiers seeking something a little different.
Read our full Monterosa ski resort review for more details
