Pissed off paying £5 + for a post boarding beer? Want to escape the fur coat brigade? Want to ride decent terrain without breaking the bank? If you answered YES to these questions, than Livigno is the place to head this season....
Situated in the northern Italian Alps, Livigno is a great place for snowboarders of all levels and disciplines. The town is essentially one long road (10km) running through a valley, with pistes on either side. The pisted terrain is very open, with wide motorway runs which makes it perfect for beginners and intermediates. For the more advanced freeriders there are easily accessible off piste areas, and if your willing to break sweat and hike for half and hour or so, you can reach some beautiful open powder fields, on both sides of the valley.



For the freestyling park monkey, Livigno should already be on your radar. The Burton European Freestyle Open competitions are held here every year, and as a result the parks are awesome. There is an expert park, with monster sized cheese wedges, and for those slightly less insane in the membrane, the intermediate park sits right next to it. Complete with a boarder cross track, a half pipe, several table tops, a fun box, and over ten rails of varying shapes, lengths and difficulties, this place is a jib monkeys dream play ground. Well maintained with a great atmosphere, freestylers can happily ride here until they’re back in hospital nurturing their broken bones. There is a small park entrance fee (5 Euors for 3 days), but if you just ride in confidently, you can get away without coughing up.

Cost wise, Livigno is dirt cheap. Being a duty free zone means that everything from booze to boards are cheaper here than the rest of Europe. A 1L bottle of Smirnoff Vodka will set you back a measly £3, a half litre bottle of beer just 40p. Food from on slope restaurants is a complete bargain, with a burger, sandwich or panini costing about £2 a pop. BUT, don’t be fooled, Livigno’s low prices doesn’t mean low quality; far from it, this is a high level location. The lift system is modern, with high speed quads and gondolas servicing the majority of slopes, the passes are the new electronic style, which means there’s no wasting time fumbling around in pockets, and frequent free ski buses run up and down the length of the town every fifteen minutes or so, connecting the valley together.
The architecture of the town is beautiful, no ugly concrete apartment blocks here, everything is built chalet style. Rustic wooden barns and traditional old houses sit side by side to the small hotels and apartments which gives the place an attractive alpine charm, and a warm, chilled out feel.
The great value of Livigno attracts a young crowd who come to party, so during high season expect a rowdy time in the various bars and clubs. The Italians themselves are a laid back and friendly bunch, which helps to create the great atmosphere of the town, though their driving leaves little to be desired. Forget the “Ra Ra Ra” skiers; the fur coat brigade don’t exist here, so there’s no pretentious attitude, and snowboarders and skiers are welcomed with equal zeal.
Although the total pisted terrain is not huge, (intermediates can cover it all in about three days) if you take into account the terrain parks and off piste riding potential, even advanced riders should be kept happy spending a week here.

Perhaps the only downside of this place is its (in)accessibility. It takes around 5 hours via bus to reach from the closest airports of Bergamo (Milan) and Innsbruck (Austria). However, don’t let that stop you; Livigno is HOT. With an amazing park, open terrain, accessible off piste, the warm Italian reception, and prices far cheaper than most other resorts in western Europe, Livigno is one excellent Italian job.

Editorial : Sam Baldwin



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