Kronplatz is one of Italy’s larger ski regions with more than a dozen towns and villages linked on to the huge Plan de Corones ski mountain. Plan de Corones/Kronplatz popularity in Europe is hard to ignore, thanks in large part to its astonishingly impressive facilities, including more than 20 gondola lifts, one of only a few resorts in the world to have so many of these fast, comfortable all-weather lifts.
The resort has invested a lot in its infrastructure in recent time adding a new piste running up to 7km long along with a new gondola 10-seater lift (with the capability to carry 3200 passengers per hour) to serve it.
Brunica/Bruneck is one of the few large towns to be found right next to a ski area, and thus offers the range of facilities that others can only dream of. Skiers can conveniently use the train for their daily transfer to the slopes avoiding having to rely on the ski bus or their own car. There’s also a direct connection between Kronplatz and the Sextner Dolomiten ski resort with trains running every 30 minutes.
Not everything about Kronplatz is hi-tech however. Dating back to 1680, Oberegger Alm on the descent to Valdora/Olang offers the best Knodel (tranditional dumplings) on the slopes. Or you could sample wholemeal pasta with mountain cheese or spaghetti with tomato and basil, followed by an apple strudel at the Marchner Hutte, which can be found on the valley descent to the Marchner lift. Another treat is the great grilled meat at Ucia Bivacco finishing off our meal with some of the best grappa in the valley.
The extensive slopes offer a great variety of terrain, indeed a better choice than most, including “The Black Five”, as Kronplatz is one of only few skiing resorts in the Alps that boast five black slopes, including the super steep Piculin run which pitches at up to 72 percent over its 2km length.
The Snowpark Kronplatz is another cool attraction, sprea over 75,000m/s with four ines of different levels of difficulty, using 100,000m/q of snow to create features including three kickers in a row of 14-22m.