Passo Tonale

Passo Tonale is arguably Italy’s most snowsure and perhaps one of it’s best value ski resorts, with access to 100km of well connected slopes.

weather Forecast today: Partly cloudy

Max temp: 1.8 °c
Min temp: -4.9 °c
Last snowed: Wed 12 Feb

Last Updated: Sat 22 Feb

weather Forecast today: Partly cloudy

Max temp: 1.8 °c
Min temp: -4.9 °c
Last snowed: Wed 12 Feb

Last Updated: Sat 22 Feb

The main resort base sits at a lofty 1883m, which allied to an impressive snowmaking system gives Passo Tonale one of the longest and most reliable ski seasons in the Alps.

There are great beginner facilities, over 60% of the slopes are marked as red – making this an excellent place for keen intermediate piste skiers – and there is also access to the Presena Glacier at 3000m. The resort itself is designed with only skiing in mind and there are several larger apartment blocks, but most of these are more attractive than some of the concrete jungles across the border in France.

Pros and cons

One of the Alps’ best value and snowsure resorts
Great beginner areas and progression on to longer blues
A very good lift system, with mostly fast quad chairlifts and gondolas

Treeless setting suffers in bad weather – head down towards Ponte di Legno
Village is strung out along the main road
Not a huge amount to do away from the slopes

On the Slopes

For beginners there are some fantastic, sunny learning areas on the edge of the resort. From this point there is excellent progression on to longer blues, with most runs being served by fast quad chairlifts. Intermediates will enjoy the longer reds on the sunny side of the valley and also the runs on the Presena Glacier, but less confident skiers or boarders may want to download the final section to avoid the steeper black return run. A trip to the pretty wooded slopes of Ponte di Legno is also recommended, particularly in bad weather.

Although it has a family and beginner friendly reputation, Passo Tonale offers up some decent pistes for experts – especially the descent from the glacier and also on the slopes of Corno d’Aola above Ponte di Legno. Due to the altitude, any fresh snow usually stays cold and dry, meaning that the off piste often retains great snow – this is certainly an underrated facet of the resort.

In the Resort

The resort is spread out along the road, which does mean that through-traffic can be an issue and some accommodation is a walk away from the lifts. However, that accommodation is very family-friendly – including a number of big hotels with good facilities – and is generally very good value, even during the main holiday weeks. Alternative options include the lower villages of Temu and Ponte di Legno.
Away from the slopes there isn’t a vast amount to entertain children, book a big hotel if you’re looking for post-skiing activities or things to do in an afternoon off. The après is increasingly lively, with some good bars utilising the sunny plateau and the foot of the slopes – and the great thing here is that a round of drinks won’t break the bank.

Getting to Passo Tonale

The nearest airport is Bergamo and it lies around two hours drive to the south of the resort. Verona is another option at two and a half hours drive, as are the two Milan airports – both of these are around three hours drive away.

* Bergamo airport: 2 hours

* Verona airport: 2.5 hours

* Milan Malpensa/Linate airports: 3 hours

Season Dates

Opens: Saturday 26 October 2024 (TBC)
Closes: Thursday 1 May 2025 (TBC)

Passo Tonale Piste Map

Top (3000m)

	Sat 22 Feb			Sun 23 Feb			Mon 24 Feb			Tue 25 Feb			Wed 26 Feb			Thu 27 Feb			Fri 28 Feb			Sat 1 Mar			Sun 2 Mar			Mon 3 Mar
	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night	AM	PM	Night
Weather	Partly cloudy	Broken clouds	Generally clear	Partly cloudy	Rather cloudy	Occasional snow	Mainly fair	Partly cloudy	Rather cloudy	Rather cloudy	Occasional snow	Occasional snow	Light snow	Light snow	Light snow	Occasional snow	Occasional snow	Snow grains	Generally clear	Partly cloudy	Mainly fair	Generally clear	Occasional snow	Occasional snow	Occasional snow	Occasional snow	Broken clouds	Broken clouds	Occasional snow	Occasional snow
Wind
Snow expected	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0.3 cm	0.7 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0 cm	0.3 cm	1.7 cm	1.4 cm	4.9 cm	6.9 cm	4.5 cm	1.9 cm	1 cm	0.6 cm	0 cm	0.3 cm	0.2 cm	0.2 cm	1.9 cm	1.2 cm	1.7 cm	1.9 cm	0.3 cm	0.3 cm	2.3 cm	1 cm
Max temp	-2.7°c	-2.9°c	-4.9°c	-2.8°c	-2.8°c	-4.3°c	-3°c	-3°c	-4.5°c	-4.2°c	-4.5°c	-4.6°c	-5.3°c	-5.7°c	-6.1°c	-5.1°c	-5°c	-5.6°c	-4.1°c	-4.1°c	-6°c	-4.5°c	-4.5°c	-7.3°c	-6°c	-6°c	-6.6°c	-4.5°c	-4.5°c	-5.9°c
Min temp	-5.1°c	-4.9°c	-6°c	-5.8°c	-4.3°c	-5.8°c	-6.4°c	-4.5°c	-5.3°c	-5.3°c	-5.2°c	-5.3°c	-5.7°c	-6.2°c	-6.4°c	-7°c	-5.7°c	-7.1°c	-7.8°c	-6°c	-7.3°c	-7.5°c	-7.3°c	-8.4°c	-8.4°c	-6.8°c	-6.9°c	-7.3°c	-5.9°c	-6.3°c
Feels like temp	-5.1°c	-2.9°c	-4.9°c	-5.8°c	-2.8°c	-4.3°c	-6.4°c	-3°c	-4.5°c	-5.3°c	-4.5°c	-4.6°c	-5.3°c	-5.7°c	-10°c	-7°c	-5.1°c	-5.6°c	-7.8°c	-4.1°c	-6°c	-7.5°c	-4.5°c	-7.3°c	-8.4°c	-6°c	-6.8°c	-7.3°c	-4.5°c	-5.9°c