Sierra Nevada (Granada) — Attraction in Monachil

Been skiing here for over 10 years. Compared to most other resorts I've been to, the skiing is very cheap - about EUR40 for a day's lift pass and ski & boot hire as low as EUR15 a day. (I've never stayed in the resort, so can't comment on the accommodation prices). It gets very busy at the weekends but weekdays (particularly outside of school holidays) are much quieter with no trouble parking (around EUR17 a day) and short lift queues. Being quite a long way south, the slopes are all above the tree line, so the skiing isn't as exciting as more northerly resorts, and it's best suited to beginner to intermediate skiers since the few black runs are not that extreme. Because it's very exposed, the higher runs can be closed due to ice or high winds from time to time. The amount of snow can vary across the season since it can get relatively warm (often above freezing during the day) but there are a lot of cannons and they have become masters at managing the snow they have, with a decent coverage even on the lower runs when the mountain either side is bare. There are two gondolas, one drag lift and all the other lifts are chairs, which is better than some European resorts. Granada is about a 30 minute drive and you can be on the beach in a t-shirt in less...

Great family ski resort, but it has little to challenge advances skiers. You can link up a lot of red runs to make about 1km of vertical drop, which isn't too bad... but then you need a gondola, a chairlift, and a t-bar to get back to the top.

I would recommend it for those with young families, but probably not for more advanced ski groups. The downside is that the green-run lifts get very busy, but if you ski red or above then you can find yourself on a piste all by yourself... even during UK mid-term holidays.

When we came it was very warm for three weeks prior, so it's amazing they had snow at all. They seem to have hundreds of snow cannons to keep the place running, but it was very icy in some places. Talking to other skiers, this year was very unusual, and normally there is heaps of snow. Either way, we were happy with the quantity and quality considering the weather.

Just look at those sunny blue skies!

If you book a hotel, get one near the gondolas, or you will have to trudge up hill or queue for the chair lift... and then slog it the rest of the way. That's not fun when you're tired and in ski boots. Good for the...

It was my first time at a ski resort and it wasn't quite like I imagined 😂 The bottom resort (where you arrive and catch the cable car up to the slopes) is visually pleasant with lots of restaurants but it's all a much of a muchness - pasta, pizza and burgers. Just the restaurant furniture is different. It's definitely worth catching the cable car up to the top. Guaranteed snow up there (they have snow makers) but there's no decent bar and most of the buildings house basic food court eateries. The only coffee I could find was at VIP and it was surprisingly good. Up the top is a toboggan chute and there's the gentle runs. you can hop on ski lifts if you want to go up to the more difficult runs. When you get up there, check the snow. You'll see it's ice chips rather than proper snow. I didn't realise there was a difference but it's quite apparent. It also doesn't have that satisfying crunch that proper fresh snow has when you step on it but it's all good. You can see the observatory from there and the radio telescope they use to search the universe. Apparently during summer there are trips to the...