Weekend ski breaks

With so many devoted flights, trains and buses, and such proximity to the UK, quick skiing weekends are easy to arrange. They’re ideal not only for the time-limited, but also for beginners who aren’t yet sure if the pistes are for them.

There are plenty of novice options as well as insider picks for black-run pros, and smart budget haunts – both in Western and Eastern Europe – where prices can plummet faster than any downhill run.

Most convenient of all is Innsbruck, the capital of western Austria’s Tirol region. Nine ski areas including Nordkette and Hafelekar can be reached by funicular, cable car or free shuttle bus from the old town in as little as 20 minutes, while the airport has direct UK flights. Pistes here are mostly red.

Mayrhofen, another resort in Tirolean Austria, has skiing areas similarly full of challenging red runs, along with hard blues and the country’s steepest marked route, the Harakiri.

Well-maintained, the slopes are almost uniformly sheer, and often relatively quiet even in peak season. It’s within an hour of Innsbruck. The size of the French Alps ski areas can boggle minds, but it also allows for a few gems to go under the radar.

One such is La Clusaz – about an hour’s drive from Geneva Airport and near Lake Annecy – where the intermediate and advanced slopes provide a real challenge to anyone not distracted by the nearby, better known Trois Vallees.

A lovely, rustic Alpine atmosphere pervades, making this a wonderfully immersive holiday-weekend escape.

Newbies may be best off at larger French Alp super-areas. Inside Portes du Soleil, a breeze to access from Geneva Airport, Morzine has tonnes of runs and a host of ace schools.

Its sole disadvantage for serious skiers – low altitude – makes it a gentle-run dream for novices. Kitzbuhel, over in Austria, is another good resort for novice skiers.

In Switzerland, over 30% of Grindelwald’s pistes have an ‘easy’ classification, while lovely views of the Eiger provide ample inspiration. English speaking tutors are many, as are learner zones.

While Bulgaria and Andorra are on every budget-saver’s list, you may be surprised to find France has bargain gems too.

Just an hour away from Lourdes, holidays to the French Pyrenean co-resorts of La Mongie and Barèges – the former more utilitarian, the latter charming and full of natural spas – are about half as cheap as their French Alp rivals.

Also offering good value is Italy’s Alps: Bardonecchia is a quick train-ride or drive from Turin airport, and has decent two and three-star hotels that include food with your stay.

For the cheapest prices of all, head to Eastern Europe. As far as weekend options go, the tiny Czech spa town Janské Lázne is a great option.

Two hours' drive from Prague, it possesses 14 forested kilometres (9 miles) of pistes to suit beginners, intermediates and children, along with a snow cannon that makes night-skiing possible.

European ski seasons run from December to mid-April, dependent on snowfall conditions. Christmas, New Year, the February half-term and Easter, if it falls early enough, witness the most expensive hotel rates, while December and January weekends are ordinarily the cheapest.

However, flight prices will be higher in December to cities like Geneva or Salzburg, as Christmas market-goers ensure high demand.