The best places to stay, eat, drink and ski in Italy’s snow-sure family paradise
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Passo Tonale, consistently rated as the best-value resort for families thanks to its low on-slope costs and free lift passes for under eights, is set on a high pass that separates Val di Sole in the region of Trentino from Valle Camonica in neighbouring Lombardy.
Marketed as Ponte di Legno-Tonale, because of its proximity to Ponte di Legno, it developed as a ski resort because of its high, snow-sure setting. The area offers 100km of connected slopes across Passo Tonale, Presena Glacier, Ponte di Legno and Temù, with mainly gentle, above-the-tree-line terrain that suit beginners and intermediates best. The village is strung out along the main road with no real centre, apart from a cluster of lift bases.
Stay on track with the essential facts from the resort below, and scroll down for our insider guide to a day on the pistes, expert ratings and advice. For further Passo Tonale inspiration, see our guides to the resort’s best restaurants and après ski.
The majority of the Passo Tonale’s hotels, built in chalet style, are spread out along a 1km stretch of road. There are also some mainly low-rise apartment buildings on a parallel road, with a few high-rises.
Passo Tonale’s ski area is linked to that of Ponte di Legno, a resort that is around 12km away by road but closer by piste down and gondola lift back. Most of the lifts go up from the northern side of the road, leading to gentle south-facing slopes, ideal for beginners and gentle cruising. At the western end of the village on the opposite side of the valley, lifts go up some 3,000m to the snow-sure slopes of the Presena Glacier.
Ponte di Legno is a traditional small mountain town with just under 2,000 year-round inhabitants and a church dating from the 17th century. The main road bypasses the car-free centre and the ponte di legno (wooden bridge) that the town takes its name from.
The ski area here is a big contrast to Passo Tonale’s. It is much lower and the pistes are steeper and mainly tree lined within the Adamello Park – it suits many intermediates and is a good place to be if it’s snowing.
In Passo Tonale, après-ski activities include skating on its natural ice rink, snowmobiling, dog sledding and snowshoeing. There’s a public swimming pool and separate children’s pool in Ponte di Legno.
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Passo Tonale’s south-facing slopes, accessed by several chairlifts and a few draglifts from beside the road, are where most spend their time. The runs are almost all easy – even those graded red – and suit beginners and early intermediates best.
Most of the key lifts in the Ponte di Legno-Tonale area are fast chairlifts or gondolas but there are still a few slow chairs. Its altitude means snow is usually good in Passo Tonale, and Ponte di Legno’s slopes are mainly shady, so keep their snow well. The whole area is extensively covered by snowmaking and grooming is good, but between them, all sectors of the ski area have only 100km of pistes.
Keen piste-bashers might want to catch the free bus for the 45-minute journey to the resort of Marilleva during the week, to access its more extensive (150km) and varied slopes, which link to Madonna di Campiglio. A day here is included if you pay a supplement for Passo Tonale’s slightly more expensive Combi lift pass, rather than the local one.
For beginners, there’s a moving carpet on the nursery slopes and two lovely long easy blue runs to move on to – Valbiolo, served by a fast chairlift, on the far right of the ski area as you look at the slopes, and Tonalina, down to the mid-station of the gondola back from Passo Tonale’s linked resort of Ponte di Legno. The ski schools in Passo Tonale have good reputations and have a lot of experience of teaching British beginners and intermediates.
Early and timid intermediates will love the easy-cruising red runs but most of them are quite short. The longest reds are on the left as you look at the mountain, served by the Bleis chair, and are a bit steeper than the other reds.
Confident intermediates will want to explore farther afield – the easy south-facing slopes are very limited in extent. At the western end of the village, on the opposite side of the valley, a 15-person gondola and a two-stage eight-person gondola go up to the Presena Glacier at 3,069m. There’s a black run from the very top of the glacier, there’s a blue option part way down and the final section is black. Good snow can be expected all the way because of the north-facing aspect.
It’s also possible to divert from the black to a red run that leads all the way to the Ponte di Legno sector – making a very long run of around 10km and a vertical of 1,700m. A gentle blue piste at the western end of the village also links Ponte de Legno. Go via the mid-station of the almost 5km gondola that goes back up to Passo Tonale, then join the red run down to Ponte di Legno’s ski area. Or you can descend on the gondola after the blue run.
Ponte di Legno’s slopes are lower and more tree-lined than Passo Tonale’s, entirely red and easy black pistes, and great fun. This is especially true during a snowfall, when the open slopes elsewhere might have poor visibility or white-out conditions.
For experts, there’s not much on-piste challenge. But there is plenty of off-piste and ski touring in the area. Three popular off-piste routes are shown on the piste map – but they are not marked on the mountain, not avalanche controlled and not covered by resort ski patrol.
Passo Tonale’s terrain park runs the length of the fast Valena chairlift (700m) in the south-facing sector and has features for experienced and novice freestylers plus a snowcross run.
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Skiers will be pleased to know that Passo Tonale is one of Italy’s few snow-sure resorts, with a long season that runs from late October to mid-June, thanks to the Presena Glacier at 3,069m. Italian national ski teams train here but, that said, the slopes are best suited to beginners. The gentle open slopes that form a near-perfect nursery area for learning first turns and gaining confidence are a treat, without the threat of more accomplished slope users whizzing scarily by. The resort offers good value for families in particular, with free lift passes for children under eight, and it has retained the position as best for value in this year’s Post Office Ski Resort Report.
Three-star hotels, which vary greatly in degree of comfort, make up the bulk of the accommodation in Passo Tonale – but there are a few four-star options too. Some of the best are modest but family-run, offering classic and delicious Italian home cooking. Most hotels are located on the main road through the resort and are quite convenient for the lifts; however, some lie quite a way from most of the shops and bars. Apartments are available too, on a road that runs parallel to the main road. The other option is to stay in the more traditional resort of Ponte di Legno, which shares the Ponte di Legno-Tonale ski area with Passo Tonale.
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Italian resorts have a reputation for being good value, and Passo Tonale is at the forefront of this. Hotel packages usually come half-board, which makes this resort a particularly good option for families. Crystal (crystalski.co.uk) and Ski Solutions (skisolutions.com) offer holidays to around a dozen hotels in the resort, and Sunweb (sunweb.co.uk) offers competitive deals including lift passes. The nearest international airports are Bergamo (127km) and Verona (180km). Trains run from Brescia to Edolo (trenord.it) with bus connections to Ponte di Legno (trentinotrasporti.it).
Passo Tonale’s main resort base sits at 1,883m and this, along with its glacier and its efficient snowmaking system, helps Passo Tonale lay claim to one of the longest and most snow-sure ski seasons in the Alps. For families who are tied into school holidays, this resort is one of the better options, with holiday packages remaining more affordable than you might find elsewhere, even in peak weeks. The snowiest week is typically the first week of February so conditions, combined with value for money, make it a top contender for half-term skiing.
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