Bukovel, our winner in the Best Of search for Ukraine’s top ski hill, impresses in every way. In addition to having fast, modern lift equipment, rental facilities and restaurants, they actually print trail maps, too.

With the mercury plunging and the frost on the windows thickening, it’s safe to say winter has arrived. For many this means staying indoors away from the cold, but to the Best Of team it means getting out to enjoy the best the winter season has to offer, such as skiing.

Many visitors to Ukraine are surprised to hear that the country has ski hills. That’s not to say that Ukraine has world-class ski resorts such as Chamonix in France, Vail, Colorado, or Canada’s Whistler/Blackcomb, but for those who want to make use of their ski gear before it collects too much dust in the closet, we’ve made things a little bit easier by trying to find the country’s best ski hill. It’s an extension of the Best of Kyiv mandate, but we thought, Why not?

Same Old Story

Of the five major hills we checked out, the one that fared the worst was Tisovets. They get a decent amount of snow over the course of a given winter, but so what?

Tisovets, located roughly 110 kilometers from Lviv in Lviv oblast, is lame for many reasons: the local roads are poorly maintained, virtually isolating the place in bad weather; the skiing infrastructure is underdeveloped; there are few recognized guest houses or hotels in the area, and in short we can’t say much good about the place. Not a Best Of champion by any means.

The neighboring hills of Podobovets and Pilipets, which are located in Zakarpattya oblast 30-40 minutes from the town of Volovets, scored some good points with the Best Of team at the start.

First off, the new T-bar on the main slope of Podobovets is fast, giving skiers and snowboarders quick access to lots of great terrain, and within easy hiking distance from the top of the T-bar is a huge unmarked bowl area with few trees, meaning countless opportunities for fresh tracks in virgin powder. Also, cheap equipment rental facilities and decent local food options on both hills make it easy to start skiing or snowboarding at P/P and stay there.

On the downside for the area, going the extra distance to travel out to Volovets, and then from there to the hills, means getting in only partial days of skiing/snowboarding there instead of full days. What’s more, local hotel/hostel options for guests are few, meaning it’s often a scramble to find decent facilities at any price if all the rooms in Volovets are booked. It’s a good change of pace from the other hills, but not a consistent weekend ski spot.

Getting to the Top

In third place on the Best Of team ski hill list is Slavske. Many of those who frequent the Ukrainian Carpathians might be surprised that it is not rated tops. It is a tried and true resort from many standpoints, but that’s not to say it’s the best.

While we like Slavske for its often-raucous nightlife, ease-of-access from the train station and some of the great powder runs we’ve done there in the trees, the Best Of team simply cannot give top marks to Slavske. Several big problems loom over Slavske.

First, the local owners of the resort have consistently held off on making any major infrastructure improvements to the hill even though they’re sorely needed. The resort has one single-seat chair lift (perhaps the only one in Europe), and it’s always busy. What’s more, the VIP access system at Slavske means huge waits at the bottom of the hill in lift lines, local rental facilities are inadequate to handle the increasing number of skiers and snowboarders coming to town, and dining out options are limited. And the service at the hill is the worst of any resort in Ukraine, or possibly even the world.

Taking second place in the poll is Drahobrat, located about two hours by car from Ivano-Frankivsk in Ivano-Frankivsk oblast.

Drahobrat lucks out as far as terrain goes and remains the country’s only truly alpine resort, its peak reaching 2,000 meters above sea level. The hill has half of its runs carved out between swaths of local evergreen forests and the other half in areas barren of trees, leaving lots to the imagination. Snow at Drahobrat often lasts the longest of any Ukrainian resort, with skiing and snowboarding there available well into April and even May when the other resorts have closed.

The considerable distance to Drahobrat from local transportation hubs is both a blessing and a curse. While lift lines are never long and the prices cheap compared with elsewhere, getting there is not only a challenge, but it takes away from valuable skiing time, as getting to and from the mountain means losing part of a day on the way there and on the way back (if going by train). It’s a great mountain, but not the best resort.

King of the Hills

Taking top spot in this week’s Best of Kyiv poll then is Bukovel. For those who haven’t been to Bukovel yet, be ready for a shock to the system.

To start, Bukovel not only has modern lifts, but perhaps the most modern lifts of anywhere east of Austria. Double and quadruple chair lifts comparable to the best resorts anywhere traverse most of Bukovel’s three main slopes, meaning quick and comfortable access to almost the entire hill without long waiting times.

Also impressive is the local infrastructure: new and fully geared condo units on the hill, top-of-the-line rental facilities, bank machines, modern restaurants and more. Bukovel has also been reasonably well thought out too, as everything is in easy walking distance from the ski village. If there’s any downside to Bukovel it’s that they don’t get as much snow as elsewhere, but they make up for it by having world-class snow-making equipment everywhere on the hill.

Bukovel

www.bukovel.com

Polanytsya, Yaremche district, Ivano-Frankivsk oblast.

Tel.: (0342) 559-546.

KyivPost