Yablunytsia ski resort

Yablunytsia is a village at 960 m elevation on the highest point of the road from Ivano-Frankivsk to Uzhhorod. It is accessible by car or minibus from Ivano-Frankivsk train station or by narrow-gauge diesel train from the same train station. The resort is located between the highest mountain ranges of the Carpathians, but there is only about a 150 m elevation drop on the slopes. Runs are for beginners and intermediate skiers, with one reasonably but short mountain. Slopes are not groomed, but moguls usually don't form.

There are five tow lifts at Yablunytsia — one on one side of the highway and four on the other side (see map of ski runs at bottom right of this page in Russian). Each of the tows belongs to a different owner, so you must buy different tickets for different lifts, and the runs are on three separate mountains that are close but don't connect to each other. Often one or more of the lifts will be out of order. Lines of more than 20 minutes' wait are usual on weekends.

Ski rentals and accommodations are readily available in Yablunytsia. The village itself is located right by the ski slopes, and there is a great souvenir market (actually, probably the best in the Carpathians) at the top of the pass that is often visited by foreign tour groups.

We recommend Yablunytsia for beginning and lower-intermediate skiers.