"Control your speed" is good advice for any novice skier, but it could be as well applied to the nascent skiing industry as a whole.

 

At the moment, however, it seems to be full speed ahead as skiing centers continue to open up at a lightning pace. And residents in Shanghai now have easy accesses to fully-equipped outdoor and indoor skiing resorts in neighboring Zhejiang Province. (The city's only skiing venue, the Yinqixing Indoor Skiing Site, is still "temporarily" closed since undergoing renovations a year ago).

 

The Global Times sought out some of the best skiing destinations within two- to three-hours drive of Shanghai.

 

 

Hidden inside the Jiangnan Heavenly Pool tourist resort, this skiing center in Anji county, Huzhou, sits 900 meters above sea level, and covers 60,000 square meters of snowy terrain with ski runs that stretch to some 600 meters.

 

Built in 2006, the center is widely regarded as boasting the best natural landscape of any ski resort in the south of China. It features the world's second largest hydropower plant, Tianhuangping, measured in terms of the differential in water capacity between the site's upper and lower reservoir.

The average drop of slopes at Jiangnan Heavenly Pool Skiing Center is between 30 and 40 meters with some extending 40 meters to 50 meters in width. Beginners and intermediate skiers can practice at the less steep slopes that are about 150 meters wide.

The skiing center uses both natural snow and man-made dry powder to keep the venue open to visitors from December through to February every winter.

There are also plenty of off-piste activities at the Jiangnan Heavenly Pool, including hot spring facilities, the widest waterfall in Zhejiang Province and a bamboo forest where the Oscar-winning Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was partly shot.

The entrance fee is 150 yuan ($23.75) per person per hour from Monday to Friday and 220 yuan per person per hour on the weekends. On national holidays, the price is hiked up to 250 yuan per person per hour. Staff from the skiing center remind visitors that they have to pay an extra 50 yuan to get into the resort in the first place.

 

Call 0572 5041-858 for more information

 

The big chill

Opened at the beginning of 2011 in Lin'an county, Hangzhou, the Damingshan Alpine Ski Park has possibly stolen the thunder of Jiangnan Heavenly Pool Skiing Center, not only because it sits at an altitude of 1,100 meters, but it also covers a more diversified skiing terrain that is three times larger than its competitor.

This high-end ski park can accommodate 1,500 visitors with ski runs of up to 700 meters - the longest and steepest in the south of China. Intrepid skiers can whizz down from the wind-swept mountaintop, while children and beginners can amuse themselves at the center's playground where they can indulge in a number of ski-related activities including snow motorcycling, snow rafting and sledding.

The venue also provides on-site ski lessons which are available for 200 yuan an hour for classes of between one and five people.

The entrance fee to the resort is 150 per person per hour from Monday to Friday, 220 yuan per person per hour on weekends and 260 yuan per person per hour on national holidays. You can also purchase a day pass starting from 600 yuan per person.

 

Call 400-1088-890 for more information

 

Let it snow

Started by the well-known Chinese athlete Ye Qiaobo, China's first-ever speed skating world champion, the Qiaobo Ice and Snow World in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province, is for serious skiers. This indoor ice and snow world consists of a skiing center and a skating center alongside hotels, restaurants and convention centers for both leisure and "Mice" (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) travelers.

As the only venue in the area that provides all-year round skiing services, Qiaobo Ice and Snow World boasts state-of-the-art facilities including machine-made dry powder and chilling technology to keep the center's temperature below -3 C 365 days a year.

It has a crew of over 30 professional instructors, all with State-level certificates of competency. They provide on-site instruction to beginners and seasoned skiers who are eager to improve their skiing skills within a short time. The training fee is 150 yuan per person per hour and instructors also offer group lessons for a maximum of four learners for 300 yuan per hour.

The entrance fee is 240 yuan per person from 9 am to 5 pm on Monday to Friday and 330 yuan per person on weekends and holidays. Visit the venue after 5 pm, and you can get a special discount price of only 198 yuan per person from Monday to Sunday. The venue closes at 9 pm daily.

 

Call 0575 8985-9999 or visitwww.qbski.com/sxqb/ for more information

 

Please note: All prices and details are correct as of the end of January 2012, but we recommend double checking with the venues mentioned in the article before setting off since some of the outdoor skiing places may close earlier as the weather gets warmer.