Snowcat skiing in Siberia. Priiskovoye

5 days of snowcatskiing and guiding by certified Ski and Mountain Guides (Max group size is 12 persons. There are 3 guides per group.)
Accommodation in Priiskovoe Lodge, 5 nights, with daily Banya (traditional Russian bathhouse)
All meals in Priiskovoe (breakfast, mountain lunch, aprés ski soup and snacks, dinner)
Hotel in Abakan (one night on the way back, TWIN)
Group transfers: airport Abakan- Priiskovoe, Priiskovoe - Abakan, Abakan - airport

International and domestic airfares
Meals in Abakan
Personal insurance
Wine and spirits

VISA. To travel to Russia, most foreign nationals are required to have an Entry Visa to Russia. Russian visas can be obtained at your local Russian Embassy or Consulate. In order to apply for a visa you will need proof of your forthcoming visit to Russia, which will be supplied by Skiing In Siberia on receipt of your final payment. Provided all the documents are ready, the process usually takes no more than 3-10 working days for a Russian Tourist Visa. However, we strongly recommend you apply at least one month in advance of your trip. It is also possible to ask special agencies for a full visa service.

INSURANCE. Being adequately insured is a condition of booking a trip with Skiing in Siberia. You must have travel and medical insurance, which covers Backcountry skiing/freeriding, skitouring/splitboarding etc. For your peace of mind and to avoid any financial hardship that an unexpected cancellation could cause, we strongly recommend getting Trip Cancellation insurance.

We work under the standards of Association of Canadian Mountain Guides, Russian Mountain Guide Association and Canadian Avalanche Association. All our lead guides are certified ski/mountain guides, with extensive experience of guiding in Siberia.

Time in Priiskovoe - GMT/UTC+7

There are only 2 mobile operator covering Priiskovoe area: Megafon and Tele2. Check, if it connects with your operator.
We have WiFi in the lodge (by satellite). Please, keep in mind that signal can be not stable during snow storms.

Not many people in Russia speak a foreign language (more likely in big towns, less in the countryside). But people are helpful and will easily understand what you need. The alphabet is Cyrillic so reading can be difficult. We recommend you purchase a phrase-book in advance.
During your trip, you will be accompanied by an English-speaking guide. Some of our Ski Guides speak German and French as well, but our general language is English. For private groups, we can try to arrange the guide who speaks your language.

The Russian currency is the Rouble (RUB). No other currencies are accepted for payments. Cards are accepted in most big shops, hotels and restaurants, but this type of payment is still not as wide-spread as in Europe or America. We strongly recommend that you have enough cash with you for the whole holiday. You can change money in banks (closed on weekends and national holidays) or use an ATM (there are plenty in all towns and cities). You might need some cash on the way to and from Priiskovoe, and some to pay for alcoholic drinks during your stay. We accept Roubles and Euros, but credit cards are not accepted and there is no ATM.

We stay in the lodge built in 2017 specially for snowcat ski operations. Warm and cosy lodge is decorated with local wood and has spacious common area, restaurant and bar. Accommodation in Double, Twin or Quadruple rooms, with private/shared bathrooms. Single room is available for extra charge (depends on availability).
The Banya (Russian bathhouse) is the best way to warm up and relax after a long skiing day. The banya is in a separate building, where a large amount of hot steam is created with the help of water and hot air. Inside the banya, there are wide wooden benches along the walls, built up one above the other like steps. You can sit or lay on the benches - the higher up the bench, the hotter the air is. Having warmed up enough, you leave the steam room for a break. You can pour cold water over yourself from a tub, or follow the Siberian method and jump straight into the snow. Overall, the banya is not just a place to warm up and wash; it is a real Siberian experience and will become a great memory!

Hotel in Abakan:
On a way back, you spend one night in Abakan city. Our hotel is brand new 4-star Asia Hotel. This is situated in the centre of the city, has two restaurants (we highly recommend "Food&Bar 114" with local cuisine) as well as some restaurants and bars in walking distance.

There are 2 flights per day from Moscow to Abakan (ABA), with S7 and Aeroflot. We recommend Aeroflot SU-1478/1479 flights, cause of more comfortable time of arrival and departure.
There are three international airports in Moscow; Domodedovo (DME), Sheremetyevo (SVO), and Vnukovo (VKO). Depending on your flight plan, you might need to change airports which can be a time consuming. If you do need to change airports, we strongly recommend you allow at least 2 hours for your airport-to-airport transfers.
On your arrival, we will meet you in Abakan airport then drive in a comfortable bus to the Priiskovoe, with a breakfast stop on a way (in Abakan city). Late afternoon we arrive to Priiskovoe, take a rest, relax in Banya and get ready for the skiing days! Next five days we will spend in Siberian mountains, enjoying powder skiing and snowboarding.
On the last day of the programme we pack our luggage in the morning, ski until late afternoon, take a shower and start our ride to Abakan, where you spend the night in a hotel before taking a morning transfer to the airport and flight to Moscow.

We do our best to make the food, as well as the skiing, a remarkable part of your trip. This includes traditional Siberian and Russian dishes with premium local ingredients, but also modern cuisine. There are three hot meals a day. Here are some examples of the menu:

- Breakfast: Porridge with Siberian berries; omelette or fried eggs; bliny (Russian pancakes); cereal with milk or yoghurt. Tea, coffee, juice.
- Aprés-ski snacks: Traditional Siberian snacks such as home-made pies with meat and vegetables.
- Dinner: salads, dishes with local meat or fish; sides. Traditional Russian desserts.
- Snacks during the skiing: Dried fruits/nuts, chocolate bars, sandwiches, tea.

You can purchase alcoholic drinks in the bar (beer, liquors, spirits, wine, vodka). If you prefer any special alcoholic drinks, you are welcome to bring reasonable amount of them with you, without any charge.

Our chef can accommodate special dietary requirements and food allergies. Our guests are asked to complete a registration form, and mention any dietary needs so we can be fully prepared for your arrival. Please note that all food is purchased in advance, and we don't have another opportunity to buy anything or change the menu after reaching the lodge.

The terrain is generally not very steep, being no more than 40 degrees. However, even experienced skiers and snowboarders will find amazing runs in fresh snow - in November! Most of the time we ski the open fields in alpine zones, with some tree skiing as well. Runs are from 250-600 vertical with slopes from 25 to 38 degrees. On an average day we do 10-12 runs, but it varies according to the group's abilities and the weather.

At Priiskovoe we operate with two Prinoth Everest snowcats, very powerful and reliable machines. They has spacious, heated and very comfortable cabins, specially built for snowcat skiing.
We have a heated workshop for maintaining the machinery. Our mechanics spend their evenings checking over the snowcats and doing any repairs and services that may be needed. In the off-season we do a comprehensive summer-service to all the snowcats. This proactive maintenance work prevents, or minimizes, breakdowns during the winter.
If you are the sort of person who is interested in machinery, during your ski holiday don’t hesitate to ask for a tour of the workshop.

The climate in Western Siberia is continental: In winter the temperatures from north to south range from -10 to -40 degrees Celsius, and in the summer they range from +15 to +35. The average day temperature in Priiskovoe in November-December is minus 10-12 Celsius (about 10 Fahrenheit). In sunny days, it feels no colder than winter in the Alps. Even on the slightly colder shaded sides of the mountains it is still comfortable for skiing and boarding. However, this is Siberia, and occasionally (1-2 days every few weeks) morning temperatures can drop to minus 25-30 Celsius (minus 13-22 Fahrenheit). Once the sun's up it gets warmer, and our guides will chose sunny terrain for skiing. Although such days are rare and snowcat cabin equipped with powerful heater, it is a good idea to be ready for these cold temperatures.

During snowfalls skiing and boarding is still very good, we just choose the runs in the forest. Even on treeline fields, there are enough reference points to aid visibility. Usually, you will ski the best deep and light powder on such days!

You can check the weather forecast for Priiskovoe here: http://www.yr.no/place/Russia/Khakassia/Priiskovyy/long.html

Besides the standard catskiing programme, we also offer combined, catskiing and skitouring programme. There are some places with perfect terrain and snow conditions, but not reachable by snowcats in the beginning of the season. But with skitour, we can easily ski there and extend our powderskiing area. It can be a pure skitouring (up and down), and also some short skinning back to snowcat in places where machine can’t pick up the group. Program is flexible in terms of when we do catskiing and when skitouring, and it will be decided by guides depending on conditions. In general, we still do catskiing around 70-80% of all time, (e.g. 4 days out of 5). And the main idea is to provide best possible skiing and snowboarding to every our guest. All over all, catskiing & touring programme is the same as standard catskiing. We offer this programme only for private groups from 6 people.

We advise you to carefully read the following list. You will not be able to buy or rent the equipment on the spot (except limited quantity of skis/snowboards), so do bring everything with you. If you have any questions about equipment or items on (or not on) this list please don’t hesitate to e-mail and ask our advice.
Ski rental. We have several pairs of powder skis for rent. Please, check the details by contacting us.
Please, service your skis or board before arrival, or bring pocket waxes. In the lodge, we have some repair parts and tools to fix the most common problems which might arise.
See the example of set of clothes that we recommend. You can change it according to your preferences, but be sure that your clothes suit the weather and temperature during your trip.
We provide avalanche gear (transceiver, probe,shovel).

Quadruple room (shared bathroom) - 1690 EUR
Double room (shared bathroom) - 1790 EUR
Twin room (shared bathroom) - 1790 EUR
Double room (ensuite bathroom) - 1840 EUR
Twin room (ensuite bathroom) - 1840 EUR
Single room - 2140 EUR