Review: Hardy’s Skiing and Snowboarding Guide 2009 (win a copy too!)

If you're feeling a tad overwhelmed by the choice of resorts in which to spend your well earned snow trips, then you might want to invest in a resort guide.

Hardy's Skiing and Snowboarding Guide 2009 is one of the high quality guides available this season and it's a great place to get to grips with what's on offer around the world.

Things change fast in resort-land and this guide has been updated with the latest details on what's new and improved around the world.

There's a quick guide to the best resorts for people with particular requirements such as first-timers, party-goers, families with older children  plus an overview of the state of the ski property market, corporate ski trips and family holidays.

Then it's straight into the resort guides - with a good selection from around the globe. There are reviews of three resort areas in Andorra, 20 in Austria, 11 in Canada, four in eastern Europe, 28 in France, 18 in Italy, three in Japan, four in Scandinavia, one in Spain, 15 in Switzerland and 22 in the USA.

Then it's straight into profiles of the recommended resorts. Each of these presents information on the resort, mountain features, ski and snowboard school information, facilities for kids, eating, partying and where to stay. There's also a quick fact box which recommends which class of skier or snowboarder the are is generally recommended for (families, beginners, etc).

Because the book is a full colour glossy affair, its been easy for the creators to fit full-page colour piste maps of each resort into the guide - meaning you can get a real good look at the terrain and decide whether you think there's enough to challenge you and your crew. Oh and there are web links to each resort too so you can easily access more information.

At the back of the book there’s also a comprehensive A to Z of world resorts, including resort contacts and details of which British tour operators organise trips there.

If you're looking for detailed information about the resort you've already chosen, then you might be best off with an online or country-specific guide but if you've got plenty of options on your table this season and need a little guidance, then this guide could help you tailor your trip pretty effectively.

Hardy’s Skiing and Snowboarding Guide 2009 costs £15.99 and is published by Cadogan Guides.

We’ve got five copies to give away to UK powderroomies. Click here to enter the draw.