1.
Ski Station
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Ski Station is a railway station located in Ski, Norway. Located 24 kilometres from Oslo Central Station on the Østfold Line, the station is served by all passenger trains on the Østfold Line. This includes InterCity Express services to Halden Station and Gothenburg Central Station, as well as Oslo Commuter Rail services to Moss Station, Ski is also terminal station for a commuter train service to Oslo that stops at all stations on the Østfold Line. The restaurant at the station was taken over by Norsk Spisevognselskap on 1 January 1921, after an agreement with NSB, Spisevognselskapet renovated the restaurant and took over operations again on 1 January 1924. It was closed on 14 April 1946, in the mid 1990s the Østfold Line between Ski to Moss was upgraded to double track and 160-kilometre-per-hour operation. Plans to build a new double track from Ski to Oslo. The first stage of this building a new station at Ski. The new station will include six platforms
2.
Resort
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A resort is a self-contained commercial establishment that endeavors to provide most of a vacationers wants, such as food, drink, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term resort may be used for a property that provides an array of amenities, typically including entertainment. A hotel is frequently a central feature of a resort, such as the Grand Hotel at Mackinac Island, some resorts are also timeshare or fractionally owned, or wholly owned condominium complexes. A resort is not always a commercial establishment operated by a single company, commonly these facilities are of higher quality than would be expected if one were to stay at a hotel or eat in a towns restaurants. Closely related to these resorts are convention and large meeting sites, generally these occur in cities where special meeting halls, together with ample accommodations as well as varied dining and entertainment, are provided. An all-inclusive resort charges a price that includes most or all items. At a minimum, most inclusive resorts include lodging, unlimited food, drink, sports activities, all-inclusive resorts are found in the Caribbean, particularly in Dominican Republic, Egypt, and elsewhere. Many also offer sports and other included in the price as well. They are often located in warmer regions, the all-inclusive model originated in the Club Med resorts, which were founded by the Belgian Gérard Blitz. Some all-inclusive resorts are designed for specific vacation interests, for example, certain resorts cater to adults, while even more specialized properties accept couples only. Other all-inclusive resorts are geared toward families, with facilities like craft centers, game rooms, all-inclusive resorts are also very popular locations for destination weddings. A spa resort is a short term residential/lodging facility with the purpose of providing individual services for spa-goers to develop healthy habits. Historically many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or sources of mineral waters, golf resorts are resorts that cater specifically to the sport of golf, and include access to one or more golf course and or clubhouse. Golf resorts typically provide golf packages that provide visitors with all greens and cart fees, range balls, accommodations, in North America a ski resort is generally a destination resort in a ski area. Ski resort is less likely to refer to a town or village, a megaresort is a type of destination resort which is of an exceptionally large size, such as those along the Las Vegas Strip. In Singapore integrated resort is a euphemism for a destination resort. A holiday village is a type of self-contained resort in Europe, a holiday camp in the United Kingdom refers to a resort where the accommodation is in chalets. The term holiday park is used for a resort where the accommodation includes static caravans, there are 1500+ timeshare resorts in the U. S. that are operated by major hospitality, timeshare-specific, or independent companies
3.
Skiing
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Skiing is a mode of transport, recreational activity and competitive winter sport in which the participant uses skis to glide on snow. Many types of skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee. Skiing has a history of almost five millennia, although modern skiing has evolved from beginnings in Scandinavia, it may have been practiced as early as 600 BC in what is now China. The word ski is one of a handful of words Norway has exported to the international community and it comes from the Old Norse word skíð which means split piece of wood or firewood. Asymmetrical skis were used at least in northern Finland and Sweden until the late 19th century, on one leg the skier wore a long straight non-arching ski for sliding, and on the other a shorter ski for kicking. Early skiers used one long pole or spear, the first depiction of a skier with two ski poles dates to 1741. Until the mid-19th century skiing was primarily used for transport, and since then has become a recreation, military ski races were held in Norway during the 18th century, and ski warfare was studied in the late 18th century. As equipment evolved and ski lifts were developed skiing evolved into two main genres during the late 19th and early 20th century, Alpine and Nordic, also called downhill skiing, alpine skiing typically takes place on a piste at a ski resort. It is characterized by fixed-heel bindings that attach at both the toe and the heel of the skiers boot, because alpine equipment is somewhat difficult to walk in, ski lifts, including chairlifts, bring skiers up the slope. Backcountry skiing can be accessed by helicopter, snowcat, hiking, facilities at resorts can include night skiing, après-ski, and glade skiing under the supervision of the ski patrol and the ski school. Alpine skiing branched off from the older Nordic skiing around the 1920s, Alpine equipment specialized to where it can only be used with the help of lifts. The Nordic disciplines include cross-country skiing and ski jumping, which share in common the use of binding that attach at the toes of the skiers boots, cross-country skiing may be practiced on groomed trails or in undeveloped backcountry areas. Ski jumping skiing is practiced at certain areas that are deemed for ski jumping only, Telemark skiing is a ski turning technique and FIS-sanctioned discipline. It is named after the Telemark region of Norway, using equipment similar to nordic skiing, the ski bindings having the ski boot attached only at the toe. This allows the skier to raise his/her heel throughout the turn, the following disciplines are sanctioned by the FIS and USSA. Many have their own cups and are in the Winter Olympic Games. Cross-country, The sport encompasses a variety of formats for cross-country skiing races over courses of varying lengths, such races occur over homologated, groomed courses designed to support classic and free-style events, where the skiers may employ skate skiing. Alpine skiing discliplines include combined, downhill, slalom, giant slalom, Super-G, one run of each even like one run of Super-G and one run of Slalom skiing this is called a Super Combined
4.
Snowboarding
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Snowboarding is a recreational activity and Olympic and Paralympic sport that involves descending a snow-covered slope while standing on a snowboard attached to a riders feet. The development of snowboarding was inspired by skateboarding, sledding, surfing and skiing and it was developed in the United States in the 1960s, became a Winter Olympic Sport at Nagano in 1998 and first featured in the Winter Paralympics at Sochi in 2014. Its popularity in the United States peaked in 2007 and has been in a decline since, and, in 1966 alone over half a million snurfers were sold. In the early 1970s, Poppen organized snurfing competitions at a Michigan ski resort that attracted enthusiasts from all over the country, one of those early pioneers was Tom Sims, a devotee of skateboarding. He produced commercial snowboards in the mid-70s, articles about his invention in such mainstream magazines as Newsweek helped publicize the young sport. The pioneers were not all from the United States, in 1976, Welsh skateboard enthusiasts Jon Roberts and that same year, he founded Burton Snowboards in Londonderry, Vermont. The snowboards were made of wooden planks that were flexible and had water ski foot traps, very few people picked up snowboarding because the price of the board was considered too high at $38, but eventually Burton would become the biggest snowboarding company in the business. The first competitions to offer prize money were the National Snurfing Championship, in 1979, Jake Burton Carpenter, came from Vermont to compete with a snowboard of his own design. There were protests about Jake entering with a non-snurfer board, paul Graves, and others, advocated that Jake be allowed to race. A modified Open division was created and won by Jake as the sole entrant and that race was considered the first competition for snowboards and is the start of what has now become competitive snowboarding. In 1980 the event moved to Pando Winter Sports Park near Grand Rapids, in 1982, the first USA National Snowboard race was held near Woodstock, Vermont, at Suicide Six. The race, organized by Graves, was won by Burtons first team rider Doug Bouton, in 1983, the first World Championship halfpipe competition was held at Soda Springs, California. Tom Sims, founder of Sims Snowboards, organized the event with the help of Mike Chantry, in 1985, the first World Cup was held in Zürs, Austria, further cementing snowboardings recognition as an official international competitive sport. In 1990, the International Snowboard Federation was founded to provide universal contest regulations, many alpine resorts have terrain parks. At the 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan, Snowboarding became an official Olympic event, initially, ski areas adopted the sport at a much slower pace than the winter sports public. Indeed, for years, there was animosity between skiers and snowboarders, which led to an ongoing skier vs snowboarder feud. Early snowboards were banned from the slopes by park officials, for several years snowboarders would have to take a small skills assessment prior to being allowed to ride the chairlifts. It was thought that a snowboarder would wipe the snow off the mountain
5.
Winter sport
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A winter sport or winter activity is a recreational activity or sport which is played on snow or ice. Most such sports are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding, traditionally such sports were only played in cold areas during winter, but artificial snow and artificial ice allow more flexibility. Artificial ice can be used to provide ice rinks for ice skating, ice hockey, common individual sports include cross-country skiing, Alpine skiing, snowboarding, ski jumping, speed skating, figure skating, luge, skeleton, bobsleigh and snowmobiling. Common team sports include ice hockey, curling and bandy, based on the number of participants, ice hockey is the worlds most popular winter sport, followed by bandy. Winter sports often have their own tournaments, such as the Winter Olympic Games. Snow and ice during the wintertime has led to other means of transportation, such as sledges, skis and this also led to different pastimes and sports being developed in the winter season as compared to other times of the year. Naturally, winter sports are popular in countries with longer winter seasons. While most winter sports are played outside, ice hockey, speed skating, indoor ice rinks with artificial ice allow ice skating and hockey to be played in hot climates. Note, the Olympic rings next to a sport indicates that particular sport is included in the Winter Olympic Games. The Paralympic logo indicates the same for a sport not in the Olympics but in the Winter Paralympic Games
6.
Piste
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A piste is a marked ski run or path down a mountain for snow skiing, snowboarding, or other mountain sports. This European term is French and synonymous with trail, slope, pronunciation varies slightly in English, with British English using a long i, and American pronunciation using a short i. Increasingly, North Americans employ its common European antonym, off piste, to describe backcountry skiing, pistes are usually maintained using tracked vehicles known as snowcats to compact or groom the snow to even out trail conditions, remove moguls, and redistribute snow to extend the ski season. Natural snow is often augmented with snow making machines early in the season or when the snowpack is low, typically, grading is done by the resort, and grades are relative to other trails within that resort. In North America, a rating system is used to indicate the comparative difficulty of trails. Australia and New Zealand also share the same rating system, ski trail difficulty is measured by percent slope, not degree angle. A 100% slope is a 45 degree angle, in general, beginner slopes are between 6% and 25%. Intermediate slopes are between 25% and 40%, difficult slopes are 40% and up. However, this is just a rule of thumb. Although slope gradient is the consideration in assigning a trail difficulty rating. A trail will be rated by its most difficult part, even if the rest of the trail is easy, ski resorts assign ratings to their own trails, rating a trail compared only with other trails at that resort. Also considered, width of the trail, sharpest turns, terrain roughness, in Europe, pistes are classified by a color-coded system. The actual color system differs in parts for each country - in all blue, red. Shapes are not always used - sometimes all ratings are circles as being defined in the rules of the German Skiing Association DSV. The three basic color codes of the DSV have been integrated into the national standards DIN32912 in Germany, the ratings are, Green Learning or Beginner slopes. These are usually not marked trails, but tend to be large, open, can sometimes be marked as a Green circle. Blue An easy trail, similar to the North American Green Circle, the slope gradient shall not exceed 25% except for short wide sections with a higher gradient. Sometimes described as a blue square, Red An intermediate slope, similar to the North American Blue Square
7.
Ski lift
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A ski lift is a mechanism for transporting skiers up a hill. Ski lifts are typically a paid service at ski resorts, the first ski lift was built in 1908 by German Robert Winterhalder in Schollach/Eisenbach, Hochschwarzwald. Types of lifts are, Aerial lifts transport skiers while suspended off the ground, cable railways, including funiculars Helicopters are used for heliskiing and snowcats for snowcat skiing. This is backcountry skiing or boarding accessed by a snowcat or helicopter instead of a lift, cat skiing is less than half the cost of heliskiing, more expensive than a lift ticket but is easier than ski touring. Skiing at select, extreme resorts, like Silverton Mountain, is also guided, even when skiing just off the lift
8.
North America
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North America is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere. It can also be considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the west and south by the Pacific Ocean, and to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea. North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers, about 16. 5% of the land area. North America is the third largest continent by area, following Asia and Africa, and the fourth by population after Asia, Africa, and Europe. In 2013, its population was estimated at nearly 565 million people in 23 independent states, or about 7. 5% of the worlds population, North America was reached by its first human populations during the last glacial period, via crossing the Bering land bridge. The so-called Paleo-Indian period is taken to have lasted until about 10,000 years ago, the Classic stage spans roughly the 6th to 13th centuries. The Pre-Columbian era ended with the migrations and the arrival of European settlers during the Age of Discovery. Present-day cultural and ethnic patterns reflect different kind of interactions between European colonists, indigenous peoples, African slaves and their descendants, European influences are strongest in the northern parts of the continent while indigenous and African influences are relatively stronger in the south. Because of the history of colonialism, most North Americans speak English, Spanish or French, the Americas are usually accepted as having been named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci by the German cartographers Martin Waldseemüller and Matthias Ringmann. Vespucci, who explored South America between 1497 and 1502, was the first European to suggest that the Americas were not the East Indies, but a different landmass previously unknown by Europeans. In 1507, Waldseemüller produced a map, in which he placed the word America on the continent of South America. He explained the rationale for the name in the accompanying book Cosmographiae Introductio, for Waldseemüller, no one should object to the naming of the land after its discoverer. He used the Latinized version of Vespuccis name, but in its feminine form America, following the examples of Europa, Asia and Africa. Later, other mapmakers extended the name America to the continent, In 1538. Some argue that the convention is to use the surname for naming discoveries except in the case of royalty, a minutely explored belief that has been advanced is that America was named for a Spanish sailor bearing the ancient Visigothic name of Amairick. Another is that the name is rooted in a Native American language, the term North America maintains various definitions in accordance with location and context. In Canadian English, North America may be used to refer to the United States, alternatively, usage sometimes includes Greenland and Mexico, as well as offshore islands
9.
Conference and resort hotels
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Conference and resort hotels are hotels which often contain full-sized luxury facilities with full-service accommodations and amenities. These hotels may attract business conferences and vacationing tourists and offer more than a convenient place to stay. These hotels may be referred to as major conference center hotels, flagship hotels, destination hotels, the market for conference and resort hotels is a subject for market analysis. These hotels as destinations may be characterized by distinctive architecture, upscale lodgings, ballrooms, large facilities, restaurants. They may be located in a variety of settings from major cities to remote locations, since the 1800s, the traditional concept full service conference and resort hotels has been based upon a venue which is typically remote and has a natural feature as its attraction. For example, the Kviknes Hotel in Norway is a difficult to reach remote location which provides access to the scenic fjord at Balestrand. A megaresort is a type of destination which is of a large size. The hotels along the Las Vegas Strip are most typically thought of as megaresorts owing to their immense size, Kirk Kerkorian is credited for building the first mega resort in 1969 earning him the nickname father of the mega resort. Two projects in Las Vegas in 1969 and 1973 by architect Martin Stern, Jr. and entrepreneur Kirk Kerkorian, the International Hotel, the Mirage given its size and emphasis on non-gaming entertainment options like shopping and fine dining to draw in customers. Megaresorts use the same fantastic or mythical theme throughout their properties, many megaresorts have a large theme park as its centerpiece. Resorts such as the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts feature multiple hotels, multiple theme parks, other megaresorts exist with no specific centerpiece, having many features that are considered prominent, such as Atlantis Paradise Island and its upcoming sister park in Dubai
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Media related to Ski resorts at Wikimedia Commons
