Cheap ski holidays: Bulgaria is the best value in Europe

Bankso in Bulgaria offers the best value ski holidays in Europe, says a new Tripadvisor survey.

Of 42 European ski centres surveyed, the Eastern European country came out as the cheapest, while St Anton in Austria was found to be the most expensive.

Tripadvisor looked at resort costs for a family of four on a week-long trip, including hotel, ski passes, ski hire, ski lessons, evening meals and drinks. Words: PA

Bansko was the best-value resort, with the whole package costing £1,631. This compared with St Anton, where the cost was as high as £5,026.

Second cheapset spot was the Sierra Nevada in Spain (where costs totalled £1,930), followed by Sochi in Russia (£2,205), Berchtesgarden in Germany (£2,476) and Ordino Arcalis in Andorra (£2,504).

Four of the 10 most expensive resorts were in Switzerland: St Moritz was the second most pricey centre at £4,811. Next was Val d'Isere in France (£4,606) followed by Zermatt in Switzerland (£4,572) and Val Thorens in France (£4,565).

Tripadvisor spokesman James Kay said: "Skiing can be an expensive holiday, especially for a family of four, but our survey shows that by carefully choosing the resort, costs can be dramatically reduced.

"This year, Eastern European destinations and Andorra are where families will find the best value for money."