Passo Tonale with children – high, snow-sure and practical rather than picturesque

Passo Tonale is no picture postcard. The pass village at 1,883 metres is mostly hotels, apartment blocks and lift stations along the road between Lombardy and Trentino, and anyone looking for a cobbled church square will have to look elsewhere. But what Tonale lacks in charm, it makes up for in altitude. The snow arrives early and stays late, the slopes start at the hotel door, and the Presena glacier above the village reaches 3,000 metres.

For a family, it's an honest trade-off: less nightlife and atmosphere, more reliable skiing. More Italian options, with and without a village setting, can be found in skiing holidays in Italy.

The ski area – from the valley to the glacier

The ski area is called Pontedilegno-Tonale and links Passo Tonale, Ponte di Legno and Temù in the Valle Camonica with the Presena glacier. It has around 100 kilometres of pistes, 46 runs and 29 lifts, between 1,121 metres in Temù and around 3,000 metres on the glacier. Roughly a quarter of the piste kilometres are easy and three fifths red.

From the pass, you take the Paradiso gondola up to around 2,585 metres and then the Presena lift in two sections towards the top. The whole way takes about twelve minutes. The black Paradiso piste faces north and is often skiable from the first November snow right into May. The longest run goes from the glacier down to Ponte di Legno, around eleven kilometres.

New for winter 2026/27: the Paradiso gondola is getting new ten-person cabins, with ski racks inside the cabin. The Valbiolo chairlift at the pass is being replaced by a ten-person gondola, with work carried out during the autumn. A new gondola in Ponte di Legno is planned for winter 2027/28.

At the end of October, the area had not yet announced its season dates for 2026/27. Winter is traditionally kicked off with a celebration around 8 December, and the glacier often opens earlier.

The pass village or Ponte di Legno?

This is the family's most important choice. Passo Tonale gives you the snow and the slopes on your doorstep: the children can walk straight to Alpiland or Fantaski, and the parents don't have to deal with ski buses. The downside is that the pass can be cold and windy in December and January, and there's not much to do after the lifts close.

Ponte di Legno, down in the valley at around 1,250 metres, is a proper village with streets, shops and cafés. It has the Campo Scuola Cida practice slope with a magic carpet, and the gondola takes you up into the ski area. With children who ski on their own and who want evening strolls, it's often the nicer place to stay. With a three-year-old going to childcare every morning, the pass is easier.

Children's areas and ski schools

At the pass, there are three places where the youngest get started:

Area	Where	What's there
Alpiland	Passo Tonale	Two easy slopes with magic carpets, inflatables, a sledging and tubing run, a heated hut and a mini club with childminders
Fantaski	At the pass, between the Scoiattolo and Presanella lifts	Childcare for ages 2–3, mini club for ages 4–12, practice slopes and the covered Tubbo magic carpet
Tonale Mountain Centre	Between the Valena and Valbiolo lifts	Sledging and snow rafting run and an area for children learning to ski

Alpiland and Fantaski are open every day during the season. One evening a week there's Fun Kids, with games, music and a torchlight procession, both at the pass and in Ponte di Legno. In Temù, there's a beginners' slope with two magic carpets by the Roccolo Ventura chairlift.

There are four ski schools at the pass. Scuola Italiana Sci Tonale Presena takes beginners from age four on the Baby Snow Start course, six days Sunday to Friday in small groups. The children start at Fantaski and move out onto the slopes when they're ready. Ski Better is for four- to thirteen-year-olds who can already ski, and Full Time for children from age six. Scuola di sci Pontedilegno-Tonale lets the youngest start at Alpiland.

So a three-year-old is too young for the group lessons, but can go to Fantaski's childcare while their siblings are at ski school. If it's the children's first week on skis, read the beginners' guide first.

Helmets, insurance and lift passes

In Italian ski areas, since the 2025/26 season the helmet requirement applies to all ages. The requirement applies on skis, on a snowboard and on a sledge. If you ski without one, you can be fined and, at worst, have your lift pass withdrawn. Everyone must also have third-party liability insurance that covers them on the slopes. It's often sold at the lift ticket office, but first check whether your own home insurance covers it. Helmets for the whole family are at the top of the ski trip packing list.

Lift passes for 2026/27 are based on year of birth: a child pass for those born in 2019 or later and a junior pass for those born 2009–2018. If you buy online in advance, it's cheaper with Smart Skipass, but the number of discounted passes is limited per day. There are also packages with hotel and lift pass. Prices can be found in the ski area's online shop.

Getting to Passo Tonale

• By air: Bergamo is closest, around two hours by car. Verona and Milan Linate are around two and a half hours away. In winter, the Flyski Shuttle transfer bus runs, and it needs to be booked well in advance.
• From Bergamo by bus: Sab runs the Milan–Ponte di Legno route with a stop at Bergamo airport.
• Train from Lombardy: the Trenord Brescia–Iseo–Edolo line runs to Edolo, and from there a bus goes to Ponte di Legno.
• Train from Verona: the train to Trento and then the Trento–Malè railway through Val di Non and Val di Sole, and a bus up to the pass.
• By car: from Bergamo via the A4 and the Valle Camonica, or from Verona via the A22 to Trento Nord and then through Val di Non and Val di Sole. Carry snow chains or have winter tyres.

If you're thinking about other ways of getting south, the pros and cons are collected in travelling to the resort – car, train or plane, and train to the Alps shows how you can go by train all the way.

Tonale compared with its neighbours

Families who want high altitude and reliable snow but also a pretty village usually look at Bormio in Valtellina, with its old town centre and thermal baths, or Livigno further north. Madonna di Campiglio, on the other side of Val di Sole, is more expensive and more elegant, with the Brenta cliffs above the village. Passo Tonale wins when snow matters most and the children need to be able to walk from the hotel to the children's slope. More family resorts in several countries are compared in ski holiday in the Alps with children.