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Snow Arena
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Snow SNOW ARENA
joke... you can ski in summer!
The Snow Arena is a huge new indoor winter sports centre, which Tourism officials in Lithuania believe will help to attract more overseas visitors to the country. By Ian Armitage
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he Snow Arena, located in the resort town of Druskininkai, a popular wellbeing destination, is the only winter entertainment complex in the Baltics with both an enclosed and open ski slope and it is already enticing people from throughout the country and across Europe. It opened in 2011 and the temperatures in the huge indoor winter sports centre are maintained at a constant level of two degrees below zero. Every day up to 15 snow generators generate a winter environment in both the main and beginner tracks. “The Snow Arena is the only winter activities complex in the Baltic countries that works all year round,” says the arena’s general manager Vytautas Zibuda. “It is also the only indoor ski complex with adjacent outdoor ski fields in the world. “Since opening in August 2011, the complex has had over 150,000 visitors.” With three ski slopes stretched across eight hectares, the Snow Arena is one of the largest indoor
winter sports arenas in the world, constructed to provide year-round skiing at a cost of some 32 million euros. The arena uses a Powder Star Series technology to produce snow, which is created using compressed air and cold water, without chemical and bacterial additives. “The quality of snow, which will be produced year-round, is suitable for skiing and winter boardsports,” says Zibuda. In addition to the enclosed and open ski slopes, Snow Arena provides a number of other entertainment options. The Snow Arena complex houses “DruSkiSchool”, a skiing and snowboarding school, whose instructors work under the “SmartSnow” 3
SNOW ARENA
training system, for which its primary goal is to quickly and effectively teach visitors to ski or snowboard. It also offers the DruFunPark, a four-level entertainment complex for children, and several restaurants and bars, including a (real) ice bar by Absolut and a wine bar. There is also a clothing and equipment rental service. “We have it all,” says Zibuda, who explained the project was implemented under the 20072013 Cohesion Promotion Action Programme, which specified “local and urban development, conservation of cultural heritage and nature and their use for tourism development” and “the creation and development of eco (cognitive) tourism, recreation and health improvement infrastructure”. “UAB Stamita is the company behind the Snow Arena,” he says. “For Lithuania, which is rapidly developing as a tourist destination for visitors from Western Europe, it is yet another feather in Druskininkai’s tourism cap. 4
“With three ski slopes stretched across eight hectares, the Snow Arena is one of the largest indoor winter sports arenas in the world, constructed to provide yearround skiing at a cost of some 32 million euros”
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“It was built to attract more overseas visitors to the country and that is happening.” The Druskininkai resort is one of the most popular places to visit all year round in Lithuania. The resort is gifted with mineral waters and curative mud and it has been popular for centuries with Lithuanians and people from neighbouring countries. “The nearest competing indoor snow arenas are found in Moscow, Russia and Hamburg, Germany,” says Zibuda. “Apart from the recently completed construction of the complex, in conjunction with the Druskininkai City Council, and after completion of the technical project side, a lift is to be built connecting the hotel complex in town up to the Snow Arena over the Nemunas River, which will be a direct easy access link for patrons. The project is looking for investors at this stage.” There are also proposals for a bungee jumping complex. A recent visitor told European Outlook the Snow Arena as a “very impressive facility”.
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Nemunas road 2, LT-67308 Village of Mizarai, Druskininkai municipality Tel: +370 313 59299 Fax: +370 313 69599 Email: info@snowarena.lt
www.snowarena.lt