Turkey · Kaçkar Mountains · heli skiing
Heli skiing in Turkey takes you to the Kaçkar Mountains in the north-east of the country, above the Black Sea, which brings them abundant snow. For your seven days of heli skiing in Turkey, the helicopter picks you up outside the hotel in Ayder, and the first drops are less than five minutes’ flight away.
PriceOn requestdepending on your dates and your group
Heli skiing in Turkeyprice on request
2027 season · 14 departures, every Saturday from 9 January to 10 April 2027
You’ll enjoy
The trip begins on a Saturday and ends on the Sunday of the following week, after seven full days of heli skiing in Turkey. You stay in Ayder on full board, then spend the last night near the airport, before your flight home. On the classic package, you ski four to a guide and the groups take turns in a shared helicopter; on the private package, for 9 to 12 skiers, you have your own. Either way, a PowderWeGo professional sets off with your group, in addition to the heli-skiing guides.
Classic package · 14 departures in 2027
On requestdepending on your dates and your group
Private package · 9 to 12 skiers
On requestfor your group of 9 to 12 skiers, depending on your dates
In 2027, you arrive on one of these Saturdays: 9, 16, 23 or 30 January; 6, 13, 20 or 27 February; 6, 13, 20 or 27 March; or 3 or 10 April. Depending on your off-piste level and what you would like from the trip, we can put together a quote for a tailor-made stay; a single room, a Deluxe room or a suite is also available, at extra cost.
A question about this trip? We’ll reply within 24 hours.
In the Pontic Alps, not far from Georgia, the Kaçkar range rises to 3,937 m at Kaçkar Dağı. It stretches along the Black Sea, which gives it regular snowfall all season long, and whose humidity favours a stable snowpack.
These little-visited mountains open up more than 5,000 km² of terrain to you, with a great variety of sectors and countless routes, far from the pistes and the crowded resorts.
The runs generally lie between 3,600 m and 1,200 m, with 700 to 1,200 m of vertical on average. Most are in open terrain, and some carry on into the forest or finish there. Depending on your fitness, the snow and the weather, a day typically brings eight to twenty runs.
The guides choose their routes in little-skied sectors, facing wide panoramas, so that you rediscover the sense of freedom that comes with skiing off-piste.
In Ayder, the heliport sits right beside your hotel. You fly in an Écureuil B3, piloted by a team of Swiss origin who specialise in mountain flying and with whom we regularly work.
From Sunday to Saturday, seven days of heli skiing lie ahead. When the weather keeps the helicopter on the ground, you spend the day another way: ski touring, snowshoeing, avalanche rescue practice, a tour of the region or the thermal baths. On the classic package, 20,000 m of vertical is guaranteed: if the weather or a technical problem keeps you below that, we refund you a fixed amount for every 1,000 m short.
Your ski days
In the morning, you board just steps from the hotel, and a few minutes in the air take you to the first drop. You link run after run in the powder, on open slopes or through the trees, and the helicopter comes back to pick you up at the bottom for the next one.
Back in Ayder, the hotel’s Turkish bath, sauna, hot tub and gym are yours to enjoy. In the evening, everyone gathers by the wood fire in one of the two lounges, then dinner gives pride of place to local specialities, in a very convivial atmosphere.
Set our trips side by side, or let us suggest three to suit what you have in mind.
Your hotel and the helicopter base are in Ayder, a traditional village at 1,100 m. Between ski days, you get to know its cooking and its hospitality.
The hotel has a ski room with drying facilities. Every skier is given an avalanche airbag pack, transceiver, shovel and probe; freeride skis and ski touring kit can also be hired on the spot, on request.
In the village, a three-star hotel welcomes you in a double room, on full board. On Saturday, after the last day’s skiing, a bus takes you to a hotel 20 minutes from the airport for the eighth night, which is also included, before your flight on Sunday morning.
The programme
Flight to Istanbul, then a connection to Rize-Artvin airport, where the team greets you in the evening. A 45-minute bus ride to Ayder, dinner at the hotel and a welcome meeting.
Seven days of heli skiing, from Sunday to Saturday. On Sunday morning, after the safety briefing and the handover of your kit, the first flights leave from 10 am; from then on, you ski between 3,600 and 1,200 m, wherever the snow and the weather lead. On Saturday, after skiing, a bus brings you closer to the airport for the last night.
Shuttle to Rize-Artvin airport, flight home via Istanbul and your onward connection.
The programme may change: it adapts to the snow, the weather, and the level and wishes of the group, for everyone’s safety and enjoyment, and the guide with you has the final word.
Payment: a 60% deposit on booking, then the balance no later than 90 days before departure, by bank transfer or card. Full details are in our terms and conditions.
The Kaçkar’s powder, its frosted forests and life in Ayder.
Above the Black Sea, the Kaçkar Mountains gather snow in abundance, and the helicopter picks you up right outside the hotel in Ayder; the first drops are less than five minutes’ flight away. Seven days of silky powder, and a Turkish bath when you come in from skiing. The week suits off-piste skiers who like a small group, four skiers per guide, and the helicopter at the door.
Boris Malesset, ski instructor since 1996, off-piste professional since 2001, based in Val d'Isère since 2005, holder of the French BEES, the Swiss Level 3 ski instructor patent and the Austrian Schiführer diploma
« Une organisation super efficace et une équipe au top, toujours à l’écoute. Ajoutez à cela une neige incroyable et vous obtenez le cocktail parfait! »
Translated from French: Super-efficient organisation and a great team, always attentive. Add incredible snow and you have the perfect cocktail!
« L’organisation, les restos, l’hôtel, tout était parfait ! On a même eu le droit un sauna en plein milieu de la montagne !!!! »
Translated from French: The organisation, the restaurants, the hotel, everything was perfect! We even got a sauna right in the middle of the mountains!!!!
In the Kaçkar, a PowderWeGo professional is alongside your group, in addition to your heli-skiing guide. The avalanche airbag pack, transceiver, shovel and probe are provided, and each day the programme follows the snow, the weather and the level of the group. If you are weighing up several destinations, our heli skiing page brings them all together.
Yes, in the Kaçkar Mountains, in the north-east of the country, above the Black Sea. We take you there for nine days, including seven days of heli skiing from Ayder, and you ski between 3,600 and 1,200 m.
PowderWeGo designs and guides this heli-skiing trip in the Kaçkar; bookings go through Aéreau Voyages, which organises and sells it, along with the cancellation and repatriation insurance this trip requires. In Turkey, a PowderWeGo professional is with your group, in addition to the heli-skiing guides. PowderWeGo, based in Val d’Isère, was founded by Boris Malesset, an off-piste ski professional since 2001.
The price of your stay in the Kaçkar depends on your dates, your group and the package. The classic package covers seven days of heli skiing on a nine-day trip, 30,500 m of vertical, eight nights on full board, return transfers from Rize-Artvin airport, guiding and safety kit (avalanche airbag pack, transceiver, shovel and probe), excluding flights; beyond 30,500 m, each extra 1,000 m is charged as a supplement. The private package gives your group of 9 to 12 skiers its own helicopter, with 12 hours of flight time. Tell us when you are coming and how many of you there are, and we’ll reply within 24 hours.
On our scale, the Kaçkar calls for an off-piste skiing level of 3/5 and a fitness level of 3/5: you need to be at ease in deep snow, and fit enough for seven days of heli skiing in a row. You can take a break whenever you like, or head back to base. To check where you stand: your off-piste skiing level and your fitness level.
On the classic package in the Kaçkar, each guide takes four skiers, and up to four groups (sixteen skiers in all over the week) take turns in the same helicopter. On the private package, a group of 9 to 12 skiers heads out with at least two guides and a helicopter of its own. On both packages, a PowderWeGo professional is also part of the trip, with your group.
You reach the Kaçkar through Rize-Artvin airport, after a connection in Istanbul. The team meets you there on Saturday evening, and a bus gets you to Ayder in 45 minutes. Transfers in both directions are included, as is the last night, in a hotel 20 minutes from the airport.
The heli-skiing season in the Kaçkar runs from January to April, with 14 departures, every Saturday from 9 January to 10 April 2027. Each trip lasts nine days, until the Sunday of the following week, and the last one ends on 18 April. Tell us which week you have in mind and how many of you there are.
The choice is yours: you can hire freeride skis and ski touring kit in Ayder, on request, and the avalanche airbag pack, transceiver, shovel and probe are provided. Bring your ski boots and clothing suited to the mountains.
Useful before you go: the Kaçkar Mountains, on Wikipedia · the Turkish State Meteorological Service, forecasts in English · GOV.UK, foreign travel advice for Turkey.
Tell us when you’re coming and how many of you there are, and we’ll reply within 24 hours.
Or email us at infoskitravels@powderwego.com
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