(Source: http://lenta.privetsochi.ru/news/SKI-OVER-10410.html)

“Rosa Khutor” is the youngest among the resorts of Krasnaya Polyana. It opened in January 2011 on the slopes of the Aibga ridge and immediately claimed leadership among all ski resorts of the valley.

The resort got its name not from a flower, but from an Estonian surname Roosa - Estonian immigrants lived here in the second half of XIX century, the nearby village Esto-Sadok also reminds of this fact. “Rosa Khutor” is not a separate settlement - it refers to Esto-Sadok, but it is physically located further on the route. The lower “tier” of the resort called “Rosa Valley” is spread along the Mzymta river in a picturesque manner. It is a modern resort settlement  with pastoral names “Polyanka”, “Panorama” and “Lavender”, a massive “Town Hall” on the central square, with a European-looking tower and a clock looking like on a postcard. A cafe and an information centre are located in the tower. However, the height of the resort “chalets” is not alpine - 16 floors.

Evertything looks idyllic at a distance, but in the season 2012/13 the brand-new houses were not finished – their construction is still underway, some places in the village are clean, some are very dirty and quite deserted.

A lot changed for the Olympics: the village was cleaned and decorated, all 18 lifts (not only 7) were turned on, all 10 hotels were opened as planned: six in Rosa Valley on the banks of Mzymta river and four on Rosa Plateau, in the Mountain Olympic Village. The slopes of “Rosa Khutor” are equipped with night lighting system, i.e. you can ski here at night. In the season 2012/13 Krasnaya Polyana had only two resorts with such option, “Rosa Khutor” and “Gazprom”/”Laura”.

There is an opportunity to try your hand in helicopter free riding – “heli-ski”. The cost of such a pleasure is 400 euros per person (on “Mi- 8” helicopter). It is not necessary to form your own group, you can also join an already formed one. Each group is accompanied by two certified guides. 

The fans of backcountry skiing note that “Rosa Khutor” is one of the best places for free riding, besides, one can ride through the new snow directly from the lift. Generally Krasnaya Polyana is famous among the free riding fans for its soft fluffy snow which is abundant in February and March. This is the best time for backcountry skiing.

The snow is not always normal: for example, some of test competitions in 2013 were canceled due to fog and lack of snow. In February the guests of the resort complained that the snow was too wet and melted in the sun. On the one hand, subtropical climate (average temperature in Krasnaya Polyana rarely drops below +5 ° C even in winter) creates very interesting conditions for skiing. On the other hand, soft and wet winters in Sochi disturb not only the organizers of the Oplympic Games and the athletes, but also the reporters who regularly visit the resort. In 2013 the look of bare ground on the snowless slopes upset the TV audience. However, one of the mottos of the Sochi Olympics became the organizers’ words “the snow is guaranteed”. 464 snow cannons for artificial snow slopes are installed along all the pistes of the “Rosa Khutor” Alpine Centre. This advanced modern system is one of the biggest in Europe. A ski pass to “Rosa Khutor” costs 1500 roubles per day and 6,700 roubles for 5 consecutive days. There is an opportunity to purchase a season ski pass: 18000 for an adult, 9000 for a student and 3000 for a child.  You can as well “go and see it”, excursion tickets are sold for this purpose. A ride on elevator to the height of 1,150 meters and back will cost 600 roubles per person. The rental office gives good equipment, there is a storage room that costs 150 roubles per day without a dryer and 200 roubles with a dryer.