Posted on November 08, 2019

I have many friends who have never skied…sacrilege…but who, now in their 30s and 40s and with kids of their own in tow, want to take their first steps to introducing the family to an alpine holiday and all that skiing with the family has to offer…forgiven!! 

Having been blessed with starting at the young age of 6, when parents dressed us in fluor-o onesies and the 80s were in full swing I can only imagine how overwhelming it is to know where to start! Well, here at The Ski Company, we decided to write an Dummies Guide to Planning your First Ski Holiday, and let’s not beat around the bush, we are hoping you’ll appreciate the advice and we can help you take the brave but amazing step towards enjoying family ski trips for years to come.

 Start by asking yourself these three questions..

1. When do you want to go? School holidays are a lot more expensive because of demand and temperatures can vary from December to April. End of Feb to end of March is probably the sweet spot of being warmer but with good chance of great snow.
2. How much do you want to spend? It is worth noting that the accommodation and travel is usually about half the total cost of the holiday, depending on the resort and whether you go during school holidays. Lift passes, ski school, transfers (if flying) and ski hire can almost double the cost of the total trip. We have some tips to avoid this!
3. Do you want to self-cater (flexible and cheaper upfront) or do you want to experience a traditional European catered chalet? We can help you with options on both if you like through our sister company, The Chalet Company. It might be you want to price both options up and see which makes sense after that. No problem!

With that established you can share the answers with a ski holiday professional and we can narrow down some options for you and paint a picture of what your holiday might look like. 

And from personal experience here’s our top pointers to help you on the way when skiing with the family for the first time – 

• Pick accommodation near the slopes. It is hard work getting out in the morning and getting tired kids home in the evening, particularly if you have a long walk with all your gear
• Choose a Ski School that can offer smaller groups – you are likely to pick it up a lot quicker
• You are better to invest in good thermals and not spend so much on the jacket and ski pants or consider renting your outfit which some ski shops now offer
• Make sure your littlies take a snack in their pocket to Ski School for a much needed energy boost
• Consider driving. It’s the planet friendly way to travel and can save you big £££s on the cost of travel, not to mention you can load the car up with everything you need without worrying about baggage allowances – check out our blog for a little more info - Driving to the Alps 

We couldn’t cover it all in one posting, so please call (01962 899017) or email Lyndsey ([email protected]), the Client Relationship Manager at The Ski Company who will be happy to answer any ski holiday queries you may have….nothing too trivial!