Newbies I’m afraid

A snowHead

@Dpetchey, welcome to

https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=164759 as @Kenzie, says.

If you’re not wedded to France, Austria is fantastic. Welcoming people with customer service in their DNA, most speak good English. Easter holidays are usually better for weather, snow and day length. I had my 5th birthday in Hinterglemm & spent full days in ski school.

If you can get to a snowdome before you go you can at least get used to handling the equipment as well as getting some basic technique.

I hope you have a wonderful trip and your whole family gets hooked. It’s the best holiday bar none!

A snowHead

Ask skiing friends to borrow their clothes eg if they already went at half term. Your children might have already outgrown new clothes by next year.

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Most skiing families with kids have endless amounts of stuff in their attics. I certainly do! I don't know where half of it came from.

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My recommendations would be La Rosiere (just wrote a Trip Report (where I said I can’t imagine anywhere much better for beginners) or another vote for Oz en Oisans, where the ESF school was good we thought, and it was just a very pleasant place for beginners to learn.
Smaller and compact is definitely the way forward.

If flying my only other advice is that I’d avoid chambery if you can (most package operators go there though) and regardless bring games, battery packs, snacks as it’s a long day of travel for kids even if things go to plan.

You’ll love it as great age for kids to go!

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

No one mentioned Puy st Vincent 1600. Think it’s such an easy, budget friendly resort for families. Also visited Flaine this year too & whilst I like it had more accommodation options I didn’t like the skiing aspect as much as PSV. Don’t forget you’ll easily pay 1.5k just on ski passes & lessons for all of you and that’s if you pick a cheap resort!

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In Les Saisies, a 6 day pass for parents and kids under 18 for the Espace Diamant is 794 euros. Lessons for 4 would be 500. £1120 at today's exchange rate. Still a lot of money, but skiing was never a cheap activity.

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I had my first ski holiday in Alpe d’Huez and loved it. However, it’s a big area and I barely scratched the surface, yet paid full price for the lift pass. I’d had about 10 hours of skiing, 6 of which were lessons, in a indoor slope before going too. We went there because my OH was an experienced skier and wanted to be able to ski a wider area.

If possible, it’s worth looking at either somewhere that offers a learn to ski package (usually through a tour operator), or a smaller area with a cheaper lift pass and good tuition.

Now, you mention a preference for France because of your familiarity of summer holidays there, but also mentioned that you go on holiday to Spain too. Can I suggest Andorra as an option, in particular Arinsal if you go early March (Soldeu if you plan to go later in March)? It has a fairly Spanish feel. The local language is Catalan, but there’s around 50,000 ‘foreigners’ here in a population of around 80,000. A good proportion of those are Spanish or South American workers during the ski season so Spanish and English are spoken widely. Both Arinsal and Soldeu have excellent instructors who are either British or who speak excellent English. Arinsal has an excellent beginner area with good options for progression. There’s a cheaper option for a lift pass for just this area and tour operators usually offer a learn to ski package. There’s plenty of non skiing stuff to do too. The one downside is the 2.5-3hr transfer, but I drive it regularly and it’s a pretty straightforward journey driving or on a transfer coach.

I’m taking 40 kids skiing there tomorrow (although our drive isn’t as far!)

After all it is free

If you decide it’s easier to book with a tour operator then I do recommend crystal, TUI’s ski brand. They make it easy - can book ski hire, lift passes and ski school with them and you get given your passes on the transfer coach. As a first timer I can imagine doing all the research is a bit daunting - I’ve found Crystal’s website the easiest to use to get a price. Good starting point even if you then decide to DIY.

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Some people are saying that the South facing slopes of Alp d'Huez will be fine but it would really put me off. The main beginner areas start at 2100m or 2300m and finish at 1800m and face South or South West. Even in early March they are likely to start off rock solid (from the overnight refreeze), be nice for a couple of hours and then turn into soup. If they faced North it would feel like a good choice for all of March and early April but with that aspect it wouldn't feature on my list of potential destinations. Likewise La Rosiere.

If you want France La Plagne, Les Arcs, Val d'Isere, Sainte Foy, Val Cenis, Valloire/Valmeiner, Les Deux Alpes, Valmorel and many others all have ample North(ish) facing beginner slopes.

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AdH is the only place I've skied that I wouldn't go back to. I wasn't a beginner, but it was probably my 4th week, and it felt too 'much' for me. My main recollection is slopes that I was pleased I managed to get down rather than slopes I enjoyed going down. And blues that were really churned up (where an adjacent red would in fact have been easier, but I didn't have the confidence to make that decision). The town didn't do anything for me either (it was my first time in larger French resort, so my comparisons were with nice Austrian/Italian places which felt more like somewhere you'd choose to go for the place itself, not just the skiing!)

I'm sure the skiing is great, but it wasn't for me.

I see someone else has mentioned Les Gets, which from what I recall would be great for beginners. We stayed in Morzine, which we loved, and spent plenty of time in Les Gets whilst we were there, and enjoyed it very much. We had a few more weeks under our belts by the time we went there, but I do remember it much more fondly.

If France is definitely where you want to go, it's worth looking at Montgenevre (only skied a couple of days there, but enjoyed it), or have heard good things about Serre Chevalier (but not been, so that's purely based on what others have said).

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Montgenevre is perfect resort for beginners/early intermediates. I went last March and snow still good. Fly to Turin and it's an easy 1 hour 15 mins to the resort. Smallish, friendly and unpretentious. The only thing it doesn't deliver on is nightlife but there's a nice family friendly pub which is lively. A lot cheaper than some of the bigger resorts too.

@Dpetchey, not much to add on resort suggestions, there are dozens of perfect resorts in France that would suit you.

Mid March is probably the best time to learn.

One thing I would add is, don’t rule out a catered chalet from someone like Esprit or Ski Famille (if the budget fits it).

You WILL be tired, and coming home to freshly baked cake and hot chocolate, and not having to worry about cooking your evening meal is so nice.

Esprit will also help your kids get to their lessons in the morning, which again, as you are beginners is not to be sniffed at.

You know it makes sense.

Esprit sounds wonderful - I would have loved it when I was dealing with small kids. But could never afford it! But we DID take kids out of school and go in the cheapest mid-January months, and either self cater or go to low-budget catered chalets.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

AdH would be a great place to start your skiing adventures. Above the resort is a large bowl of beginners slopes and there are many runs to progress on. You can access the slopes with a short walk from many accommodations.

The town is great for sons' ages. Ice rink and an open air heated swimming pool for post skiing activities.

When my sons were starting off we stayed a couple of times in the apartments just above the pool and a short walk to the mid station of the bucket lift. La Mendiarie (sorry can't recall correct spelling)

A snowHead

@Dpetchey,

Welcome!

I'm not going to make many suggestions because you've had loads of good ones. But I'd just reinforce the points that your boys are a great age and mid-March is probably the BEST time to learn. The slight problem is that you should have good conditions almost anywhere (snow depths often peak around then) which doesn't narrow down your choices. That said, my kids had one of their first ski holidays in AdH and it worked well.

Perhaps one thing to consider is the option of private lessons for the four of you as you are all beginners rather than ski school. The premium wouldn't be too big for a group of four. Slight risk is that the boys learn much faster Very Happy

A snowHead

@Dpetchey, forgot to mention, it's not a hard drive and as you say you're used to doing this in the summer. Some SHs have mentioned using tour operators and I would agree this would be a good idea for your first trip.

Erna Low and Peak Retreats specialise in SC ski holidays and often include the Eurotunnel fare

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Another vote for AdH. The easier slopes are at the bottom and wide open. Gondola ride reduces some of the fear of a chair lift first time out. A good place for a first time skier IMO. There is also plenty to do when not skiing. Might not get that at a smaller resort. I enjoy the pool at AdH.

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All depends on budget / when you plan on going and whether your ok slumming it with others (social chalets) or want to keep it family tight (hotels / self catering)

Personally (and as first timers with the wife & kids) I'd look for a resort with decent Half Board chalet hotel / hotel offers that are either close to or on the slopes - if they have their own ski hire shop in the basement even better - you need to REDUCE the arrival and post arrival faff in getting dressed / skis and boots on / out on the slopes to ski school in the morning, and with kids this is multiplied (although yours are a reasonably sane age so they can carry their own kit)

The other reason for the above is that you'll be knackered so wandering around in supermarches (self catering) post skiing and then actually cooking, let alone looking for restaurants that are already overbooked every night (with kids in tow) means being fed and watered easily is preferable - most Chalet Hotels / Hotels lay on cakes and tea after ski school so that should keep the kids happy before the evening meal.

Resorts with a decent ski school that speak fluent English are a MUST for first timers - IMO this removes France full stop (anti ESF tin hat on lol) so I'd go for Austria as it generally runs ski school all day (not just in the mornings) and the tuition is on the whole better from both a technical and social point of view.

Try to avoid European school half terms hols and dependant on when you plan to go, look for resorts with a good snow record and lots of green and blue runs - this is where you'll be spending most, if not all of your week

Personally would NOT waste money on indoor slope lessons prior - especially for the kids. Other than getting familiar with kit these are a waste of £ IME and you're better off spending the money in resort; indoor snow is nothing like 'proper' snow and the kids will get the hang of it in 20mins rather than 3x Hr stressy and busy sessions indoors

Lastly (and again this is budget dependent) don't scrimp - its best to ensure your family have the BEST initial ski experience across the board if you can afford it - eat up the mountain every lunch and enjoy apres every day, put the kids in a club for a couple of evenings and wine and dine your wife/partner! Subsequent hols (if you fall in love with it) you can start streamlining to what you actually need etc

On the basis of the above theres perhaps only one resort I'd recommend - Obergurgl in Austria . . . the end

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

@Belch, +1

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If the OP are looking at France I'm not sure I'd suggest Austria when Alpe d'Huez ticks so many boxes for beginners. Agree about catered chalet/hotel if you can afford it - I never could when the kids were young and always self catered, it's not that difficult! A session in a snow dome saves so much time when you get to the resort.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Evenings in a ski resort, with kids, are long. Cooking a simple meal, with a glass of wine in hand, never struck me as a hardship. And kids often don't much enjoy sitting for hours over a restaurant meal. And when they're in bed, how much nicer to sit in your own space with another glass of something at supermarket , not bar, prices.

Resort shops in France are replete with delicious cheese and charcuterie and there are always pizzas etc. and most resorts have a "traiteur" for local specials. Easy to borrow the gear for raclette, braserade, etc. 9 euros a head including wine in the Proxi near our apartment at Christmas. Also delicious " poulet roti fermier". 14 euros, fed five of us with big tray of potato wedges and veg.

After all it is free

Sorry but without being snotty don't listen to the self catering nonsense - this is a fallacy; especially on a FIRST TIME ski holiday with kids. Whilst I agree with some of the charcuterie sentiment (and would perhaps recommend once you've been a few times / your keen / you do need to save £) why on earth would you want to cook on holiday; the same goes for accom - I'm aware the adventurous type do (and I'm not totally dissing it) but why would you want to stay in a camper van when you can relieve any aches and pains (you will have them) in a hot tub and sleep in a comfy hotel / chalet bed!

The OP has never been before - there is a real possibility that maybe one out of the 4 won't particularly enjoy themselves for whatever reason and wonder why on earth they're on holiday doing enforced exercise with muscles they've never utilised in freezing cold conditions, enjoying the temporary respite that is alcohol for a few hours to repeat the whole thing the next day . . .on this basis best to cover all bases and ensure the experience is the best you can afford! wink

As for France I am biased - I've had more bad experiences there than anywhere else - ski theft / physical fights on the slope / kids injured / kids left up the mountain during ski school / silly expensive spag bol at lunch / moody ski hire shops / the general laissez fair attitude to everything, primarily Brits irrespective of you speaking the lingo etc. Yes the skiing can be superb in France, its just that the Austrians do the whole package a lot better without any of the above aggro - a much more suitable environment to non-hardened first timers!

It's hilarious that having dismissed everything about self-catering holidays as nonsense, not to mention writing off France and the French you are anxious to assure us that you are "not snotty". Nobody has suggested sleeping in a camper van FFS! You won't catch me soaking in other people's bodily fluids in a hot tub but I had a perfectly comfy bed in the apartment we rented at Christmas, unlimited hot water and a superb view. We had a choice of restaurants, had we wished, and the rest of the group enjoyed the smart public swimming pool. The resort was busy (it was Christmas) but the people we encountered were unfailingly pleasant, polite and helpful. We saw no children abandoned on the slopes (though my son was once kidnapped by an Austrian ski school), nobody ate spag bol, there were no fights, we saw no drunks, the lad in the hire shop was charming and patient

It's interesting that whilst we quite often have Austria Fanboys who diss everything about France, the reverse never seems to happen. Why do you think that is?

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Time = March (best weather)

Place = Austria or France

1. La Rosiere
2. Meribel
3. Lech

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I would never rate Meribel as "best" for anything. Much of the accommodation is a schlep from the lifts, for a start.

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We skied usually twice a year throughout our children's schooling. We skied in France, Austria, Switzerland and far less often Italy.
We almost always self catered. The idea that one country is definitively better than another in my opinion is a complete joke.
There were good and poor instructors in each country though overall they were pretty good everywhere.
Any of these countries could suit a family very well, you could be unlucky and get a poor experience in any country.
The poor experience is not due to the country, it could be bad luck with an individual instructor or accommodation that does not match your expectations.If you think about what you need in advance and look at what you're getting, hopefully you won't be disappointed.
Our early holidays were in a very cheap French apartment miles from the slopes, cheap as chips and we loved them and returned on many occasions.

You know it makes sense.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Let's start a new thread and have a proper self-catered versus half-board cage match Happy

A snowHead

A snowHead

Ski in ski out is seriously enjoyable with kids, waiting around for set meal times less so. Who wants the faff to the slopes if this trip is supposed to be about trying skiing, whether you cook or not is not as relevant as how easy it is to actually undertake your main activity? This year we did 1 trip ski in ski ski out in France, & 1 in a weeks time to Austria. Also 1 self catered & 1 3/4 board (1/2 board etc gets quite expensive on the slopes), 1 is a crystal package & 1 is DIY. No one has mentioned Neilsons operator as a good introductory option, they’ll make everything easy though pricey for what you get. Everything has pros & cons, the crystal package has transfers that involves a lot of waiting around & the annoying risky airport of chambery (we had a 9hr delay this year & not the first time either), the other trip we DIY’d BA cancelled just our outbound flight 2 weeks ago, so we had to reorganise the outbound last minute as no suitable alternative was offered, zero consequence on airline as trip was 3 weeks away. Just need to decide how your brains work & what makes you as organisers anxious. We like the variety & do it all ways to all different locations & like places all for different reasons, but that’s not everyone.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

This whole argument over what type of holiday and which country is best is a nonsense. And I’m certain the OP is not asking for or needing anyone to convince him that Catered or SC is what he should do. Or that Austria is the best place on planet Earth. Both options are entirely personal preference and he knows his family best and what they would prefer so please let’s stop with the whole “my idea is better than yours” BS!
If you can’t frame your experiences in a way to help the OP within his terms of reference then just skip on to the next thread.
There have been lots of useful experiences and ideas shared so please SH’s don’t let this descend into a virtual cage fight as @pfreet, says. Too many threads here end up going that way and it’s a bore!

@Belch, One good point you make is to for the OP to make the first experience of skiing the very best experience he can afford. (Or is willing to pay, I’d add)

This is solid advice. Then as you continue over the years you can fine tune and tailor trips, try different places, methods etc as your family desires.

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I'm a big fan of ski in/out, but at the risk of stating the obvious, for complete beginners who have never been on skis before there are plenty of ski in/out properties which would not be suitable until they have developed some ability to control their speed and line on modest terrain. My apartment in Les Arcs is ski in/out which I appreciate hugely, but for beginners who might want to stay in my building for the first few days they will almost certainly walk the short distance to the nearest pedestrian-friendly gondola which will whisk them to the ski school meeting point in a minute or so.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

@jirac18, this is Snowheads! It is a long established tradition that everyone piles in answering questions the OP didn't ask, and making suggestions that contradict their stated wishes.

To @Doetchey, no problems with your initial thoughts. Kids of that age are likely to love skiing, and going in March gives a better chance of enjoyable weather - although the first week in March some French schools are off so slopes will be more crowded, and the last week of March it might be a bit warm for nice snow. France is fine, I haven't personally been to Alp d'Huez but I am sure it will suit as will plenty of other places if you want to compare prices.

After that it is up to you and your budget. Personally I would suggest going with a tour operator, there are a lot of unfamiliar balls to keep in the air which is going to be stressful with a couple of boys in tow. All the airport stuff with flights (given that will be a novelty), finding the transfer to the resort, finding the accommodation, organising ski hire, getting lift passes, making your way to ski school the first day. Much easier to just look out for the company rep at the arrival airport and follow their instructions.

I think responses above give options beyond that. The more expensive but relaxing solution is a catered chalet, for which Esprit is the obvious operator if you have children. They will sort out the business of getting togged up and to ski school, there are likely to be other British kids for your boys to make friends (and parents for you to chat to), and eating in the evening is something that happens without you having to do anything including an early kids' meal ensuring the calory deficit is met with child-familiar food while adults eat later after you've got everyone showered and changed.

Self-catering means you have to organise the ski school run yourselves, as well as food in the evening. That means either going out to a restaurant or cooking in the apartment. I haven't come across a resort that didn't have a pizza restaurant that will be great for kids, and they all have little supermarkets which allow you to knock up easy meals based on what you know your family like (can be dead simple, like buying dried pasta and sauce in a jar). Once you have got to know your way around you will find the sort of shop @pam w talks about, selling locally made "ready meals" that you can heat up in the oven in the apartment, and of course delicious bread and cheese. And somewhere along the way you can plan a meal out with fondue as part of the new experience. The only thing I would say with French self-catering is to treat the claimed accommodation with suspicion, a "4 person studio" is very very small for a family, you need something with at least a proper bedroom and two if you don't want to have to make up a sofa-bed in the living room every evening. And the advice about making sure it is somewhere close to ski school is good, unless you are in that Esprit chalet where the reps will sort out getting there for you.

Good luck, and have fun!

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Good to see this thread back on sensible track.......

One word of warning about booking self-catering apartments. If you DIY and book an apartment yourself (resort websites are a reliable source for this) you have only yourself to blame if you end up somewhere cramped and tiny. There will ALWAYS be accurate information on size and the cost of the apartment is the cost. Sounds obvious, but not with some tour operators it's not. The price "per head" for a family of 4 in an apartment for 4 might seem good, but it might be very cramped. For 4 people you need to go for a bigger apartment and will then pay an "under occupancy" charge which can be hefty. Peak Retreats, in contrast, gives you a single price to rent the whole apartment - all their properties are good quality and in good locations, and their web site gives a good idea of what's available at the higher end of the market.

It can be difficult, however you book, to get really accurate information about location, though much easier in these days of google maps. As Rob says, for a family of beginners "ski in/out" is likely to be irrelevant. It's how easy it'll be to get back and forth to ski school which matters.

A first ski holiday, however you do it, is likely to be quite hard work to organise and execute. Don't spend too much because the chances are that successive holidays will eat up all your spare cash over the years - till long after the kids are grown up!

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

@pam w, Lol Pam - thought your buttons were less easy to push! Apols it wasn't personal; just don't agree with self catering holidays full stop - even now with 3x older teenagers we have NEVER been on a self catering cottage holiday / ski holiday / any holiday; why would we want to sit in an alien environment that has the same DIY shackles as home (shopping cooking cleaning etc) when we are on holiday? Just doesn't make any sense IMO - each to their own!

As for other posters comments re Esprit / Club Med etc - regretfully never did this when the kids were little but did do Neilson (and still do Neilson in summer) which makes life much easier with little ones in terms of faff mitigation so would fully recommend this irrespective of country; I know a few 'first time ski hol family experiences' that have nearly ended up in divorce as the reality of skiing and the whole deal is not for everyone . . .(faff / worry about kids on chairlifts / skiing itself being a terrifying experience / injury from other eejits etc etc)

With regards Austria vs France - yes my French experiences have arguably been negative esp with the family in tow (hypocritically I'm going to Tignes for the first time late March on a lads trip so maybe I'll be convinced otherwise!) and I'm biased as I have overtly positive childhood memories of Kitzbhuel, however just find Austria much 'jollier' on the whole in terms of people / skiing etiquette / apres / infrastructure / value / everything!

After all it is free

I guess I count ski in ski out, as being by ski school for the kids, so I’d agree that there is a certain type of apartment that is great for ski in ski out that is suitable for beginners. Snowbizz tour operator who cover PSV is a decent option, but if budget allows definitely opt for neilson’s or espirit. Issue with crystal is they have a tonne of different hotel options & you won’t necessarily be grouped with British tourists for maybe making friends/acquaintances over the week, instead you will get on a small coach at the airport with 4 drops planned at different hotels usually waiting for at least 3 flights to land, works well if you are the last flight but you won’t know that. We went over Christmas a relatively peak week & there were no British families in our hotel for instance, though we made friends with some belgiums so it was fine for play opportunities, it definitely added to our child’s holiday enjoyment hanging out in the pool with some new friends but there was no guarantees that was going to happen. Just by chance in a group of 4 kids in ski school there was one from our hotel, it won’t always work out like that in an off peak week.

Yes well, we know what you feel @Belch, but why you insist on persuading others that they must feel the same is beyond me. You have never been on a self-catering holiday, but you know you hate them. Laughing

I have been to hotels (often quite good ones when the taxpayer was footing the bill.... Twisted Evil

and I know I dislike them,for the same reason as I avoided living in a hall of residence as a student. When I've been on residential training courses, with meals provided, I'm the one who organised a little group of us to go out and find a restaurant one evening, rather than face another institutional meal.

We are all different, thankfully. Or Kitzbuhel would be overcrowded.

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