 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi all
We're thinking of taking the kids (aged 10 and 7) on their first ski holiday. We're kind of tied to post Christmas/New Year but were thinking of a week somewhere. Ideally it would be somewhere that has a good chance of snow around then, somewhere that is family centric and great for beginners, and ideally flights from Birmingham. Budget is ideally around 4K - hopefully including lift passes and ski school if possible. We don't mind self-catering as long as we are near facilities and the lifts - but equally half board is great if it is not ridiculously more. I imagine it will be busy in most places given the schools don't go back until the 8th Jan - though looking at Bulgaria, they may go back earlier.
Have seen some deals on Crystal Ski and Sunweb, but they seem to be around the 4k but self-catering and without liftpasses, etc. What's the likelihood of cheaper deals nearer the time?
Was wondering what you would recommend based on previous experience? Is Borovets less likely to be snowy? Is there a better chance higher in the Alps?
Apologies for all the questions, it has been years since I've been skiing!
Thanks
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@zargarf, we went to Avoriaz for our first family trip. High enough to have good snow at that time of year, a family centric resort (aqua park, ice rinks, carousels), all ski in/ski out, pedestrianised (horse & cart adds to the charm!), and lots of beginner slopes. And a short transfer from Geneva.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@zargarf, welcome. You will quickly discover that everyone on Snowheads has an opinion, and they are mostly different. So you will end up much better informed but without clear advice.
So tackling your questions:
(1) yes, tour operators do have cheaper deals in the last couple of weeks before departure - but of course only to those resorts where they have unsold accommodation and places on flights to the linked airport. You might have to do some frantic last-minute googling to find out about places you hadn't previously heard of. Once resorts are open, you will find quite a few websites giving summaries of the snow conditions.
(2) my personal advice from experience is that if this is the first trip with the family it would be sensible to use a tour operator. There is enough stress of the new without worrying about whether you will catch the booked transfer and how you will find the right accommodation block. There will be a rep you can ask questions of, even if they feel silly. Self-catering is fine, it gives you the option of whether to go out for a meal (you will know your kids, but pretty much everywhere has places selling things like pizzas) or to fill them up with something simple in the apartment (there is always a small supermarket, and it will have things like pasta and ready-made or ingredients for sauces).
(3) Bulgaria I don't know about.
(4) well yes, if snow is poor then higher places will be better. But it may be fine everywhere. The trouble is that you can't know for sure, Christmas is more or less the beginning of the season (many resorts only open the week before, and then often partially) and some years the snow arrives later than others, or a warm spell messes up the earlier snow. So Avoriaz (1800m elevation) is a good recommendation, but because of this it is quite likely to have higher prices or little availability - but there is a good possibility Morzine nearby (1000m) is fine or at least has skiing if you take the gondola up and down to reach a higher area. Feel free to ask here about the possible resorts you come up with, but no one can predict the weather until the week before.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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We took our kids for their first ski trip last new year to Ruka in Lapland. It's a small place with a hill rather than a mountain, so the skiing is limited but on the other hand it makes it easy to get around and there are plenty of runs suitable for beginners. We never skied all the runs, but we are happy to find a good run and repeat it. Finland is expensive (beer about 7-8 Euros, for example), but as it's only a small resort the lift pass is fairly cheap. We parents loved it for our first skiing in ten years because it was a gentle reintroduction to it all, and if you stay in the main centres of the resort, everything is easy to get to. Snow is guaranteed, although it is colder than the Alps. Airport is only about 20-30 minutes away. Plus there's reindeer, Santa, northern lights etc.
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Welcome toSnowheads, @zargarf. Yes, you'll get lots of different advice, but that's inevitable!
Mine would be to agree with @j b that going with a tour operator is best for your first trip, especially as it's now very late to fix up a Christmas or New Year holiday. It can be especially difficult to find places in ski school at the last minute.
These are VERY expensive weeks. If you struggle to find something which sounds good, and is within your budget, you might think about postponing the trip till the Easter holidays. Assuming you have to stick to school holidays, that's probably the best bet.
I've never been to Borovets but it doesn't get a great press here on Snowheads.
As ever, if something looks cheaper than a lot of alternatives, there's probably a reason!
Self-catering is almost certainly going to be a lot cheaper, and if you cook for yourselves (check that any apartment you are considering has an oven - they don't all) you won't need to spend much more on food than you would in a "celebration week" at thome. Lunches in mountain restaurants tend to be very expensive and with big crowds, not always very enjoyable.
If looking at accommodation offers (hotel or apartment) pin down EXACTLY how far it is from the ski school meeting place. If it's close, being able to take kids back for a simple lunch of stuff they like will save a lot of money and stress!
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Crystal, Pila (Italy / Aosta valley), Hotel Plan Bois, Half board 31 Dec for week, Stansted to Turin, with transfer, added skis intermediate (adults), skis and boots for kids, local lift pass, ski school 5 days for kids, ski in ski out, great resort for families, 70k of pistes, 1800m high, no draglifts...i'm getting less than 4,300 for all when extras added..says 470 pp discount
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@pam w has some good points, though the chances are you will have to compromise somewhere. Whether you get an oven will be unclear, in many cases the "oven" is a combination microwave which you need to be a scholar of Egyptian hieroglyphs to understand. That's why I suggested pasta, everywhere I've been has a couple of rings. But with an oven or even just a microwave you can heat up takeaway food and locally prepared "ready meals" are common in delicatessens at least in France.
Lunch in your own apartment does make it much easier to control costs - though in most places at least some of the mountain restaurants are self-service and less expensive. However it needs true ski in-ski out which might limit you to purpose built resorts.
@Parf's suggestion of Pila would be ideal if you are happy driving to Stansted. And that price includes evening meals, though a hotel isn't somewhere to knock up your own lunch (mind you, meals on the mountain are cheaper in Italy than France).
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Yes, Pila would be ideal. Good suggestion.
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Thanks for the suggestions all, some great advice to look into
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