 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi,
We're looking to go for a week next January (2012) with a group of friends. OH and I will take it in turns to ski whilst the other one spends the day with our daughter (she will be 19 months old).
Obviously DD will not be skiing! Any recommendations of resorts that would be suitable - a bit of skier-free outdoor space to play in the snow, maybe a swimming pool, anything else entertaining for a toddler? (Bowling, cinema, etc. won't be of interest to her.)
Cheers,
MrsA
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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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From a position of enormous bias I can recommend Les Gets. The year before last my daughter was at the same stage and we always found plenty to do to keep her amused. The only significant failing of the resort from the perspective of visiting with young children is that there is no pool.
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The things that will entertain a toddler are: sledging, lunch, riding the bubble lifts up and down again, playing with toys in the apartment/chalet/hotel, building snowmen, listening to a story, having a nap.
Therefore: er, pretty much absolutely anywhere will be fine.
I do recommend getting some childcare though, at least for a couple of the days of the week, so you and OH can spend some ski time together.
Our mini me was 16 months old on the last trip (and 5 months the trip before that!). First time we were absurdly fortunate to be able to bring a non-skiing friend along who took the brunt of the childcare, and on the second trip (Meribel) we used a nanny company called Snowbugs who were absolutely exceptional.
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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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mrsalexe. Have a look at Serre Chevalier,there are good creche and babysitting facilities, and some accommodation has a swimming pool. Safe sledging area and easy access to the mountain via a cable car to meet for lunch too.
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toddlers who have visited our otherwise entertainment-free apartments have spent hours playing in the snow, in the same kind of way they play with sand, or mud. Poking sticks, shovelling snow into a tipper truck and tipping it out again, running up very tiny hills and hurtling down again, trying to throw snowballs. Very gentle toboganning - pulling teddy up the path in a toboggan, etc. Slightly older ones make sort of race tracks for toy cars, with snow bridges.
For those things, toddler needs really good quality ski suit - waterproof, for sitting in snow - and as many pairs of gloves as you can manage. And caring adult needs loads of energy to be putting them into, and getting them out of, those things constantly.
Personally, I'd look for somewhere where there is fairly well guaranteed to be snow for them to play in right outside the accommodation. Slightly older kids (4/6) spent hours, till it was pitch dark every night, playing in a snowy garden in La Rosiere. Deep snow, and not a skier in sight. My brother in law built a series of bobsleigh runs for them.
When it's really cold outside time is clearly going to be limited, and inside they can do all the stuff they do inside at home. Ripping up bits of paper, scribbling, playdough (a pretend pizza place was good for at least two hours one chilly afternoon) etc. A 10 month old spent literally hours emptying all our mini choc bars out of a plastic box and then putting them back in again - but a toddler would probably just eat them.
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Hi,
Most resorts are pretty well set up for toddlers and restaurants, cafes etc are used to little ones. Here in La Plagne for example there is a free toddler sledging area, swimming pool, playground etc.
Hope that helps - and happy planning.
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mrsalexe, I took a 19 month old skiing a few years ago. Some random observations:
1. A pool is absolutely key. (unless your daughter hates swimming  ). Fortunately most ski resorts have them.
2. Toddlers love any sort of snow game for about 20 minutes...then they get cold/bored/tired.
3. Generally, they are happy anywhere you're happy. So I'd be thinking of resorts where it is pleasant for a parent to spend time walking around with and playing with a toddler, rather than any kids facilities as such. The 19 month old won't care whether they are in Milton Keynes, Morzine or Mayrhofen. Though having said that mine was endlessly entertained shouting "Skiii...wheeeeee" at passing skiers (or boarders, bladers etc)
4. So, think of resorts that are traditionally good for non-skiiers - bubble lifts up to meet skiing parties, shops, attractive walks.
5. Obviously I don't know you or your family situation so this may be rubbish/irrelevant but do pay attention to the number of people on this thread who have already recommended a bit of childcare despite you not asking for it. We were going to tag-team skiing and parent-childcare but in the end paid for a creche about 50% of the time. The time we spent as a couple skiing (rather than just evening time as in the UK) was truly fantastic - we didn't realise how much we'd missed shared activities until we actually did it.
6. Many Austrian hotels have "free" childcare which is good if you want some occasional hours here and here. Along with kids playrooms, toys, etc.
7. Obviously my children never watch TV etc etc but erm....portable DVD player.....winner for the journey especially.
8. We picked a hotel with a relatively early dinner serving, and kept our son on UK time. So 5pm tea, 7.30pm to 6am sleep became 6pm tea (with us) and 8.30 to 7am sleep European time, which fitted in really well with the skiing day.
Hope the whole family has a fantastic trip.
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Thank you all for your responses. It looks like we're going for La Plagne, and SIL is coming and has offered to do a bit of childcare so we can ski together at times.
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| mrsalexe wrote: |
| Thank you all for your responses. It looks like we're going for La Plagne, and SIL is coming and has offered to do a bit of childcare so we can ski together at times. |
this is pretty much exactly what we did the first time we went after our eldest was born and she was 17months Sil came with us and shared the childcare. We stayed in a 3 bed apartment the biggest issue we had was the one night (it was only one night due to this) was finding a restaurant that served early enough even leaving her on UK time to shift her day
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