Skiing with kids: how to do it without losing your mind (or your life savings)

"Are we there yet?"

Planning a ski holiday with children is a different sport entirely. Gone are the days of booking whatever looked good on Instagram and winging it. Now there's a checklist, a spreadsheet, and someone somewhere asking, "are we there yet?" before you've even left the house.

The good news? Skiing with kids can absolutely be brilliant - for them and for you - without needing a second mortgage. You just need to plan it slightly differently. Here's how.

When to start

Kids are never too young to play in the snow. Snow angels, sledging, jumping and rolling in the fluffy stuff brings joy to kids of all ages. Skiing will too – but don’t rush it. Skis and boots are heavy – so let them grow a bit before sending them off on the magic carpet. Around 4 is a good age – for some kids 5 or 6 may be better. After all, you do want them to create a life-long passion, right?

Pick the resort, not just the ski area

Not all resorts are built for families, even if they claim otherwise. What you actually want is:

• A proper nursery slope near your accommodation - not a two-lift trek away
• Ski schools that speak your language - literally -  check this before you book!
• Gentle, well-connected green and blue runs so everyone can ski together, not just meet for lunch
• A village with more to do than one bar and a bakery – although fresh snow to play in can more than make up for that...

Les Gets and La Plagne are the reliable big names for a reason -  both are built with convenience and families in mind, from the ski school setup to the substantial easy, connected skiing on offer. If you want the safe bet, either delivers.

But if you fancy the same family-friendly formula without French Alps pricing (we've all seen the price of a vin chaud in Val d'Isère), several resorts deserve far more attention than they get:

• Sauze d'Oulx (Italy) - gentle nursery slopes, a solid ski school, and access to the vast Via Lattea (Milky Way) area once the kids are ready to explore further. Plus, the Italians seem to love kids in a way their neighbours to the west do not. Same easy, family-friendly setup as the French Alps, for noticeably less money - plus proper Italian food, in numerous mountain huts, which is a considerable upgrade on soggy chicken nuggets and chips at altitude, and a beer that won't make you wince.
• Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis (Austria) - near-perfect for families on a practical level, with excellent ski schools and terrain, plus a fun touch: an underground village train in Serfaus that shuttles everyone around, not a gimmick so much as a fun ride disguised as public transport.

The takeaway: you don't have to choose between the tried-and-tested and the hidden gem. You can go big – and still have family friendly. Whilst the kids are small and proper beginners – do mix in a smaller, lesser-known resort or two, and you might just find your new family favourite - while keeping enough budget spare for hot chocolates, ski hire upgrades, and the emergency après drink you'll have earned.

Ski school: book it early, book it right

Don’t try and teach your own kids to ski. Unless you are a very good teacher. And exceptionally patient. Ski school exist for a reason: my parents are annoying, why should I listen to them!

Good ski school slots for children go fast, especially over half-term and the Christmas period. A few things worth knowing:

• Half-day is often better than full day for younger kids. Little legs and long lessons don't always mix. If improvement is more important than child care – book an hour’s private lessons instead. More about learning, less about surviving.
• Ask about group sizes. Six kids to one instructor is very different to twelve.
• Book well before you travel, not last minute. The best schools and best times fill up - and last-minute add-ons rarely come cheap.

Ski school is also a great excuse for the adults to sneak off for a couple of hours of actual skiing. Not that we'd encourage that (we would.)

Chalet or apartment? Or hotel?

For families and groups, a catered chalet can be a big win. Someone else cooks, someone else cleans, and there's a communal space for post-ski meltdowns (yours or theirs). If budget's tighter or you want more flexibility with mealtimes and nap schedules, a well-located self-catered chalet or apartment can work just as well and often frees up more cash for the fun stuff - just check the walk to the lifts before you book, not after.
 
In Austria and Italy, hotels are more common. Many are family run, with lovely and attentive hosts, local food and facilities from the basic to wellness hotels out of this world. Some also have excellent apartments attached – that still give you access to their hotel facilities.

Pack like you mean it

A few non-negotiables that seasoned ski parents will tell you, usually while gritting their teeth:

• Mittens. And spare mittens. Then spare the spares, just in case. Mittens go missing like socks in a tumble dryer.
• Glove straps / mitten strings. For the littlest, mitten strings are the only way to go. As they get older you can move to wrist straps. But never, ever go without.
• Handwarmers. Tuck a spare pack in their coat pocket. And in your coat pocket. And in your backpack. Cold fingers have ruined many a ski day…
• Buy or hire kit locally where possible. Kids grow, and last year's ski jacket rarely fits this year's kid - no point buying fancy new gear for one season.
• Snacks. Always snacks. A hungry child on a ski slope is a hazard to all nearby, and resort café prices (and queues) are not your friend. Ot just ski in Italy, where mountain huts sometimes outnumber pistes.
• Sun cream, even in the cold. Altitude and snow glare are not messing about.

Don't over-schedule the holiday

It's tempting to fill every hour with lessons, activities and "making the most of it." Resist. Kids (and honestly, most adults) ski better and enjoy themselves more with proper breaks, hot chocolate stops, and the odd afternoon doing absolutely nothing.

Some of the best family ski memories happen off the slopes - sledging, swimming pools, or just messing about in the snow outside. All free. All excellent.

Not sure which resort fits your family?

Every family is different - different ages, different ability levels, different tolerance for early wake-up calls. That's exactly what we're here for.

Tell us your group, your budget and your priorities, and we'll match you to the resort and holiday that actually fits - not just the one everyone else is booking.

Because the best family ski holiday isn't the fanciest, or the most expensive - it's the one where everyone, big and small, actually wants to come back next year.