I am often asked about the best age for children to learn to ski and how to give them the best start, so below are my top five tips for skiing with young children.
What age they can start skiing?
The earliest that you can start children skiing is around 4 years – before then they don’t really have the concentration or physical strength to learn. There are nursery and kindergartens that take younger children where they will play games in the snow, on skis, which is great to getting them used to the kit and the sensation of sliding but it’s playtime rather than ski lessons.
Lots of the ski schools now run group lessons for 4-5 year olds and these small groups (usually 4-6 pupils per group) are a great introduction. Lessons times are shorter - most are 2 hours and they will get children used to the equipment, sliding down gentle slopes and turning around fun obstacles, such as a giant Donald Duck. What’s most important is that they think it’s fun and want to come again.
What’s the best resort for families?
The ideal is to have as little walking as possible to the slopes and to have very easily accessible nursery slopes and green runs. Most of our chalet partners offer a chauffeured minibus service so children, and indeed adults, can be dropped off close to the lifts, to be collected after lessons or at the end of the ski day.
Most resorts now have excellent beginner areas that are either in the resort centre or accessible by lift. For example - Courchevel 1850 is a great choice as the green runs come right down into the resort centre. There are nursery slopes in the centre of Val d’Isère and in Méribel that are accessed by a single cable car. Ste Foy is an excellent family ski area as are Châtel and Les Gets.
What’s best for lessons?
Firstly I would not recommend you teaching them yourself – even if you are a very competent skier – it will potentially be stressful and rather than being a fun family activity, it could become a battleground. Its great to have some time skiing together and they will be very keen to demonstrate their new skills to you but leave the actual teaching to the professionals.
I think the group lessons work very well for beginners of whatever age – children enjoy the social aspect of being with other children and the best ski schools will offer small groups, instructors who are fluent in the child’s language and will know how to get the perfect blend of learning and fun.
A private instructor is a great option once children are up and running as they can get individual attention and a personalised learning experience. You also get more flexibility on lesson timings and duration. If you have children of similar levels, it can also work out cost effectively as instructors will take 4-6 people for the same price. It is also good to take a lesson yourself – they see that it’s good to carry on learning and you get to brush up on your technique.
If you do live close to a dry ski slope, a session there before the holiday can really help, even if it is just to get them used to putting on ski boots.
What should they wear?
Think onion – dress them in lots of layers rather than one big jumper and then they can peel off when they’re on snack or lunch stops but wrap up when they’re on the lifts and slopes. Bring 2 pairs of gloves as these do get wet and then you have a dry pair for après-ski activities such as sledging or ice-skating. Mittens or gloves with zips are easier to put on and for the very young it’s a good idea to have the elastic string through the jacket sleeves so they can’t lose them. Buying good ski socks is worth the investment and make sure that nothing gets tucked into the socks as this can cause rubbing and give them sore shins. They will wear helmets for skiing but it’s good to have a hat for walking around resort or going ice-skating. Sunglasses or goggles are a must and again on a string so they don’t get lost and they need to either fit inside the helmet (sunglasses) or go over it (goggles).
Extra Tips
Make sure they have a snack in their pocket for their stop (most chalets will have a basket of treats in the ski room) and some money for a drink.
Put a note with chalet name and a contact number in their pocket just in case.
Investigate family lift pass options and check the age limit for free lift passes – all resorts are now offering lift pass options to suit and encourage family skiing.
Make sure that children have a good breakfast before skiing – it tiring work. I know that is easier said than done with some children but let the chalet know their favourite breakfast food before your holiday so that you increase the chances of them getting some fuel on board.
Have some time skiing with your children so they can show you how they’ve progressed and you can mentally calculate how many more years you’ve got left of being able to beat them down the slopes!