Planning A Ski Trip? Read This Guide First

Deciding you want to go skiing is just the first step in what can be a fairly daunting planning process. It’s not just about choosing a resort. There are also different types of accommodation to choose from, skill and experience levels of everyone in your party, and even time of year to consider. Choosing the right resort can make or break your trip, so it’s important to spend some time working out what you want to get from your trip, and what aspects of it are non-negotiable.

winter-ski-trip

I’m wearing: Faux Fur Collar Ruana  |  Photo by: Zarif Taufiq

Choose your region carefully

Do you just want to go skiing? Or do you also want to be close to a city to make it easy to fly in and out of the resort? Is it important to you that you can also get out and visit chateaus, villages, do non-skiing activities, and explore winter wonderlands? Spend some time reading up on your various ski regions, don’t just go on advice from friends, as people have different requirements.

Resort

Skiing aside, what do you want to get out of your trip? If you’re keen on a lively apres-ski scene, it could be worth looking at more modern ski resorts. If you fancy a fairly relaxing and idyllic getaway, with good food, spa facilities, and luxurious accommodation, choose a more charming, traditional village which has adapted in recent years to the ski scene.

Accommodation

There are so many different types of hotel, chalet, and apartments to choose from, which will obviously depend in some part on your budget for the trip. On top of this, you will need to decide how self-sufficient you want to be. So, why opt for a catered ski chalet? Well, for many people, their trip is about relaxing, feeling pampered, and not having to worry about cooking at the end of a long day on the slopes, so catered accommodation is excellent. If you’re on a slightly tighter budget, there are hotels which offer self-catering apartments with breakfast options too – it’s all about choosing what suits your needs.

Budget

Without wanting to state the obvious, you need to work out what your budget is for the trip before booking anything. Take into account flights, accommodation, food (including eating out), ski hire, transportation, slope access, and even insurance. Most of all, make sure you have enough spending money available when you’re at the resort because nobody can have fun if they’re watching their pennies too closely.

Skill level

When you’re considering your resort, it’s important to think about the skill levels of the people in your group. Groups with less experienced skiers will probably want to look at resorts with more nursery slopes, and a range of lessons available. A group of competent skiers may be more interested in an area with more challenging skiing. But, for safety’s sake, if you’ve got people with minimal experience in the group, it’s important to make sure they can have lessons and start small.

The beautiful thing about ski vacations is that you can tailor them to be what you want exactly, which means you’re guaranteed a great time.

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