SKIING & WINTER ACTIVITIES
Ski holidays, like skiers & snow-boarders, come in all shapes and sizes. Some people are looking for an adrenaline busting adventure from dawn ’til dusk while for many the priority is just being out enjoying beautiful mountain scenery, perhaps with family or friends. Whether you are a seasoned advanced skier or someone taking their first tentative steps (slides) then we are more than happy to help.
There’s much more you can do with snow than just skiing or heading down a slope. There are miles of cross country tracks to explore or if you head north into Scandinavia and Lapland it is more about life in the snow – tobogganing, snow-shoeing, ice-fishing, seeing reindeer and even keeping an eye our for Santa.
How a Ski holiday works
If you have never been skiing before the whole holiday can seem daunting. Firstly you have to choose when you want to go and where – these two can be closely linked and this is where expert advice is important.
You also need to choose what type of accommodation you would like to use and in brief you can narrow this down to 3 types. Firstly you can opt for a hotel and this will often have some meals included and the sort of facilities & service you would expect from a 3*, 4* or 5* property depending on your choice. Secondly you can opt for a chalet and again these will come in varying degrees of luxury – what they will have in common is a single house/chalet shared with a smaller number of people than a hotel (family and friends perhaps) where the chalet staff will provide breakfast, afternoon tea and dinner. Lastly, and usually the best value, will be self-catering where you can choose your own sized apartment and choose to cook or eat out – for information rarely will apartments be bigger than 4 bedrooms.
Once you have chose your dates, location and accommodation style you will then need lift passes, tuition (ski school) and equipment. All can be easily organised, together with your transport, as one package – and that is where Putney Travel come in. We can sort all of this out for you and give you the benefit or our advice and experience of many years skiing.
Where to go – Europe
The Alps were original skiing destination and this is where the vast bulk of UK skiers will head – by plane, train or car. Alternatives in Europe include Andorra, Scandinavia and Bulgaria. The big 4 Alpine countries have a huge range of resorts from small villages with a handful of lifts to mega purpose built resorts linking multiple valleys at high altitude. We don’t like to generalise, and there are huge variations across each country, but in few words here’s a handy guide:
- France – home of the purpose built resort with many snowsure resorts with huge lift systems and piste networks. Smaller resorts can be found, some linked into the main ski domaines.
- Switzerland – some of the classic historic resorts are here, Zermatt and Gstaad to name a couple. The scenery is particularly attractive and resorts can be charming.
- Italy – For a more fun approach to skiing and the best food on the pistes then head to Italy. With a mixture of old and new developments this is also home to the classic Dolomite ski region.
- Austria – With plenty of picturesque ski villages and some of the most modern lift systems around this is fun and personal skiing. The apres-ski is taken seriously, especially in resorts like St Anton, Ischgl and Solden!
Where to choose will depend on time of year, your standard, the style of resort you are looking for, accommodation needs and your budget. This is where we come in – having skiied in and visited a couple of dozen resorts across the Alps you can get our expert advice.
Where to go – North America and Japan
With so much great skiing on our doorstep why would you head across the Atlantic? Basically for great snow and big open spaces. Some of the snow falls in the Rockies are phenomenal and as a general rule the slopes are much emptier than you would find in the Alps. Big names resorts include; Whistler, Aspen, Park City, Mammoth and Lake Tahoe and you can combine many of these with fantastic city breaks in Vancouver, San Francisco or Las Vegas.
And why head to Japan – simply for the best & deepest powder snow around and enjoying the ski experience combined the the unique Japanese culture!
Family ski holidays
Tied as we are to the UK school holidays families don’t get too many possible skiing weeks. In order of popularity (and price) these are: February Half-term, New Year, late March/early April (Easter) and Christmas. Those with pre-school kids can choose from the whole season. The best accommodation and family size chalets for the peak weeks will book up well in advance so our suggestion would be to book April/May for the following peak dates.
All the suggestions above work for families as well and there are also a number of tour operators who specialise and cater exceedingly well for them (from some very early ages). This might mean toddler day care, beginners 1/2 day lessons to allow the parents to get some skiing in, kids clubs and teens groups. The ski chalet-club is a safe environment and can work very well with families of all ages mixing together and, if needed babysitting and child-care in the evenings. Among the favourite operators we use are: Esprit, Ski Famille, Mark Warner and Club Med.
- Book early for peak February Half-term and New Year dates.
- Also book early if you are looking for a big private chalet.
- Easter can give you warmer and longer days – just watch the snow cover.
- If you are looking for a smaller traditional village style resort but are worried that there will not be enough skiing then ask us – there are plenty of small villages that link into the huge ski areas.
- At peak times most ski accommodation is on a weekly basis – in less popular times you can look at a multi-centre trip.
RECOMMENDED HOLIDAYS
A selection of holidays
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by TMS