Ski Holiday!

Hi guys!

Happy Tuesday!

Finally, I am sitting down to write this highly requested blog post.

So many of you showed plenty of interest in our family ski holiday while we were away in France. So in this blog post, I will try and include as much info & our thoughts on bringing kids to this type of vacation.

My fiancé, Alan, has been going to France for almost 10 years, he is an experienced snowboarder and really enjoys this annual trip. He goes to a different resort every year and this time it was Les Deux Alpes in France. He did try skiing this time as he wanted to be able to do it with Aidah and give her tips and tricks while they ski together.

I, on the other hand, love a good sun holiday where I can relax and not do anything out of my comfort zone like ski down a slope ;) and because of that I never joined him on this holiday.

We did decide that when Aidah & Andi were old enough, we would bring them on this type of trip and let them experience a holiday in the snow. Aidah is 4.5 and her little sister Andi is 1 and 9 months so for this time we booked Aidah into a ski school which was every morning from 9.15am to 12pm for 6 days and it cost €193. She really enjoyed them and we think she learned quite a bit. At that age, they pick it up so fast and they love all the activities. There was a few instructors with the kids and the children were divided into groups according to age.

The main question I got about it was 'from what age they can go to ski lessons?' I think the child needs to be 3 years old at least and personally I think it really depends on the individual child. If the child doesn't like it or doesn't want to do it, the parents have to come and collect them as there is no one to look after them if they aren't in the class.

I had not planned on doing any skiing this time so I had Andi with me while Aidah was in ski school. There is a creche that you can book your baby/child into and I think there are half day/full day options available. This needs to be done in advance.

I did end up booking a two hour lesson with an instructor and went up the slopes with him. I used to ski when I was a child and although I didn't think I would enjoy it, I have to say. I absolutely loved it and I am already looking forward to our next trip where I can do it properly.

We booked our accommodation via booking.com and it was around €600. It was super central right at the bottom of the slopes. It was very small but newly decorated, cosy and had amazing mountain views from the balcony. Had to pay extra for bed sheets & towels.

Prices for ski passes to go up the slopes were from €53 for adults or there were family/weekly options available. There is a swimming pool that you can use if you have a ski pass & ice skating rank that we went to and had a blast ice skating.

The resort was small-ish but had plenty of bars, restaurants & cafes. There was lots of ski clothing stores and ski gear on offer. You can rent your ski's, ski boots & helmet in selected stores. Supermarkets had everything from fresh bread, fresh fruit and veg, basically everything you would need for your stay.

We booked our flights with Ryanair and the flight was 2 hours long from Dublin airport to Grenoble. When we arrived to France, we had a transfer organised that took us to the slopes and that journey was another 2 hours.

What to bring was another popular question. For the girls, I had packed warm, cosy clothes. I probably brought too many if I'm honest. Two tracksuits each and thermals underneath. Polonecks, ski jacket & pants for Aidah and warm lined boots. I had a cosy romper for Andi and waterproof gloves, hats & neck warmers for both. Our apartment was very warm so the fleece pjs were actually too much. It wasn't that cold over there as we were always on the move, we were nearly too warm. I had another jacket and boots for both of them for the evening when we were going for dinner etc.

I brought very little clothes for myself which was a challenge because I do not travel light. Ski jacket and pants and warm boots for during the day. I only wore thermals under them. Had a few jumpers, jeans and warm biker boots for the evenings. Packed too much for myself if thats even possible. It's a holiday where you want comfort and cosiness and there is no point bringing anything dressy.

I have to say it was probably one of the best holidays we have ever been to with our girls. As much as we love the sun and enjoy our summer holidays, this was something different. They really loved the snow and the beauty of a true winter. The memories we have made as a family on our first ski holiday will be ones we will remember forever.

I hope you enjoyed this post and I hope I answered your questions.