Recommendations for intermediates and 3yo/non-skiers?

I'm trying to find a european resort for late March that will give good
intermediate level skiing and also have enough activities to satisfy my
3 year and her mum who is a reluctant beginner skier. Things that I
think would help are sledging areas at the resort, swimming pools and
ice rinks to keep the child happy, with a half decent selection of
cafes and shops to keep mum occupied! I'd like to try my daughter on
skis, but even if she's up for it, she would probably only have the
stamina for an hour or so.

I know some compromises are probably going to be necessary, but I'd
like to have opinions on where to start looking first... thanks!

wrote:

I'm trying to find a european resort for late March that will give good
intermediate level skiing and also have enough activities to satisfy my
3 year and her mum who is a reluctant beginner skier. Things that I
think would help are sledging areas at the resort, swimming pools and
ice rinks to keep the child happy, with a half decent selection of
cafes and shops to keep mum occupied! I'd like to try my daughter on
skis, but even if she's up for it, she would probably only have the
stamina for an hour or so.

I know some compromises are probably going to be necessary, but I'd
like to have opinions on where to start looking first... thanks!

Hi Mark,

Tignes ticks all the boxes. Brilliant intermediate skiing and a very
child friendly resort. Sledging areas, fantastic new swimming pools,
ice rink, husky dogs, pony rides, child-friendly cafes and quite a few
shops. The mum could also hop the bus to Val d'Isere (approx €9
return) if she wants some serious shopping, but Val's much less child
friendly.

Both ESF and Evolution 2 (and maybe some other) ski schools are quite
child oriented as well. You could always try your daughter out on the
Rosset learner slope for an hour or so to see if she likes it (did this
with my nieces last year - very successful) and then get her a private
lesson if you think appropriate. If you want to do this I'd recommend
calling ESF in Tignes Le Lac and asking specifically for Sarah Musson -
she's ace with children.

Cheers,

Matt

mark writes:

I'm trying to find a european resort for late March that will give good
intermediate level skiing and also have enough activities to satisfy my
3 year and her mum who is a reluctant beginner skier. Things that I
think would help are sledging areas at the resort, swimming pools and
ice rinks to keep the child happy, with a half decent selection of cafes
and shops to keep mum occupied! I'd like to try my daughter on skis, but
even if she's up for it, she would probably only have the stamina for an
hour or so.

I know some compromises are probably going to be necessary, but I'd like
to have opinions on where to start looking first... thanks!

We went to Val Thorens over Christmas/New Year with our son who was 3 years
and 2 months at the time. Things to say:

- he liked shovelling snow with his small plastic sledge a lot more than
sliding on it! Burying a parent particularly good fun. We had much more fun
after there had been fresh snow.

- We did get skis for him but that wasn't a success. He'd been keen on the
idea of skiing, but got put off the first time he fell (on a flat bit of
course), got cold and tired quickly, found the boots and the
helmet-and-goggles uncomfortable, etc. We'd vaguely thought we might find
an instructor for him for a lesson, but didn't in the end because we didn't
feel we could arrange it so that there was a decent chance he'd be good
tempered at the lesson time. Maybe next year.

- finding a bit of snow just off-piste under a lift was a good move, he
could shovel and try to understand how the lift worked and wave to the
people on the lifts and watch for Daddy...

- he got a free ski pass which was good even though he never used it with
skis on, because it let him go up and down in gondolas, which he loved.

- no sledging area as such (well, there's a toboggan run but small children
aren't allowed), but lots of people sledging on odd bits of snow in the
village, at the edges of the village pistes, down access roads especially
after lifts shut, etc. Not hard to find places. Free "magic carpet" lift
somewhat useful.

- swimming pool and "fun park" - large area of cushions, 3 ball pools,
bouncy castle, trampolines etc. - which he loved, in the sports centre.

- you can only spend so much time in shops and cafes with a 3yo, however
many there are (maybe you were talking about mum on her own, which is
another matter!). Best thing we did was to choose an apartment with a
balcony overlooking the village slopes, spent a lot of time there and
didn't feel cut off. (Residences Village Montana.) VT has plenty of
restaurants etc. but no really cafe-ish cafes where I'd have been happy
spending hours; lots of shops but they're all the same. I think a non-skier
would have to take plenty of books, or be very keen on people watching.

- watching diggers and snowploughs and snowcats is fun :-)


Previous year we went to Flaine, which also worked well; VT a bit better
though.

HTH,

Perdita

wrote:

I'm trying to find a european resort for late March that will give good
intermediate level skiing and also have enough activities to satisfy my
3 year and her mum who is a reluctant beginner skier.

At least for the kid, there is the resort "Lindvallen", in Salen, Sweden.

They do group teaching of kids in age groups 3, 4-6, 7-9, 10-12 and 13-16.

I think they are really good with kids (mine are 2 and 6), but my only
personal experience other than that, has been in Austria 20 years ago, so
YMMW.

Salen is about 300 km south of Are (where they ski WC at the moment).

Its not the alps though, not much sun, not many shops. I am uncertain about
the conditions end-march.

Regards,

Mads

--
Mads Bondo Dydensborg http://www.madsdydensborg.dk/

I don't say this lightly. However, I really think that the U.S. no longer
is classifiable as a democracy, but rather as a plutocracy.
- H. Peter Anvin

On Jan 22, 11:43 am, "
wrote:
I'm trying to find a european resort for late March that will give good
intermediate level skiing and also have enough activities to satisfy my
3 year and her mum who is a reluctant beginner skier. Things that I
think would help are sledging areas at the resort, swimming pools and
ice rinks to keep the child happy, with a half decent selection of
cafes and shops to keep mum occupied! I'd like to try my daughter on
skis, but even if she's up for it, she would probably only have the
stamina for an hour or so.

I know some compromises are probably going to be necessary, but I'd
like to have opinions on where to start looking first... thanks!

There are many places I could suggest like those already listed or Les
Deux Alpes. One important thing to remember though is that the week of
31/03 is chucker everywhere in France. 24/03 is cheap with lots of
availability and won't be busy. 07/04 is fine too. 4-star residences
with pools in big resorts like Tignes or Val Thorens are available on
Ski Collection.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
XS
Peak Retreats http://www.peakretreats.co.uk
Ski Collection http://www.skicollection.co.uk