Skiing With Kids An Ultimate Guide & 17 Fun Tips
Is it fun to go skiing with kids?
Both Carl and I love to ski and between us, we have done a heap of ski seasons (without kids) in Europe, Asia and New Zealand. We knew from the outset that as soon as we had our kids that we wanted them to love to ski as much as we do. And now we love skiing with kids!
We took Cameron on his first ski trip when he had just turned 2 years old as we wanted him to start at a young age. Our first resort was Tignes in France where we headed for a long weekend to test the water and stay with our friends out there. Don’t get me wrong, it’s hard work skiing with a toddler, but it’s also a lot of fun too!
The idea of skiing with your kids might terrify you or excite you. So we’ve got the best ski top tips and tricks that you need for a successful first ski trip for the entire family.
1. Invest In Good Quality Ski Gear
Great ski gear really helps to make sure that your kids skiing gets off on the right foot (excuse the pun!).
The best ski equipment isn’t always the most expensive. And depending on their age you might get seasons of use from it all! Lots of resorts hire out equipment such as skis, boots and helmets. For clothing, we love nothing more than to borrow gear from our friends or buy it from second-hand sites such as Vinted.
Clothing for skiing with kids
The most important thing when you’re picking your ski gear for your toddler is to make sure that the outer layer is waterproof. This is especially important because if they’ve just started learning the chances are that they’ll fall down more often. This will mean having some waterproof snow trousers, a waterproof coat, and waterproof mittens or gloves.
Under the waterproof clothes, you’ll want to add some thermal base layers. Synthetic or merino wool ones are usually the best for keeping them warm. You should avoid cotton as a base layer because when it gets wet and cold it stays wet and cold. You’ll also want to get them some comfy ski socks that pull up over their calves. And feel good under their own ski boots.
On top of their base layer, you’ll want to add a mid-layer. A good pair of quality fleece trousers with a fleece-style sweater or jacket are good for this. Both our boys have a couple of fleeces each, we tend to buy Polarn O Pyret second hand for them!
We also always carry extra clothes, because you never know when you might need them!
Hard gear for skiing with kids
Before we go into specifics, hard ski gear like skis needs to be skier-friendly to help them learn to ski.
Depending on how often you plan to ski will be a factor in whether you decide to rent or buy. If you’re going more than two weeks a year then it’ll probably work out better to buy your kids their own ski gear. The size of the skis will depend on the height of your child. A good rental shop should be able to help with. For ski boots, you should make sure that they are very comfortable. Because nothing slows down learning more than sore feet. We had the opposite with Cam, his were so comfortable that he refused to take them off and we had to bribe him to let us take them off.
Helmets and goggles
As well as skis and boots you’ll want to invest in a good quality fitting helmet and goggles. Luckily for us, helmets are easy to get to fit well. When they fit properly, then they’ll be snug around their head and shouldn’t wobble about. If you need to force it to fit, or if the helmet sits too high on their head these are signs the helmet’s too small.
Kids’ ski goggles allow them to see much better that they would with sunglasses on. They’re also great at protecting their faces from the snow and wind. Luckily you can easily find affordable kids ski googles.
2. Try On Their Ski Equipment At Home
As we adults know ski boots can be hard to get used to because they’re not the most comfortable to wear! If you can, then you should let your kids practice wearing their ski boots around your house. You can also let them try their skis on your carpet so they can give it a go at moving their feet when their skis are on as this can be quite a challenge. As well as shuffling you can also have a go at stepping in and then out of their bindings.
Practising at home is also a great way to get your kids hyped about skiing before you go! We don’t have skis for Cam (yet), however, we love nothing more than getting dressed up in our ski clothes and pretending to ski in our living room!
3. Dress your kids in layer when skiing with them
Kids will get colder quicker than us adults and might not say anything. Dressing your kids in layers is an easy and effective way of keeping them warm. You’ll need to start with good base layers such as a thermal top and trousers, and add on a middle layer such as a fleece and top if off with a waterproof jacket and trousers. They’ll spend a lot of time in the snow so keeping them dry is really important to helping to keep them warm!
On the other end of the scale, kids will also get very hot when they’re dashing around on a warmer ski day. So wearing layers means that you can strip off layers to cool them off slowly until they reach a comfortable temperature again.
We always have our backpack with us which has spare extra layers in it as well as the million snacks we need on hand at all times. Having a backpack with you means that if they get hot you can then you take a layer off and pop it into your backpack.
4. Set yourself realistic expectations when skiing with kids
Skiing with children will be very different to when you’re skiing just as adults or with older kids. Depending on the age of your own kids, you’ll want to make sure you set yourself realistic expectations and know what you can achieve. We knew when we did our first time with Cam that as he was so young he wouldn’t be able to ski the whole day and that his energy would be short-lived. With older kids, you’ll be able to keep going for much longer.
You’ll also find that you might be on the small bunny hill or the learner area all day if they’re still learning. With older kids, they’ll probably pick up skiing a lot quicker and be bombing around the slopes before you know it! It’s important to remember that you are all having a great time and spending time in the snow together.
5. Choosing the best ski resorts for skiing with kids
The first thing to mention, is that some ski resorts aren’t great for beginners and so don’t make for great family ski holidays! We recommend looking online before you book because most ski resorts advertise their percentage of runs that are either green or blue for beginners. These will be a more gentle terrain better suited to learning on.
It’s also great to check if they have at least one magic carpet, which you’ll usually find in the beginner’s area near to the ski school. The great thing is that it’s often free to use (or is charged at a very reduced price). If you’ve not used one before, magic carpets are conveyor belts that your kids can step onto with their skis and they are then taken to the top of the slope. We love them as they make learning much much easier because you can focus on them learning to ski rather than practicing how to use the chair lift!
Another top tip is that it’s much easier to pick accommodation that is near to the beginner’s area and ski school. This is because you’ll want to minimise how much walking you do each day before and after skiing.
6. Invest in Ski Lessons
Cam had ski lessons before we went skiing on a local dry slope. It meant that he had the basics before we went and then we spent time on the slopes following what we’d learnt in his lessons. We did this as he was 2 years old and too young for kids’ ski school at the time. Even if you’re teaching your kids yourself, you might want to mix it up and have a ski instructor help you to teach your kids to ski. Most ski resorts offer group lessons for kids starting from 3 or 4 years old. If they don’t then they usually offer private lessons for younger kids.
On our second family ski holiday, Cam was 3 years old and specifically asked to go to ski school with the other kids. He took one lesson and totally loved it! It was great value as he learnt loads more skills, he played fun games and also made new friends. We could have left him and gone skiing ourselves however, we stayed and watched. I’ve heard from friends that they’ve left their young kids in ski school and gone skiing. But when they’ve come back they’ve been told hat their child had a meltdown the entire time. If your kids are older then they should be happy enough to stay with the ski instructors whilst you head off skiing.
Ski lessons mean time for adults to head off skiing!
Another fun reason for giving your toddler some ski lessons is that it gives you as their parent some time to head off skiing. Because, we all know that slowly going down green and blue slopes with your kids isn’t as fun as heading off on your own adults ski session!
7. Carrying Your Kids Skiing Gear With You
This section should be titles “carry their gear, and expect to carry them as well!” This is especially the case with younger kids. We usually try to encourage our kids to walk wherever they go if possible. However, when we ski we don’t. That’s because the quickest way to finish the day earlier is by making your child carry their ski whilst also learning to walk in their own ski boots. Don’t you remember what it’s like when it was seriously hard work walking in ski boots!
We’ve had quite a bit of practice carrying ski gear and kids at the same time, and here are a few good methods to try:
- Strap their skis onto your backpack and pop your toddler into their carrier
- Buy or rent a sledge and your kids can sit in the sledge with their skis and ski gear on their lap.
- Use an off-road pram. In the morning we loaded up what we needed. It’s crazy how many things you can strap onto and store in one. The best thing was that they had somewhere to rest if they needed to.
8. Plan on having lots of breaks when skiing with kids
Taking a ski break is a must-do when you’re skiing with kids. So you should allow yourself time in your day to spend a good amount of time resting between runs. Taking breaks is important for your kids’ ski development, so you should plan them into your day. You’ll find that young kids will usually need to take more breaks than older kids as it’s a lot of effort for them.
As soon as Cam starts to get tired we take off his ski’s and go grab a drink or some food. He often needs a little “pick me up” energy before he continues on his day!
Cam doesn’t usually nap, however we found that he needed a it of a nap time at lunch in order to boost his energy levels. So don’t be surprised if your kids sneak in a power nap! Also, remember, while your kids are resting is a great chance for you as the parents to take turns getting some adult laps in!
9. Bring plenty of snacks when you go skiing with kids
You’ll know that if you want happy kids, of any age, then you need to have lots of snacks. And skiing is no different. Kids will burn through energy learning to ski and the last thing you’ll need is a hangry child. We always make sure that we have some with us at all times, ones that are easy to eat and won’t be affected by the colder ski temperatures.
Our favourites are a packet of Mentos because they’re easier to hand out and feel like a proper sugar fix when you need one.
10. Make skiing with kids fun!
The best way to keep your kids keen to learn to ski is to make it lots of fun! That’s because young kids will usually be up for skiing for an hour or so before it’s time to have a rest. The best option is to all take of your skis and boots to have a play round in some snow.
We often have a small bum board with us so that we can play sledging, or we use our avalanche shovel so build a small snowman. Or for some equipment free fun we start a snowball fight, because kids of all ages (including us adults) love a snowball flinging contest!
11. First thing show them how they stop
Teaching your child how to stop is one of the first and most important skill they need to master. Cameron was quick to get started moving down the slop, but the stopping has been a long time coming. Most kids love skiing downhill fast, however, they also need to be safe. To be safe on the slope means they can slow down and stop when they want to. Kids out of control on the slopes aren’t very fun!
We started by teaching Cameron the “pizza” wedge stop which is the general term most ski instructors will teach when they’re explaining to kids how to snowplough. You can help your child by bringing the tips of their small skis together and leaving the backs out – to form the wedge of “pizza”. This will help them control their speed and stop. We love that you can then call going downhill parallel “chips”, which means as a parent you’ll often be shouting out “chips, no, no, pizza”.
12. Do lots of practice when skiing with kids
With anything new, your child needs to practice, as this will help them to get better at it, and skiing is no different. Teaching skiing to your child will take loads of practice, for you and for them, because you’ll also be learning to teach them and find out what works! Always remember, that the practice needs to be fun as well as educational.
We stayed for his ski lessons so that we could see what he was learning and then do the same with him in the afternoons. Practicing his new skills over and over again with plenty of encouragement and celebration worked really well for us.
13. Play skiing games with your kids
Young kids enjoy playing games, it makes skiing a lot more fun for them if you include some games. When they’re learning to ski, then around 95% of the time their skis will point where they’re looking. Playing ski games that make your kids either follow or look at you the whole time can really help them. There are loads that you can up, however, here are a few of our favourite ones:
Follow the leader: So simple, but so much fun! You go ahead of them (skiing backwards if you can) and then start doing fun things they can copy as they ski behind you. They can be easy like clapping your hands, or silly like wriggling your your bum.
Car races: We bring a small plastic ring with us especially for this game. Or you can use anything else that you can pretend is a steering wheel. As your toddler hold their hands in front of them holding their “steering wheel”. They can then turn their wheel when they want to make themselves turn. This is brilliant for helping their turns and balance.
14. Use a ski harness the right way
A ski harness can be a great teaching tool for younger kids if used correctly. We’ve used one with Cam. It’s been helpful for us to have peace of mind when he started hurtling down the slopes without a care. Ours had an elastic bungee that connected the leash to the harness. This meant that when we did need to slow him down we weren’t giving him a sudden jerk. When you use a harness you’ll want to ensure that you’re not pulling them off balance, because when skiing you don’t want their upper body to lean backwards. We did a mixture of harness and not using one as we were keen to not impact Cam’s learning and balance.
Another option we’ve heard of, is to use something called Slope Ropes which is a colourful rope that has two small plastic sticks at either end. One plastic stick loops around the waist of your toddler, and the other one acts as your handle that you hold on to and help them control their speed. They help you to move your toddler’s hips a little back so that they can also keep the top half of their body straight which helps them to keep balanced.
15. Have an Edgie Wedgie on hand
Another great teaching tool is an Edgie Wedgie. This is a plastic tie that connects the tips of their ski’s together. The purpose of it is to keep your kids’ ski tips together while they learn to slide and stop. This helps them control their first turns, and once they can go from skiing parallel to making their wedge (pizza to chips) you should be able to take it off. We had a tough time getting Cam to try one. Mainly because he suddenly wasn’t able to go high speed down the slopes as fast as he was!
16. Don’t forget to ask for help on the lifts when skiing with kids
Possible the hardest parts of skiing with kids is that you’ll eventually want to get them onto a ski lift. We took Cam on his first when he was two years old and super small so we could literally lift him on and off. The best thing to do is tell the lift operator that you need a little help and they’ll know to slow down the lift. You can then guide the toddler up to the loading line by gently sliding them into place.
At the top, as the chairlift comes (and slows down) you can lift your toddler under the arms and onto the seat. Make sure their back is on the back of the seat before you slowly lower down the bar and try to make sure they don’t lean over the bar. We use this time to rest and refuel by eating snacks whilst watching the other skiers on the slopes.
When you’re near the top, you can let the lift operator know that you need the lift to be slowed down. As the lift slows down you can raise the bar, and be ready to lift them under their arms. You should just slide down the off ramp.
17. Finish the day while everyone is still enjoying it
Some great advice that we can share with you is we can give you is that you should always finish your day on a high. Little kids can only ski for a little time before most of them will start top show signs that they may be tired which might potentially lead to a toddler meltdown. It’s definitely a lot nicer for everyone if you can end the day before they get too tired. For us, the aim of the game is to get our kids to love the snow as much as we do, and for them to want to come back for more. This won’t happen if their day ended with them being sad, tired or frustrated!
Best Age To Teach Kids To Ski
Is there a magic age to start to teach kids to ski? In our opinion, there really isn’t a specific age. We just kind of knew that Cameron was ready to have some dry slope lessons at 2 years old and we took it from there. We introduced him to the equipment (as we were worried the boots would be too uncomfortable), however, from day one, he’s loved it. Little kids spend a lot of the their time learning, and falling and getting themselves back up which makes them a whole lot more resilient that us adults. We seem to fall a lot harder than toddlers do!
Generally, for most kids, the easiest age to think about starting to get your kids skiing tends to be around 4 years old. That’s because they are comfortable going to ski school on their own and have good motor skills.
Cam started learning to ski when he was 2 years old at a dry slope near us. This was the only option when you live somewhere that doesn’t get much snow. We started him so young as we LOVE skiing and its so much more fun to be outdoors him as a toddler than it is being inside at home. Cam took to the lessons and would ask to go each week and it was great prep for our first family ski trip. Toddler skiing is very possible if your toddler has loads of energy and wants to give it a go. A bit like teaching them to swim or snorkel.
Skiing With Kids FAQ’s
There isn’t a specific age that young children should start skiing. If you decide to give them ski lessons then you’ll be restricted to the age that you can get a children’s ski lesson which is typically between 3-4 years old. You could choose to get private lessons if you want them to start skiing younger, or even teach them yourselves.
This very much depends on your skill levels and your kids. Some young children find that they enjoy ski school whereas others don’t and want to remain with their parents. If you are proficient skiers then there isn’t any reason why you can’t teach them yourselves. We personally opt for a mix of teaching and ski school.
This is really down to your preference as parents. We like to use a harness as it helps us to keep some control with our toddler in case he’s out of control as he’s still so young. We don’t rely on it and use it correctly so that it doesn’t affect his balance.
It depends on how frequently you plan to ski. If you live near a family friendly resort and plan on going regularly then it could be a good reason to buy their own skis and pair of ski boots. We always borrow as much as we can from friends. And then rent the rest such as skis and boots from a local ski shop. The good news is that you can buy so much second hand these days. This means that you don’t have to spend a small fortune to get them kitted out.
Final Thoughts on Skiing With Kids
We absolutely love skiing with our kids. It’s been great to get our entire family up ontp the snowy mountain and having a fun time together. Taking a family ski trip is a great way to get your young kids excited about learning to ski. Especially if you love it and want them to love it too. Just remember that you’ll need to take some extra patience and make sure to make it lots of fun!
