We often hear from parents who regularly skied pre-children but find the prospect of heading for the hills en-famille pretty daunting, so we spoke to Ski Famille (winner of our Best Family Ski Operator award in 2017) to see how they make family ski holidays simple and fun.
Once children are old enough to ski it’s fairly easy to visualise how it’ll all work – ski school in the morning and family time in the afternoon. But, before that stage, it can be difficult to know how to tackle a winter sports holiday.
Young children bring another level of challenge to any holiday. Transporting nappies, buggies, sterlisers and stairgates can seem overwhelming enough when planning a simple trip to see Grandma; so the idea of taking all this equipment (and more) on holiday up a mountain, in the midst of winter, can seem mind boggling.
Don’t be put off though, taking young children on a family skiing holiday can be enormously rewarding and there are specialist tour operators out there who can help.
One of our favourite well established expert in the field is Ski Famille; their small and knowledgeable team’s focus is on stripping out the hassle at the same time as maximising the fun and relaxation.
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Ski Famille’s high quality catered family chalets have all been built or modified to their own particular design and are located in world class ski areas. Most importantly for families with young children in the mix, they offer the Ski Famille’s exclusive in-chalet childcare. Your ski fix won’t be dependent on juggling childcare duties, trying out local creches or leaving the children behind. The Ski Famille nannies will come to you in your chalet. The cosy “home from home” environment this creates quickly puts both parents and children at ease. Childcare options include full and half day sessions for children from three months to 12 years old. Ski school lessons are available for children from three years old and can be arranged as part of the Ski Famille childcare service.
Their nannies will take the children to and from the slopes leaving you free to enjoy your own skiing, or a leisurely lunch in the sun.
For the youngest guests, cots, high chairs, off-road buggies, nappies, wipes, baby monitors, sterlisers are available free of charge in every Ski Famille chalet. Each property has its own well equipped playroom. Parents also have the reassurance that all nannies and childcare assistants are Ski Famille employees recruited in the UK. The whole team undergoes an Enhanced DBS check, as well as being reference checked and First Aid trained. Many of the resort team return to work for Ski Famille year after year.
The chalets themselves are within an easy walk of the slopes and all offer the option of booking a family suite (whereby children and parents have separate bedrooms behind one door). Every chalet also has a hot tub, sauna or steam room for relaxation after a tiring day on the slopes. At each chalet you will also have a chef and host meaning parents will be treated to home cooked meals every evening. The most luxurious chalets in the range even have their own private cinema room.
All of Ski Famille’s chalets are located in France. You can choose from picturesque Les Gets (which also enjoys a nice short transfer from Geneva Airport), high altitude Les Menuires in the 3 Valleys or family favourite La Plagne. As well as offering excellent skiing for all abilities, all three have lots of family friendly activities away from the slopes. So, thanks to Ski Famille, taking young children skiing doesn’t need to be stressful and you don’t need to compromise on luxury.
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