Category Archives: Skiing

Ski With Kids 2012

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5 Reasons To Choose Whistler With Kids

Last week I wrote an accommodation primer for planning a trip to Whistler with kids. It seemed natural to follow-up with 5 reasons to choose Whistler for your family ski trip. My kids learned to ski at Snoqualmie near our home in Seattle. As they were taking weekly lessons there we used a trip to Whistler as a high point of the ski season and a reward for their efforts. Why? Read on…

There’s an interactive version of this map here.

1. Whistler with Kids: The Mountains

Size. Terrain. Vertical Feet. Skiable area. These are all terms you’d think more suited to a professional skier than a grade-schooler, but even at eight BigB was able to rattle of Whistler’s impressive statistics. At over 8,100 acres of skiable area on the two mountains Whistler is larger than all the other resorts in North America by far. Even a little kid can appreciate the scale by looking at the terrain map. If you have numbers-crazy boys like mine memorizing the facts became a game in itself. The benefit when visiting Whistler with kids? There is no way your child can get bored here. They can play on the snow, roll in the snow, slide on the snow, ski, ride, ride the gondola, and test themselves on Olympic-standard downhill runs and kid-sized terrain parks. Enough said.

2. Whistler with Kids: Ski Runs for Everyone

A big mountain does not a good family ski resort make. There needs to be a good distribution of runs in each skill level. There needs to be opportunities for kids to try out a tree run safely and barrel down a steep with enough room for you to keep close by in case they wipe out. Whistler’s distribution of beginner, intermediate and expert runs is 20-55-25, Blackcomb’s is 15-55-30. Even from the top there’s a choice between easy green, wide, sweeping blues or sharp, straight black runs down the mountain. When you’re at Whistler with your kids it’s easy to accommodate a daredevil kid or a cautious skier and still have plenty of fun.

3. Whistler with Kids: Mountain Features Made for Kids

Yes, that’s a house-sized tree fort, on the mountain. On Whistler mountain actually. Blackcomb has a magic castle. Even the runs into these are kid-sized – or so they always seemed to me. The view across the valley from in front of the tree fort on a clear day makes you feel like the world is laid out at your feet. Not that your kids will notice mind you, they’ll be too busy climbing and sliding, taking a break from the hard work of skiing to just play in this made-for-kids mountain feature.

4. Whistler with Kids: Food, Glorious Food

If your kids are like mine, they’ll spend their ski day alternating between skiing and eating – with likely at least one badly-timed bathroom break. One of my favorite things about skiing on Whistler with kids is the profusion of food choices on the mountains themselves. I ski with pockets stuffed with granola bars, trail mix and chocolate, but they need real food to keep them going too. The resort charge option on Whistler’s lift tickets means that my kids, now a little older, can be independent about choosing and buying their own food.

5. Whistler with kids: The Peak to Peak Gondola

When the Peak to Peak gondola in 2009 opened I swore I’d wait “a few years” before riding on it. My kids had other ideas. We rode it every day, multiple times a day that season. Another one to chalk up on my list of the things you do with kids. And really, my kids were right. On a clear day the views from the gondola are straight from a picture postcard. You have to admire the engineering and, at 11mins start to finish, you have to admit that it’s a faster way to cross from one mountain to the other than downloading and uploading.

You don’t even have to be a skier or boarder to enjoy this panoramic gondola ride which is particularly good to know for anyone visiting Whistler with very young kids. Make a day of it: ride the Whistler gondola up for lunch at the Roundhouse, take the Peak-to-Peak across to Blackcomb for hot chocolate and stop at the sliding center on your way back down the mountain.

That’s it, there’s my 5 great reasons why Whistler is my pick for families. If you have any questions about this resort, or skiing in kids generally, leave a comment and I’ll do my best to answer your question, ok?

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Family Skiing: Three Cost Saving Ideas

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I love my junk mail at this time of the year. It seems like every day there’s another glossy photo of mountains and powder with promises of deals and bargains – all of which I read in detail. Hey, a girl can dream, can’t she? Seriously though, the deluge of ski-themed junk mail did make me realize that I owe it to other folks who are interested in family skiing to share some of the cost-saving strategies I’ve been using to get my family out on the slopes without completely breaking the bank.

Gear
Skiing is an expensive sport. Skis, boots, poles and bindings for just one child can make a hefty dent in any family’s budget. I’ve saved a fortune by using ski swaps. In the Seattle area, the best of the bunch is the Newport Ski and Snowboard Swap held annually at Newport High School (Nov 13-14, 2009, Fri 5pm-9pm & Sat 8am-6pm). Much of the gear on sale comes from individuals or families but local ski shops also participate and provide most of the technical sales assistance. Online classifieds and stores which sell or trade used gear are also a good source. I’ve used craigslist and PlayItAgainSports. If you’re in Utah, you can check out the awesome winter gear section on the Snow List classifieds.

Your munchkins will be champion grumblers rather than champion skiers if they’re cold on the slopes. Layers of warm undies and fleece under insulated, waterproof outwear are a must. There are great deals available right now in the Sale + Clearance section on REI.com – and if you’re a member, they’ll even give you more money off (20%) with the member’s only Fall Coupon Sale. Lands’ End is another good source for reasonably-priced winter clothing. (You can get brand-name, gently-used outerwear at ski swaps, but understandably size selection can be hit-or-miss).

Finally, October is a great time to check out ski shops in your area for sales of last season’s gear and ex-rental equipment. In the Seattle area, I’ve had success with Seattle Ski and Snowboard and Sturtevants. If you’re buying for an older child and expect to use the gear with younger siblings, this is option may be best for you.

Lift Tickets and Passes
Now is the time to snag early season deals on ski lift tickets. Sales of annual passes for many resorts are heavily discounted if purchased before October 31st with savings still available through Thanksgiving. Similar deals are common on multi-day passes and vacation packages if you book early also. For example, Washington state and Canada residents can pre-purchase lift tickets for Whistler Blackcomb at a 30% discount until November 23rd. If you’re thinking of California, there’s deals on packages at Mammoth and The Village At Squaw Valley (which, btw, has an awesome mountain village feel and great family skiing).

Accommodation
If you’re traveling to ski, accommodation at resorts can be pricey especially during winter vacations. If there’s a resort you’re interested in visiting this season, check out their website now and see if you can sign up for a newsletter or special offer emails. I have consistently found this a reliable source for worthwhile offers. If you’ve rented a house or condo from an individual during a prior season and you plan to return to the same resort this year, contact the owner and ask about discounts for returning visitors.

I realize that some of my fair-weather friends think I’m more than a little nutty about winter sports. But hey, who wouldn’t want one of these:

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planning family ski trips

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CAM and BigB at Snoqualmie

It’s just about that time of year when, in my household, we start thinking of winter sports. It’s hard not to, we get mail or email almost daily from one of the many ski resorts in Washington or British Columbia enticing us to buy season passes or to book a ski trip early this year. Ha! Not in this economy. But since we’ve skied for the past ten years with our kids (you have to do something to get them outside in the wet and miserable Pacific Northwest winters) I have some tips on planning a ski trip with kids which hopefully, you’ll find useful.

If you are planning a ski trip, the first step is obviously to choose where you want to ski. Start by choosing a region: e.g. the Rockies; the Northeast; British Columbia. Once you have made that choice, you will probably find that there are multiple resorts in that area. The Lake Tahoe area in California is an extreme example of this: there are 15 different ski resorts around Lake Tahoe. When we visited this area in 2004, we skied at three different resorts during the five-day trip and even the kids enjoyed comparing the resorts.

BigB, three years old, first time on skis – again at Snoqualmie – taking lessons with Powder Pigs, a local ski school.

Childcare Facilities
A must for any family with infants and toddler. Not all resorts have childcare facilities for infants. Even where such facilities are available, advance reservations are usually required since the number of available places is limited. Additionally, the location of these facilities is also important: the best option is that the childcare is on the ski hill for ease of access for you in case of emergency.

Ski Schools
Most resorts have some form of ski school. If you are looking for lessons for children, it is important to look for a school which advertises this as Kid’s Clubs or Kid’s Programs. For younger children look for small group sizes and half-day lesson options paired with a suitable childcare program.

Choosing a resort
For ease and comfort, choose a resort where all the off-mountain facilities are clustered in a village-type location at the base of the mountain and select accommodation which has convenient access to services. Get a copy of a resort map either from the resort website or by calling guest services in advance to help with this.

Accommodation
Most ski resorts provide a variety of accommodation types: from typical hotel rooms to condos and houses. Check a resort map before you book your accommodation choices. For example, if you know you’re going to use the childcare facilities and they are located down the mountain from your ski-in-ski-out condo, you will find yourself trudging uphill every evening most likely carrying your child and his or her equipment.

Pricing
Skiing is expensive. You can pay up to $90 for a daily lift ticket at some of the major U.S. resorts. Ticket prices will vary across resorts within a region and over time during a ski season, based on holidays and school closures. Christmas is more expensive than any other time during the season for lift tickets and accommodation. Equipment rental prices do not usually change within a season.

Additional Activities
Cross-country skiing, snow tubing, snowmobiling, sleigh rides, snowshoeing. These are all winter activities which may be fun if you want to take a break from downhill skiing or snowboarding.

Equipment rental
Renting ski equipment at resorts is usually more expensive than off-mountain. To save money, look for a retailer in your neighborhood from whom you can rent equipment more cheaply than at your resort. However, if you are flying to your ski resort, keep in mind that your airline may levy additional costs for odd-size baggage. If your kids are new to skiing, equipment rental may make sense while they adjust to the new activity.

CAM, my independent skier.

There are no ski resorts in Ireland and skiing was a tremendously exotic sport to me until I first tried it. And then I fell down – a lot. We are lucky to live in an area where day-trips to ski are possible and this has meant that it is more affordable for us to get our kids out on the mountain during the winter. Now I’m hooked. I will watch the weather reports for about six different resorts from now through the end of the ski season. My many years of driving to a local ski hill weekend after weekend in snow, sleet and rain are starting to pay off: last season we skied as a family (i.e. we didn’t have to enroll the kids in ski school) and the boys even took some runs on their own.

Do you have a favorite family ski resort? What are the features or facilities which make it better than others? Do you have a tip for planning a family ski vacation to add to the list above?
Leave a comment with your recommendations and suggestions.

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