Make the most of your toddler skis

Have you bought some toddler skis?

The plastic toddler skis as seen being used with the ski trainer is excellent for pre-skis schoolers. If you now have a pair and are preparing for your ski holiday just take a second to plan when and how you can make the most of them. We found the use we got out of them was in the afternoon when we were as a family just having fun in the snow. We bought some bum whizzes in the local shop (just small plastic discs with a handle to pull through the legs) and took them and the skis to snowy bit round the back of the hotel.

After whizzing down the small slopes on the bum whizzes and lots of falling off, we put the skis on our toddler and just on the flat part let her walk around with her poles. After feeling very grown up and trying to actually ski like her big brother she soon got bored and wanted them off. Thanks to the easy grips round her normal snow boots this wasn't a hassle.

I was thinking, great thats £40 (yes they cost that much in resort!) wasted but after another 5 minutes of flying down the little slopes and laughing her head of she wanted them on again. And so set the pattern of the rest of the holiday. On off on off on off. But slowly she gained confidence walking in them, getting used to the odd feeling of these long things on her feet and just having fun. Towards the end of the holiday we put the ski trainer harness on her and she started going down little slopes which was such fun and seeing her little face as she realised she was skiing like her big brother!

We didn't set out to teach her skiing positions or anything formal, leaving that to ski school this year, but I hope we have introduced her to fantastic world of skiing and hope that when she starts ski school for the first time this feb she wont be scared but will be excited and will have an idea what this skiing malarcky that mummy and daddy (and now her big brother) are so addicted to!!!

Visit Little Skiers for the ski trainer and toddler skis

ski news!

There was fresh snow in the Alps over the weekend and with forecasts predicting more snow, more resorts should be opening soon. Les Deux Alpes, Tignes & Val d'Isere opened this weekend. Lets hope the predicted snow forecasts will enable the resorts in Andorra to open soon after their delays.

Swiss Air (www.swiss.com) is increasing their services between Heathrow & Geneva. Goods news as it is one of the few remaining airlines that offers free ski & snowboard carriage. If you haven't booked your ski trip yet, look at our info pages which shows transfer times from airports. Geneva is well placed to reach many resorts.

Crystal is holding a last minute sale, with ski holidays to a variety of european resorts : crystal sale

and finally, according to onthesnow.com, the Gstaad ski area is offering family discounts with children under the age of 9 skiing and staying free of charge (in your room). Look into resorts such as Les Diablerets (6 hotels with this offer) and Saanen and Chateau d'Oex (which has a kiddie ski area.

More ski resorts open

After yet another weekend of snow, more European glacier ski resorts have opened now. This excellent start to the season means that popular resorts such as Tignes are starting to build a healthy base of snow and are skiable now.

Even better, next week looks like most of the Alps will see some heavy snow making it a promising start to the season.

So fingers crossed for weeks to come!

November offer at Little Skiers....

FREE NIKWAX WITH EVERY JACKET, PANTS OR SKI SET

We want your fab new ski gear to remain in pristine condition, hopefully lasting your children as their school winter coat as well as their ski holiday jacket.

If your kids are anything like mine then you will be regularly washing their ski jackets. My little boy regularly comes home with his red trespass ski jacket (as modelled on our site!) caked in mud as apparently you must skid when playing football.

His jacket's waterproofness is maintained by Nikwax, who are renowned for their technical washes and waterproofing agents. Never ever wash ski jackets in detergents as they strip the waterproof layer, allowing water to soak in. Every 3 washes I then follow the wash with a nixwax waterproofing in-wash and his jacket is as good as when he first wore it last winter.

So with every purchase of a child's ski jacket, ski pants or ski set we will send you a full sized Nikwax wash to try and you will never risk your clothes with anything else!

www.littleskiers.co.uk

its snowing in the Alps!

October has been a great start to the ski season. Many ski resorts in the Alps have opened already thanks to heavy snow falls. Austria took the lead, with an incredible snowfall of 1.8m in the Tux glacier area, closely followed by the Molltal glacier with 1.4m. Other ski areas getting fresh snow include Kaprun, Cervinia, Tignes, Zermatt & Saas Fee.

Lets hope it continues...

Metro Ski & Snowboard Show - got your tickets??

We are looking forward to next weeks show, starting wed 21st Oct until the 25th oct.

Its a fantastic way to kick-off the skiing season - our top of the list attractions are:

• 50ft kicker - can't wait to see the tricks & stunts by top UK & international skiers & boarders - and make me feel inadequate!
• following that, we will be visiting Warren Smith Ski Academy to have a 30 minute assessment on my skiing and hopefully how to to improve it

So if you haven't got your ticket yet, treat yourself at www.metrosnow.co.uk

Full details of all the attractions are on the site

Fantastic offer on Barts hats - this weekend only!!!

Buy a Barts hat & receive a fleece neck warmer for free...

To celebrate our fab new range of Barts hats & accessories, for this weekend only, with every Barts hat you buy, you will receive a free fleece neck warmer worth £5.99!

Barts is renowned throughout the european skiing world for their stylish hats and accessories. Soft, thick chunky knits, cute designs or trendy beanies, it is a crime to save these hats for the ski holiday!

So, for this weekend only, starting today & ending midnight Sunday, all Barts hats purchased (including adult hats) will receive a complementary fleece neck warmer in either black, red, off white or pink which are currently selling on line for £5.99*

*while stocks last. Should stocks sell out over the weekend we will endeavour to secure new stock in within a week. Please state in the comments box when at checkout, which colour neck warmer you would prefer.

PLEASE VOTE FOR LITTLE SKIERS....

PLEASE VISIT www.thegoodwebguide.co.uk and complete the simple feedback form on what you think of our website, Little Skiers - please be nice!

voting ends tomorrow...

Booking with a travel agent?

Fellow parent & Little Skiers customer, Geoff Caddick, has some interesting thoughts on booking your ski trip independently.....

Why not do an exercise to comapre what you can do yourself versus what the travel agents and ski comapnies offer? The hard works is up front in researching putting together a package but this can be fun.

The rationale: If you hate sitting on coaches that often linger at airports waiting for several groups to arrive on different flights and then throw your children around on mountain roads when they do set out, often with dire alimentary consequences .... and .... the flights being offered are leaving UK at ungodly hours....... and you arrive at a resort where half of France is in residence for a with with prices set to match the pockets of rich Russian oil tycoons.... then you might want to look at ski trains or even fly drive via airports with scheduled flights. You could be surprised by how good a deal you can get on car hire and airline tickets. Plus there are some real little hotel gems out there. I own up to having limied experience of catered chalets as they seem to focus primarily on afternoon cake baking versus real food provision!

Admittedly it helps if you speak a little of one or two languages but European tourist offices are very helpful and usually cater for UK mon-glots. Plus there are some great ski resorts guides available from your local book shops and the tour operators web sites are often useful if read carefully and sceptically, especially when they say that the resort caters for all abilities. Always review the piste maps carefully!

I have booked ski holidays this way for the last few years and really love working to a more relaxed and family specific agenda. This is especially useful - if like me - you have 4 children and on-line booking tools don't cater well in terms of detailing hotel family rooms.

The other big plus is you can target smaller resorts with less ski traffic and more local charm if you wish.

Again, this is something I do based on ski guides and mini "reccies" of different areas when at a neighbouring resort.

In summary, I would say that this DIY strategy is worth exploring if you have the time and drive and you are willing to go beyond the single single booking transaction that gets you into an all found package in the mainstream resorts.

Good Luck!

new stock in....

... we are very excited at Little Skiers as our new seasons stock is now available. We have fallen in love with the super soft Barts hats (and the children have picked their favourites!).

Visit Little Skiers shop now and order some of the super soft fleeces and gorgeous hats to keep your little ones snug as a bug!

Any items you want but not there? We love to hear feedback on what you would like to see on the site. Thanks to previous customers suggestions, we are now stocking the fabulous sorel boots and children's ski helmets. All suggestions gratefully received!

first snow flakes have fallen...

According to the Ski Club of Great Britain:

Snow reports
AUT Snow has fallen in Austria! All glacier reports are reporting fresh snow. Winter is coming... FRA No skiing available, but it's been snowing! Tignes will re-open in two weeks. ITA Fresh snow has fallen at Val Senales so the pistes are in great shape. SWI It's been snowing at Saas Fee and the week started well with fresh snow on the slopes. N.A No skiing in the resorts we report on in North America. AUS Lovely spring snow conditions in Australian resorts. NZ Excellent late season conditions. Cardrona looks good with their best snow base in ten years. ARG Great skiing and snow conditions, particularly in Las Lenas. CHL Excellent piste skiing across Chile now that the snow has packed down.

skiclub GB website

Barts just arrived!

Our fab new range of hats, mittens & helmet covers have just arrived ready for those chillier days. Barts are well known for their uber stylish designs on the ski slopes but why just wait till then?

so buy yours now & your children's hats (yes we couldn't resist having some for us grown ups too) before they go.....

Boards and skis fly free with bmibaby

Wednesday 02 September 2009

As more airlines start charging for ski and board carriage on top of their airfares, it's refreshing to see that one carrier is actively welcoming winter sports enthusiasts with all their kit!

Low cost airline, bmibaby, has announced that travellers can take their skis and snowboards for free on flights to Geneva, Grenoble, Malaga and Toulouse. The offer is available for new bookings made from 1st September 2009 for a limited time only.

The promotion celebrates the launch of the airline’s new low cost flights to Grenoble from Manchester, Cardiff, East Midlands and Birmingham Airport. The recently launched winter route for 2009/10 makes it easier for skiers wanting to access Chamonix, Chamrousse, Méribel, Vaujany and Brides-les-Bains.

Julian Carr, commercial director at bmibaby said, “Many travelers including families, couples and students, are heading to the rich ski and snowboard scene in France every year. We look forward to carrying thousands of passengers on the Grenoble service over the winter months.”

The airline offers ski routes from Manchester to Grenoble and Geneva and from Cardiff, Birmingham and East Midlands Airport to Grenoble and Geneva, with prices starting from £35.99 one way.

article taken from www.skiclub.co.uk

family friendly ski resorts

1.     With very young children and toddlers it is worth finding a resort with minimal transfer times.  Some resorts can have a 3 or 4 hour transfer time on a coach from the airport, which many small children (or parents) couldn’t cope with. Consider Austrian resorts such a Kaprun, Bad Gastein and Kitzbuhel which are near to Salzberg Airport or French resorts such as Flaine or Morzine which are close to Geneva airport.  Older children may survive the longer journeys so you will have a larger selection.  For more details and a list of resorts worth considering, look at our section on holidays at www.littleskiers.co.uk/holidays-explained.

 

Top Family Friendly Destinations to consider:

Valmorel, France

Flaine, France

Borovetz, Bulgaria

Rauris, Austria

Galtur, Austria

Choosing ski holidays???

Useful website which has all the piste maps for various countries.

Check out : www.skipistemaps.com so you can be sure what runs (and their levels) are available in the resorts you are looking at.  

09/10 flights now released

Easyjet & BMiBaby have just started to release their winter flights for the skiing season 2009/2010, consider booking now to get the best flight deals.

Easyjet website:

Easyjet are currently offering £25.99 per person (including taxes & charges) from East Midlands to Geneva on Monday 18th Jan, returning monday 25th January for only £20.99.

A good site worth looking at is SKYSCANNER where you check out all the flights from a majority of the low-cost carriers, including all the add on charges and taxes, making it easy to compare fares.

www.littleskiers.co.uk

New Helmet law in the Alps after spate of deaths

A new law requiring all children under 14 to wear helmets on the slopes has been rushed into resorts in Austria following the death of a mother in a high-speed collision on the piste. Beata Christandl died of head injuries after a collision with a German politician, Dieter Althaus, at a combined speed of 60mph. Althaus, who was wearing a helmet, survived the impact, but suffered a skull fracture and remains in a coma.

Mrs Christandl is the 17th skier to die in an accident on the piste in Austria this season, and the authorities are under increasing pressure to extend the law to cover snow-sports enthusiasts of all ages. Doctors say sustained sub-zero conditions have created faster pistes, making impacts significantly more severe when skiers collide. Christian Kaulfersch, an A&E doctor, said: “Crashes at 30mph are like falling onto concrete from a second-floor balcony.”

Austrian authorities predict 5,500 serious head injuries on the slopes this season, and Swiss resorts report about 150 cases every day. Josef Schmid, of the Austrian skiing federation, supports making helmets compulsory for all skiers. “We recommend that all skiers wear helmets,” he said. “It’s not just young children — adults also need protection. With the new carving skis, people tend to ski faster and overestimate their abilities. The slopes are very busy; it’s safer for everyone if you wear a helmet.”

Before now, helmet use has been mandatory only in some Italian resorts, and only for skiers under the age of 14, but Betony Garner, of the Ski Club of Great Britain, which recommends helmet use for under-14s, says increasing numbers of skiers and snowboarders are seeing the benefit of head protection: “Lots of twentysomethings wear helmets because it makes them look like a freerider, but I’ve seen increasing numbers of mothers and older men wearing helmets.”

Yet Dr Mike Langran, of the International Society for Skiing Safety, warns that wearing head protection won’t necessarily save a skier’s life. “Helmets may prevent or reduce the severity of many minor or moderate head injuries, but there is no data to support the idea that they will protect against fatal head injuries,” he said. “The absolute risk of a serious head injury is extremely small, and in my opinion — and that of most ski-injury experts — does not warrant making the wearing of ski helmets mandatory.

“The single most important thing is for skiers and boarders to ski/board within the level of their ability — don’t try speeds, slopes or tricks way beyond your ability level.”

www.timesonline.co.uk

Spring skiing continues in Scotland

Monday 06 April 2009
British Ski Club of Great Britain writes:

Three of Scotland’s five snowsports areas will be offering Easter skiing, making this one of the longest snowsports seasons in recent years.

Cairngorm webcam-Monday
"Scotland was amongst the first snowsports country in Europe to start operations this season, with the Lecht opening on 31st October 2008”, says Marian Austin, Chair of ski-scotland. "Scotland’s normal winter weather pattern means that, while the east usually gets good early snow, the west and centre often benefit from late snow, which is what we’re seeing now.”


According to our snow reports, Cairngorm still has a 23cm on its upper slopes and is offering good spring skiing thanks to overnight grooming. The pistes will be hard at first, but will soften as the day warms up. The Nevis Range has 28cm on it supper slopes thanks to some recent fresh snow, and similarly to Cairngorm the snow cover is firmly packed in the morning but this quickly softens as the day heats up. Off-piste skiing is still available in the Back Corrie if you're prepared to make the 25 minute walk to access the terrain! And finally, Glencoe is currently closed but will be re-opening for snowsports over the Easter weekend.

RECORD NUMBERS OF SKIERS THIS SEASON

Winter 2008/9 attracted record numbers of skiers to the Scottish resorts thanks to heavy snowfalls in February. All the areas reported high numbers of first-time visitors who normally ski or snowboard abroad, possibly linked to the attraction of saving money by skiing more locally.

“What we find at this time of year”, adds Marian, “is that when people don’t have snow in their back gardens, they think there’s no snow in the mountains. That means a good, crowd-free experience for those who do come to ski or snowboard at this time of year, with some really great good-value offers and the chance of fair weather overhead to go with it.”

The three ski areas of Nevis Range, CairnGorm Mountain and Glencoe Mountain all have some special offers and events planned for Easter. On Good Friday, Nevis Range is offering a day’s skiing or snowboarding for the price of a gondola ticket (£9.50 adult, £5.50 child), whilst CairnGorm Mountain will be celebrating the 90s from Saturday until Monday, with free skiing for those who can produce a CairnGorm season ticket from the 90s.

Glencoe Mountain is also offering limited-availability Saturday or Sunday tickets at £20 (adult) and megadeals including full day ticket, ski, board or blade hire and 2 hours instruction for £50 (junior). Both Nevis Range and CairnGorm report their terrain parks are open and CairnGorm will be hosting Freestyle coaching sessions from 9th to 11th April (pre-registration necessary) and the Highland Freestyle Event on 11th April.

The forecast is for predominantly cloudy weather this week across the Scottish resorts which could deliver some fresh snow. Fingers crossed!
Related websites

* > www.ski.visitscotland.com

How much snow???

Well, what a skiing holiday.  We've just come back from Flaine in France and it has been fantastic.  It snowed every day and night, apart from the last day, so we have been skiing on-piste in snow well above the boots and off-piste in snow up to our knees!

Europe has had the best snow fall in years so if you are off skiing soon or even as late as the Easter holidays you should be in for a real treat.  One thing to note if you are going soon, it is very cold!  I have never known it so cold, I even had to buy some tights for under my ski pants!  It was between - 14 and -20 degrees every day so do check the temperatures where you are going and pack thermals accordingly - I was so thankful my two Little Skiers had theirs.

European Snow Reports (01/13/09 weekly)
Ski Resort	Lower Slopes	Upper Slopes
Chamonix	70 cm	190 cm
Cortina	80 cm	220 cm
Lech-Zürs	70 cm	105 cm
St Anton	50 cm	140 cm
St Moritz	130 cm	200 cm
Saas Fee	95 cm	285 cm
Sölden	20 cm	200 cm
Val d'Isère	105 cm	165 cm
Zermatt	235 cm	250 cm

Snow Reports

Good snow, sunny in Austria. New snow for Bad Gastein (30/160cm) and Saalbach (40/125cm).

In France, cold, sunny. Alpe d’Huez (70/125cm), Les Deux Alpes (60/150cm).

Good skiing in Switzerland. Andermatt (50/280cm), Wengen (40/65cm) have great snow.

In Italy the Milky Way resorts have great snow. Sauze d’Oulx (160/260cm). In Andorra. Pal/Arinsal (70/120cm), Arcalis (60/170cm). New snow expected in Bularia Bansko (80/105cm), Borovets (60/110cm).

thanks to www.ski-europe.com/

Ski Club Remind Skiers to Take Out Insurance

15-12-08

 

The Ski Club of Great Britain has warned skiers and snowboarders to ensure they have travel insurance before going on any snow sports holidays this season. 34 per cent of respondents to a poll on the Ski Club’s website revealed that they did not have insurance at all or their policy only covered them for the basic.

 

Alyn Morgan, Information Manager at the Ski Club of Great Britain, said, ‘People who are unlucky enough to have an accident on the slopes can often get caught out by either forgetting to take out insurance, thinking they can risk going away without it or not taking out adequate cover. The key is to read the small print and make sure your policy covers you for all the activities you will be taking part in.” said Alyn Morgan, Information Manager at the Ski Club of Great Britain.’

 

Some of the cheapest snow sport insurance policies don’t cover off-piste skiing, snowpark activity, snowmobiling, dog sledding, tobogganing or ski touring, whilst some don’t even cover snowboarding. Insurance is particularly worthwhile when you consider the huge costs involved in receiving treatment abroad, with air ambulances costing up to £10,000 in Europe and £30,000 in North America before any treatment has been administered. 

www.ultimate-ski.com