To not understand the snobbery around skiing?

Intimidating is a good word. If you've never been as a child, it's hard to work out the options of ski passes, lessons options, plus all the clothing and protective kit hire or purchase options.

Well it’s the same with all kinds of holidays isn’t it? You’re saying you wouldn’t stay 5* on your AI holiday, so clearly you can see there are levels of affordability. It’s the same with skiing - some resorts and accommodation is very expensive, some is much less expensive.

Still not sure I get your comment though, you do seem to be assuming everyone can afford your type of holiday and it’s just the snobs that can afford ski holidays. I’m pretty sure it’s not the case.

My DB goes skiing. We certainly didn’t go as children and I’ve never fancied it myself.

If you're from the UK yes some snobbery involved
It's spenny and hard to know where to go and all the particulars if you're a beginner
If you're from Europe or USA not much snobbery.
I've been to Bulgaria skiing, it was fun and dirt cheap. Lots of drunk instructors smoking on the skii lifts and could afford one on one lessons. Saw lots of Putin "merch" too I assume for tourists. This was was precovid

I think the thing with skiing is that is generally just one of several holidays people have per year.

So some people might go for a week at AI in the summer, but have no other holidays. Lots cant afford AI in school holidays either! Almost no one does skiing as their main holiday. And if they could afford to go skiing , their summer holiday isn't going to be a week at butlins!

I live in a MC area, I'd say at least half the class in my DC year go skiing at February half term, but they would go somewhere at Easter or May half term, and summer as well. The town is noticeably deserted.

Agree that skiiing isn’t cheap but we have routinely done half term week for the last few years for £3k ish for a week so £10k is way off the mark, although you can easily spend that if you wanted.
we stay in small family hotels in Italy or Austria as France tends to be more expensive.

I do know some people who learned as adults but they either married someone who loved it and grew up skiing or had a crowd of friends who loved it and grew up skiing. It's just a pretty intimidating thing to do if you haven't done it as a child and don't know what you're doing or where to go.

I'd be interested to know how it compares, cost wise, with a trip to Disney in Florida. Or even Paris.

Every time I baulk at the price of a lift pass, I always remind myself that it's essentially the cost of entry to a massive theme park, and access to use all its facilities. Can you get into Disney for €50 a day? And hotels/food there are presumably way more than they are for skiing?

Working on the assumption that Disney costs more, it's interesting that it has none of the snobbery aimed at it that skiing has. And whilst SOME skiers go every year, SOME people also go to Disney multiple times. But without the same raised eyebrows!

We are skiing New Year week for £6k all in (apart from lunch) for a family of 4 (Inc lessons for the kids), so it's most definitely doable for under 10K!

When ive looked at it before its about £5k with no food or drink, for a week in france (flying), 2 adults and 2 kids.

That's a lot for an activity that you're not sure your children will enjoy (even if they've had lessons in the uk it's not quite the same as doing it every day for 6 days) and that is quite weather dependent.

Our main summer holiday for 10 days all inclusive in a 4 star place is only slightly more than that.

I think even if skiing is comparable price wise to an all inclusive beach type holiday....the difference is rich people can afford multiple holidays per year therefore doing something like skiing which is active rather than a drop and flop holiday is more appealing as you know you'll probably have a couple of other types of holiday that year anyway. Whereas if you're just a average person with capacity for one holiday a year, its probably not the ideal type of holiday

Beside the point but I learned as an adult and know plenty of people who did.

As a young adult (no kids) is the most affordable and fun time to go.

Can't afford to go with the kids now though sadly as for a few years I lived for skiing :-(

And if you’re a family of four there is a MASSIVE difference between being able to afford to pay for one person only.

Skiing isn’t all inclusive either. There are additional costs on top. Plus you probably need to pay for some beginner lessons when you go

so waaaay more expensive

You manage two short breaks without credit. You should check your privilege

The thing with skiing is that it's a signal of multiple generational wealth

This is it. It’s not significantly more expensive than a big overseas holiday anywhere else but it’s something you are unlikely to feel comfortable doing unless you did it as a child.

My parents didn’t ski so I don’t have the nous and comfort level with it which you have if you have grown up with it.

I have skiied twice in my life and on both occasions it was because I got taken by groups of people who knew what they were doing. I wouldn’t book it for my family, not because I don’t enjoy it but because I would find the whole outlay and the hassle daunting.

And as for the "special" clothes - I've always skied in my normal hiking jacket with the fleece zipped in - berghaus in my case. I use it year round, and I put waterproof trousers over my normal ones. You do not need ski specific gear, that's simply fashion and in Scotland many people are wearing decent outdoor gear, layer with thermals (mountain warehouse is reasonable and again I use them on the motorcycle too so not ski specific)

I have never been on an all inclusive holiday. I haven't been skiing either but, coming from a country where cross-country skiing is something we do at a weekend, I can promise you that it costs a bomb just in equipment and clothing alone. I can't imagine anyone needs to buy full ski gear when they are off on a all inclusive hols in Crete.

Due to injury i haven’t been skiing since 2016 when we went to Courchevel which is my favourite resort. That was the only year we ever went self catering. The lift passes are 355 euros each. So a family of 4 would be spending over 1k before even thinking about food, accommodation, lessons, ski hire, travelling there, etc.

it was the first time we’d been to Courchevel in years as we’d had a few years in Val d’isere in a catered chalet. I remember being shocked how much the food in Courchevel was compared to Val. For three of us we’d struggle to have lunch for less than 100 euros. When we’d been 6 years previously you could eat in a nice pizzeria for 11 euros a pizza.

Are you just showing off now?

You have no idea if any of those families struggled to save up for it though. The whole idea of going through the school is you're just paying for the one child not the whole family. I think you're out of touch

We do go skiing regularly but actually wouldnt call it a holiday - it's really hard work.

We are lucky that a friend has an apartment in a ski resort that they just let us use it (I know this isnt available for everyone!). We drive down, don't eat out as its beyond expensive. Children all have their own gear from Facebook marketplace.

Ski hire/passes are the main costs.

We can do this holiday for about 1k. I wouldn't go if it wasn't for dh and all the children being ski/boarding obsessed. I'm a bit meh about it. I'd much rather a sun holiday - I go on my own with friends later in the year.

I'm definately working class. I agree though, there seems a lot of cash splashing around in the resort. We do look longingly at the beautiful restaurants while we walk back to the apartment for our beans on toast :-)

I used to take my kids skiing in Scotland. Wasn't too expensive, drive (£100 in fuel) accommodation £800 half board (was a few years ago), lift pass and kit was £500 if I remember correctly for 4 days 1 adult 2 kids. I remember it was£1500 or so all in including a stop on the way back. There's a youth hostel for cheaper accommodation and if you hire kit in the town it cheaper than the resort

It is horrifically expensive. As others have said it’s not just the cost of the holiday, it’s buying suitable clothes, equipment hire, lift passes, food, lessons, crèche. These can double the expense.

Plus as others have said, if adults are good skiers, what this means is that they have probably started early and been more or less every year of their childhood, so it’s often a signal of multi generational wealth/ privilege in the same way that a trust fund/ inherited furniture is! And I know very few people who have skiing as their only holiday in a year, so for most people it’s just an add on holiday, which costs 5k plus!

Plus my own theory is that like strong cheese you have to acquire a taste for it and it helps being posh- having started later in life I just don’t enjoy it much when I (infrequently) do go. Probably a mixture of being a bit shit at it and all the annoying people…

And yes some people will very much resent not seeing their “type” of person in Val, Chamonix, Meribel etc- starts to undermine their own life view that they are inherently better than everyone else! Whatever next, they’ll be choosing a prime minister who hasn’t been to Eton/ Harrow.

skiiing is typically a middle/upper class hobby. People generally feel more comfortable in their own social class. Think about it.. don’t you? If someone is considerably richer or poorer, or much less or much better educated than you it creates a divide.

That to some people we could afford it, that I appreciate the expense of it despite having good disposable income, that we come from a very ordinary background like most people where it isn’t affordable and is a big expense.

And the point of you chipping in is what? Your contribution to the thread was what?