To not understand the snobbery around skiing?

You’re booking less than four months out, so prices will be higher for popular weeks like half term.

We are doing a week in Mayrhofen in Feb, me, DS. DM, DBro, and I can assure you we haven’t paid anything like £6k. The flights were £1100 for all four of us (flying into Munich on Friday night, overnight stay in airport hotel then train to Mayrhofen the next morning). The apartment was expensive at £2500 for the week, but it is also massive - there were smaller apartments in the same block for £1500-2000.

Lift passes I grant you are steep. Free ski hire is included with children’s ski lessons. Ski clothes usually last a couple of seasons, and can be handed down.

exactly, and that is for ONE family member to go ONE TIME. most of the school 'ski' trips involve maybe two and a half days of actual skiiing, max, the rest is travelling time.

that's not enough for a 'yes' to 'do you ski?' that's 'I went once in year ten and by the end of the three days managed to go about thirty feet without falling over.'

Maaaaayybe a tiny number of people will go once with school/scouts, get the 'bug' and seven or eight years later when they get their first full time job they might try again and end up going semi-regularly, particularly if they have friends that go. But most people 'ski' because they grew up doing it, or maybe marry into a family that grew up doing it.

When I started teaching our local authority (west of Scotland) had centralised coaching schemes for sailing, windsurfing, canoeing and skiing. I learned to sail through the scheme and then taught pupils from all the schools in the authority at after school courses. During summer I was out 3 nights a week and the payment just covered petrol. Loved it. Did the same for skiing, bus up to Glenshee on a Friday night and stayed in hostels. The children were from all backgrounds and I later met a boy I had taken from my school (very deprived area) to the sailing and he had become a countryside ranger and said I had influenced his career choice. It was an amazing scheme and opened up sports to so many children. I never thought skiing was an elitist sport because of the way I had been introduced to it and the need to keep costs low to allow pupils to participate plus our social group were all teachers so not exactly wealthy upper class types.

We later skied in Chamonix every Easter for 2 weeks with our kids. Lessons in Scotland so no need when on holiday, second hand equipment, picnics, only a couple of meals out. People think it’s posh/expensive but it doesn’t have to be. We felt it was a sport we could all do as a family at all ages and stages and they still love nothing more than chasing each other down a mountain. It was our choice and we didn’t do other things, like Disney.

I taught a girl whose family had annual passes for Disney Florida yet lived in Glasgow - that seemed way posher/more expensive than our ski trips.

Yes, some total pompous drivel about diversity it’s a bloody ski hols, not a town planning box tick exercise. It’s really not anything deeper than that.

And no-one forces you to plonk your three year old on skis, that was entirely your own parental decision.

Good point!

So many misconceptions here from people who admit they do not ski at all. It does not matter how much you try to correct them, they are not having it - skiing is elitist and not about the skiing, but actually about networking, partying and drinking. 🙄🙄 Firstly, so what? For those who do enjoy the partying on a mountain vibe, why not? It seems as valid a way to spend your holidays as partying on a beach or in a city. Secondly, I think there is a subsection here, led ably by @User75235 who are determined to indulge in reverse snobbery as much as they can where it comes to skiing - these folks can’t actually be spending their money on a ski holiday because they actually enjoy sliding around in the cold on a pair of planks, can they?

Yes - people do go skiing for the skiing. I grew up working class, and skiing was beyond our financial reach. But I love it now, and would walk over hot coals for the chance to get out into the cold fresh air and strap my skis on! I have a lot of hobbies that involve adventurous activity in the outdoors, including skiing, and so do a lot of people. I have lots of friends and colleagues who would eat pot noodles in a hostel if it was what it takes to get their skiing fix. Those posters who are convinced adults wouldn’t ski if there was no party attached to it, try to think outside of your own small ideas of what counts as fun for others!

I just went to look at the Crystal Ski website as I was quite flabbergasted by this price.

The only one I can find, using our Feb half term dates, at that price flies out of Belfast. Northern Ireland doesn’t do a Feb half term so for them that’s a term time holiday. The same resort is just over £1000 a person flying out of an airport serving England, Wales and Scotland.

I then added the extras. An adult lift pass alone for the week was over £300. Adding basic hire, lift passes (one of my imaginary children was too young to need one thankfully), and half day ski school for both children, it came in around 6k in total.

That’s hardly a reflection on skiing. Not everybody likes the same things.

I hate going to football matches, plenty of people including the rest of my family love it (and yes I have been to plenty, and also hate going to rugby, baseball and basketball matches).

Lots of Indian and Nigerian immigrants in Canada take up ice skating and skiing. It’s just what you do if you live there.

@User75235 I wonder if the ethnic diversity will change at least in part due to immigration to ski areas - if you live somewhere skiing is the norm, and you are sporty, but your family are from a country without snow, will you take up skiing or will you go with a sport your family already valued?

I know a new graduate who organised their Uni ski trips (rather her than me, think about organising a group of friends to go on holiday together and then multiply by 100!) and they had a coach option from the North of England plus accommodation, lift pass, and it was about that price for the accommodation and lift pass - £200 coach or book your own flights.

My DH grew up in a country where skiing was just a couple of hour drive away and it wasn't regarded as a sport reserved for those with money. Drive out (driving at 15), hire kit, off you go. And in those circumstances - I'd give it a go.

But the thought of taking my annual holiday and going somewhere colder than I set off sounds like an exercise in masochism to my working class ears. 😁

I think you do just have to accept that skiing is 'main holiday' fodder if you have a decent but far from Oligarch budget (i.e. you'd do EuroDisney, or a Club Med type thing, skiing doesn't have to be more spenny than that) and that it's not a cheap second holiday option. Personally I'd rather ski twice and not go away in summer, but sitting by a beach is my idea of hell. Different strokes for different folks! You also have to accept for it to be about the skiing if on a budget. If you want luxury catered chalets with hosts, and hot tubs and shuttles to the slopes then it's going to cost, but if you are content with somewhere to sleep, sit and read a book/play board games and cook basic meals from the supermarket then it's much more reasonable. I imagine that if you aren't into ski mileage then what you get for your money in food, accommodation and other facilities is probably not as good 'value'

Think you've nailed it

I’ve booked our first ski holiday for a school holiday week next year. It is in very basic self catering accommodation but includes ski school for us all. Total cost including flights is £5.6k. As a first time skier the kit is going to cost us a fair bit x4 although we can re-use a lot of the things like gloves, ski jackets etc. As a first timer it is quite a daunting prospect so wanted a package. We will also need to factor in the cost of heading to a uk slope for some basic lessons etc.

Hopefully we like it- I wanted to try it partly because I often felt left out of work conversations, lots of my children’s friends do it and I figured the older I get the harder it will be so wanted to give it a go as think the children will like it. I am really hoping we’ve done the right thing as there is a chance everyone hates it!

The Op is kidding herself if she thinks it’s an accessible family holiday. I am under no illusion it won’t necessarily be a relaxing one and I may well be knackered on return. People generally aren't picking skiing as their only holiday which adds to the perception of cost.

This tells me it would be 3750 today.

We did this in 2008/2009/2010 it was about £2.5K including ski school for the DC 2 adults, 2 DCs. Sandwich on the mountain and spag bol from home in the evening. Shopped at Lidl all year so we could afford it. Camped in the summer. We live in Kent so France is a very short drive away which makes it easier.

Classical are dances like foxtrot, chachacha, boogie, tango and waltz, although some consider waltz a separate category. Each dance has different beats and it's a hidden skill to listen to any piece of music and identify the style of dance you have to do with it. We know tons of (upper) middle class kids who were all sent to dance school in their teens. With the popularity of shows like Strictly I'm surprised that ballroom dancing isn't more widespread. It's definitely more affordable than skiing.

Are you sure upper middle class kids are expected to learn ballroom and 'classical' dancing (whatever that is)? I know loads of people from old money backgrounds but don't know what you're referring to here.

The adults I know who took up skiing in later life did so to join in with friends - and stuck at it when they realised how much fun it was. (And most of the ex-pats who'd moved within range of ski resorts in Europe. Skiing in winter was just like hiking in the summer there). Anyone merely chasing the lifestyle soon drop out as it's bloody hard work learning to ski. Plenty do it once then declare they'd rather be on a beach/enjoying the sun somewhere.

Skiing is definitely a skill that people are expected to learn in childhood. But it's absolutely inherently useless compared to other childhood skills like swimming or riding a bike. It's comparable to ballroom & classical dancing which is also something upper middle class kids are expected to learn before adulthood in preparation for balls they will attend later in life. It's a leisure activity that discreetly filters people through their class, upbringing, income and ethnic background.

The only adults I know who actively took up skiing later in life were those obsessed with appearing high class or chasing the old money lifestyle.

OP, what you've described is not snobbery - in fact it's close to the opposite of it (no judgment as to type of person or background, anyone can do it).

It is, however, an unrealistic assumption of the wealth of the majority of people ('virtually anybody can afford it').

Skiing is my absolute passion. When I'm dead and gone my spirit will be whooshing down the piste for all time. It makes my soul sing like nothing else.

I'm from a background of no wealth. I happened to catch lucky in my state primary school with a head teacher who loved to ski and organised a trip by coach to Bulgaria in the 1980s. It was before my dad was made redundant and my parents treated me as my Xmas present. I absolutely loved it but couldn't afford to go again until I was working, in the early 2000s and it was as good as I'd remembered. Then due to living in Europe for a period of time we could drive to the mountains easily (and cheaply) and so my kids learnt (and are now far better than me!)

It is expensive but there have been some great tips on here re: making it more affordable.

If I could only have one holiday a year (and I'm fortunate to usually have more than one) then I'd choose to ski.

It’s a university ski club trip and that price includes accommodation and a lift pass only. Doesn’t include getting there. Nor food, ski hire, lessons, etc. I just looked at their webpage to see what the accommodation is like and can’t see any details but i suspect it’s going to be exceedingly basic.

I think it totalled just under 5k all in all. DC and I had one 2hr ski lesson only, on the first day, mainly to familiarise ourselves with the resort. DC are now pretty proficient skiiers so didn’t book more than that.

Lunches were mainly at the local burger joint which was fairly cheap. Comparable to McDonalds really. Or hurters and chips at the ski cafe. Again, fairly cheap. Most expensive expenditure was hot chocolate with (alcoholic) mint liqueur. Sooo delicious!

We usually DIY our trips to Lapland but last year the flights alone were so expensive so the first time ever we booked a package deal instead.

thats not a bad price 😻

Did you book it a year in advance? You live a lot closer to it so if it's going to be a bad day it's not going to have as big an impact on you as it would for people travelling from the south of England, Europe etc. In fact, you're doing exactly what the OP is doing by thinking that just because there are ski slopes close to you it must mean it's as accessible to everyone else. Again, people are not going to book next year's ski holiday in the hope that the snow will be good in Scotland. They want the almost-guaranteed good snow that Europe offers.