To think I'll hate skiing?

[greybluehumpbackwhale]

Never been- DH wants to. I've no balance, not great at sports, don't like being repeatedly hurt. Will I hate it or am I being a pessimist?

Thought I’d hate it too and I did.
We went to lovely resorts though, where my husband could ski to his heart’s content and I did some of the other things on offer. Just try to make sure you have options if you don’t enjoy the skiing.

I spend the first half hour of each day wondering why I've spent a fortune to torture myself with ski boots, or go to a mountain cafe where they charge €3 for a can of coke but generally I love it. And not all chairlifts are scary, I love the Leslie's in Val d'Isere, its like a rollercoaster as you go over the peak 🎿

Bloody autocorrect- the Lessieres lift. There's YouTube vids of it.

Bulgaria sounds good... any tips on where to go with thermal spas nearby PP?

The best way to enjoy it (IMO) is:

1. Book private 121 lessons (no husband, no one else! He can do normal ski school or his own lessons). 2h lessons best. Book them at the ski school there with an English speaker, and only book the first 2 day's sessions to make sure you like the instructor. You can then add further bookings as you go.
2. Hire and store your ski gear in the lockers at the bottom of the mountain (eg next to gondola or bottom ski lift). Do not carry this anywhere. It's really heavy!
3. Make sure resort has a decent sized beginners area as others have said.
4. An ideal ski holiday day can then be 1h skiing, lunch, reading + hot choc in a cafe, cake, then apres ski drinks with those who skied all day!

I quite often ski 2h in a whole group ski holiday so don't push yourself! Just enjoy the snow, views, booze. You can use your pass to go up the mountain ski lifts on foot to meet others for lunch or just to enjoy the views at a cafe,

@turfsausage Bansko in Bulgaria has outdoor heated pools which are great! Very lively resort town with things like bowling, night time skidoo rides, snowshoeing...

Sounds bloody awful.

Ginkthecat200, sounds like you are saying a ski holiday is best with as little skiing as possiible. . I'd rather just not go skiing, I can eat cake and all that other stuff anywhere.

I gave it a go on a friends ski's on a tiny slope in our local park one winter. It did not go great but it was hilarious! For some reason I could not get my legs to work together and I fell over a few times before I gave up but I wasn't hurt.

A few years later I had a go at a beginner snowboarding day class and had a great time! You start out in a position you can control your speed a bit easier and you'll have on some padded snow wear so the small falls you have don't hurt. Maybe if you don't enjoy the skiing you might enjoy snowboarding?

Ski lifts/seats are a bit scary tbf though

I have tried it a couple times and hated it. Hurtling down hill on sticks was not my idea of fun. I could hardly walk the next day. No thanks. I stay in and cook dinner.

Yet, in my youth I was quite good at water skiing.

You might surprise yourself and like it - you'll never know unless you try though !
Make sure you're going to a resort that is suitable for beginners and preferable ski-in, ski-out accomodation so you don't have to carry your skis far while trying to walk in ski boots.
As others have said, don't let him try and teach you how to ski - book proper lessons for half a day all week - you'll be with people of your own standard and you'll enjoy it much more.
And you'll probably be knackered (I always am, but in a good way iyswim) so take the evenings easy !

I love skiing so I really hope you enjoy it !

I went skiing for the first time this year at the grand old age of … nearly 50.

I have never wanted to go, it’s never appealed. DH used to ski pre me, marriage, kids.

I got talked into it by good friends, and we went as a group.

As suspected, I did not enjoy it. It feels so unnatural to be sliding downhill.

I persevered - because what the hell else was there to do? - and by day 5 (no less), I was actually starting to enjoy it.

Tips -

• don’t be tempted to go up the conveyor belt to the kiddie slope before you’ve had lessons. You won’t know how to position yourself to slide off without collapsing in an embarrassing heap. This will massively knock your confidence from the off.

• ensure your boots are tighter around the shins than you think they should be. You lean into them to brace yourself when on the move, and it helps if you’re not wobbling in them.

• make sure there are no bumps or wrinkles in your socks, and that you don’t tuck your long Johns into your boots - it should just be your socks, wrinkle-free.

• get ‘first time on the slopes’ lessons. There will be other people in the same boat.

• go at your own pace and don’t be persuaded to do anything you don’t want to do.

• take breaks as and when.

You never know - you might be like me and end up enjoying it, but it did take 5 days (unlike the kids who took to it straight away).

Good luck. ⛷ 🍸 🎿

I personally didn’t take to it but I love ski resorts. So I’d give it a days worth of lessons a go and then see if you want to do more

• Snow shoeing round a frozen lake
• Tubbing
• Hot tubs and spas
• Hot toddy’s
• Cheese fondue

@Contactlesslenses

I’ve always thought skiing looks like a very expensive way of breaking a limb. Nothing about it appeals, I’ve been invited a few times by friends but always decline, it’s just not for me.

Exactly this. DH is a skier and we live in a skiing country. I always felt a bit guilty about not having given it more of a chance (I've tried it twice and hated it) and then DH tore his ACL and had to have surgery and about a year's worth of physio. I'm glad I avoided it now!

Tip that came from a teacher on one of dds’ school ski trips cut one of those of those sponge cloths for the kitchen in half, and use them to pad the inside of the front of your boots. Brilliant!

Stick to the beginners’ lessons and very easy runs (if that’s what you’re comfortable with) and don’t let anyone try to make you try anything you’re not ready - and willing! - for. Don’t let anyone make you feel like a wimp for being unwilling to try anything more (Can you tell I’m speaking from experience here?)

Best ski holiday I had (the 3rd and last) was when another woman of about the same age (mid 40s) and I were assigned on the first day to a more advanced group we weren’t happy with (very icy red runs) and were told that the only alternative was the complete beginners’ group.

Having paid £££ for ski school, we weren’t having that - we hadn’t paid all that to be scared shitless) - and they agreed to give us a private instructor for half of our last day. For the rest of the time we stuck very happily to the easy runs, and now and then she (a Scot) would say, ‘Will we go and have a beer now?’ 🙂

I moved to Canada 10 years ago. I broke my wrist attempting to learn to ice skate. Despite that, as a woman in my early 40s I decided to learn to ski in order to keep up with my then 6 year old son.
I really enjoy it. To be fair I stick to green runs. Yes, I did fall over during my lessons but each time was more of a sit down/fall sideways than a high speed crash.
And I had a hip replacement last October. I was skiing again in February.
Never thought I’d ski in -25. Eminently doable with the right clothing and face protection!