Aibu to Think that it Will be easy enough to go on a ski holiday with a 5, 7 and 8 year Old, without putting the kids in ski School?

[danishkids]

We Will go on our first ski holiday ever on Saturday and I’m really looking forward to it. But the more I chat with friends/family, the more people are making me nervous. We are 2 adults, my husband and I. I have only ever been on skis for a few hours when I was 16. My husband has skied a few times.

Everyone I talk to tells me that I’m
Crazy and that it’s impossible to teach 3 kids at once. That it will only end up
With irritated children and parents. Am
I crazy to think that it will be fine? Or am
I just having wishful thinking?

Do you have any tips for first time
Skiers? Especially with kids? Any good techniques to help the kids learn fast?

I’m exited about this holiday, but maybe I shouldn’t be?

This has to be the most ridiculous thing I have ever read on Mumsnet (and that's saying something).

You can't class yourself as able to ski after skiing for a few hours when you were 16.
Your DH is not experienced enough to teach either.
How.The.Fuck are you going to manage 3 young children on skis for the very first time when you can barely stand up on them yourself??

This is absolutely ludicrous. You don't even know enough about skiing to know that what you want to do is impossible. However, 11 pages of people saying not to do it is not going to change your mind as you've basically said it's happening anyway so people should give you tips.

I live in a small ski resort. There are so many accidents every single day. The rescue helicopter flies over my house at least twice a day, more at the weekends. And those are only for the most serious cases. There are countless incidents where people have to be stretched off the slopes and picked up by ambulance at the bottom.
The majority of these accidents are inexperienced skiers and tourists. Our hospitals are rammed in the winter season with injuries.
There are far too many irresponsible people thinking they can ski after a couple of lessons and tackling slopes and conditions beyond their abilities. That's how these accidents happen. The more serious accidents can be life-changing - and that's if you survive.

So my tip for you is think about that and whether you want someone in your family to end up in hospital so that you can save some money.
And if you don't have the money go to the ski resort and do some of the other activities for kids on offer such as sleigh-rides, sledging, swimming, ice-skating - enjoy the different environment but don't put yourself at risk.

I know we aren't allowed to troll hunt....

But seriously, no-one is this stupid.

You wouldn’t throw non swimmers into a pool or expect someone to go kayaking on a river without practice/lessons.
Why did you even book a skiing holiday without some lessons on an artificial ski slope?
Don’t be that family in the news.

If you struggle to control yourself on the mountain how do you expect to control children

That's the big worry here. One of the DC slides off out of control, you see them fall over or run into someone in the distance and you go after them and you fall over yourself. You're laying in the snow injured knowing one of your DC is also hurt a hundred metres away and you can't get to them.

Your DH has gone to them and might get there successfully. But you also have 2 other small DC that are now unattended on skis and you can't see them anywhere.

The girl who died on the ski slopes recently was in ski school!
Fact is that 1 to 1 with an experienced adult parent a kid typically learns to ski faster than in ski school. Most English parents put their children in ski school so they can go off skiing and enjoy themselves. Many French, Italian and Swiss parents do not do this with their beginner kids.

Neither of these parents is experienced.
Most English parents are not experienced enough to teach their kids.
French, Italian, Swiss and Austrian parents teaching their kids have been brought up skiing themselves since they were tiny. So will have 30 years of experience before teaching their children.
In Austria the parents still put their kids in ski school. I've got ski instructor friends who put their kids in ski school with other ski instructors...
When parents go skiing with their kids they may well be giving tips along the way, but in the main, they send their kid to ski school.

Anyway, it's no comparison whatsoever to the OP's situation or even to better English skiers.

Well,that's quite dangerous. You need to not think about going anywhere near a chairlift but practise outside the base of the resort in a safe area. It would be extremely irresponsible to go up a slope with complete beginners. I went skiing once, practised a few times on a dry ski slope in the UK and then went to ski school at the resort, a lot of it is learning how to fall and get yourself back up safely. Please don't just get on a route, it is so dangerous

I think @danishkids you have to face up to the fact that if you want to ski on this trip, you’re going to have to pay for some form of lessons.

If you can’t stretch to ski school all week, getting private lessons would be they way forward. If you’re going to one of the big resorts these should be easy enough to book when you get there - we often book a lesson or two when we arrive at the resort to help improve/refresh technique.

I’d aim to get a couple of hours with an instructor, then practice what you learnt that day for an hour or two more. Then rinse and repeat for the first 3-4 days. Depending on your confidence levels you might be ok for a couple of days without further lessons, providing you stick well within your limits. I spent the whole of my first week on nursery and beginner slopes, repeating the same few runs. You shouldn’t expect any more than this - and in your situation it would be reckless to do more.

My top tip is MAKE SURE YOU HAVE INSURANCE. I’m an experienced skier and had an accident early 20s and because I was young and stupid didn’t have insurance. X Ray and MRI cost me 1500€.

There’s a high chance of accident with your plan. Be prepared.

[quote Giraffesandbottoms]@museumum

This is the best idea - getting a group ski guide. I mean the problem is that you’re all different ages and levels but it’s the best way forward.[/quote]
A guide will only take skiers who can ski. You need a private instructor which even with 5 of you will probably be more expensive than ski school

You are completely bonkers but you know that already. So my tips are:

• agree with your DH set times for skiing every day so everyone has expectations managed. 2 hours of faffing, getting out there and getting cold, managing tantrums will be enough so don’t attempt more than this at least for first couple of days.

• be tough on your kids or decide your approach in advance. They will fall over, cry, strop, complain about the skis, boots etc…be prepared for that.

• research other activities and work something into your budget eg: tobogganing or swimming if there’s a pool in resort, cable car trips…

• bring lots of board games/dvds/colouring etc as I suspect you will spend plenty of time off the slopes on this trip

• try and stretch to a private family lesson on day 1. Even if it’s just a basics lesson about resort, tips for teaching…

• this trip is going to push you and your DH to your limits: you can’t really afford it, neither of you will get quality ski time, you will be teaching your own kids (recipe for disaster in itself)…all whilst watching other adults wave their kids off and spend a day cruising on the slopes enjoying gluwein and fondue on the mountains…So make sure everyone sets the bar low and you might actually have a bit of fun!

@BarbaraofSeville

The picture you’ve painted has actually given me goosebumps. Terrifying.

@VikingLundyMalin

Sorry I mean a private guide for them as a “group”! Eg for the family not 1-2-1

@OopsadayZ

I know we aren't allowed to troll hunt....

But seriously, no-one is this stupid.

I did have a look to see if OP was a regular poster as I thought it must be trolling. Turns out that they are home schoolers which probably goes a long way to explain the aversion to putting the kids in ski school.

Bloody hell, this CANNOT be real.

Honestly OP this is absolutely crazy, and beyond irresponsible. You simply cannot let three kids and 2 adults who can't ski loose on the slopes. You'll kill yourselves and probably other people on the slopes who are trying to enjoy themselves.

A few people mentioned throwing a kid in the pool who can't swim. This is like throwing a kid off a boat in the middle of the ocean.

Even if you don't mind your kids breaking all their bones (which your insurance won't pay out for if you cannot competently ski and were not under tuition) the other slopes users will be beyond livid if they're injured by your irresponsibility.

I've skied all my life and it is such a dangerous sport. Accidents happen in the blink of an eye and skis can go fast, really fast. Particularly when you don't want them too.

Quite honestly I think you're being extremely irresponsible and not only putting yourself and your children in danger but also other people (including children) who are using the slopes as well and it's incredibly stupid. You have absolutely no idea how to teach children how to ski safely, you're not even experienced yourself!

No way is anyone this stupid.

[quote Giraffesandbottoms]@VikingLundyMalin

Sorry I mean a private guide for them as a “group”! Eg for the family not 1-2-1[/quote]
A guide won't teach - they aren't allowed to. They need an instructor.

Tbf… one resort we go to has a nursery area down the mountain where on the very first ‘slopes’ (hardly incline at all) there are little travelator things rather than a button lift for the first few. But they are very short maybe 15m or something. And even with those of you or your kids can’t stop you could still be in danger!
As soon as they get their skis on they’ll be slipping and sliding all over the place. Takes a certain level of ski ing for you to even hold them upright without slipping yourself!

I love how the OP is desperately trying to find one poster that says this will be OK, and there's nothing to worry about!

I know people have been harsh in here, but the ridiculousness of taking a 5, 7 and 8 year old on a Skiing holiday when they can't ski is something to behold.

OP, what on earth possessed you do this!

The only tiny glimmer of hope I can offer is that most ski resorts have a ' junior sledging ' area or something like that, which may be less dangerous.

Really, if you go skiing at least one of you WILL get hurt. Please don't do this.

I know we aren't allowed to troll hunt....

Mmmm I did wonder the same...

But seriously, no-one is this stupid

There are some people who really are. I live in a ski resort and we hear tales every winter of things that are just the absolute height of stupidity - similar to this kind of behaviour the OP is suggesting.
Without naming any countries in particular, it's normally by guests from flat countries somewhat north of the Alps who really think that a couple of ski trips as kids or perhaps a week or two of ski school as adults is enough to qualify them to go off-piste or to go ski touring or to take their (equally inexperienced kids) down black runs.

And there's similar stupidity in the summer involving hiking - that's normally related to inadequate clothing and footwear and people wandering off up high mountains dressed like that in bad weather.

To those saying book a private lesson. A private lesson for a couple of hours will probably be nearly as expensive as ski school for the whole week. Also a friend tried to book a beginner private instructor for her and her kids and the ski school wouldn't instruct beginner adults and kids together. They said they learned in different ways and at different paces and it just doesn't work.

Oh good God.

I've been the kid in this scenario and I've dined out on the experience ever since. I know I've got enemies on here...if you think I'm obnoxious, it might be because of the head injury I sustained while being "taught" to ski by parents who couldn't do it themselves. Skiing isn't cheap, if you can't afford ski school for the kids then you can't afford a skiing holiday.

The only good thing is that it put me off snowsports for life, so I can spend the money on other stuff.

I think ppl far more experienced skiers than me have answered but I'll put my oar in too. Dog out a credit card and book lessons. I learnt to ski as an adult. I had intensive lessons on a dry ski slope before going and a week of private tuition when I got there. I enjoyed it so much more than if I'd been trying to do it alone. I had four more ski hols after that (can't afford it now!) and each time I had morning lessons and did my own thing in the afternoon. The reason I haven't been with the family is that we can't afford all the extras.
If you really can't afford it, go and just have a nice holiday in a snowy area. You don't actually have to ski! We did this once in France.

[quote Giraffesandbottoms]@BarbaraofSeville

The picture you’ve painted has actually given me goosebumps. Terrifying.[/quote]
Apologies. It's my background in risk assessment and contingency planning.

What is reasonably foreseeable, do you what you can to avoid it, and plan to deal with the thing if it does happen.

If I was looking at the scenario I described in order to place it on a 'how likely is it going to happen and what are the consequences' risk matrix, it would be so far up in the red zone, that I'd be confiscating the OP's family's passports to prevent them from getting anywhere near a ski slope.

On the matter of Austrian/Swiss etc parents teaching their DC, these are people who have skied multiple times a year for decades, because it's a normal weekend activity for them like we would go for a bike ride or a walk in the woods. Not one or two weeks a year on holiday and during the occasional UK snowfall for even the most enthusiastic Brits, although the OP could be Danish, but that doesn't help her cause as she says they don't ski, not even cross country, and I expect that downhill skiing doesn't exist in Denmark, because it has very little in the way of hills.

Book a private lesson for all of you together for the first few mornings at least.

Not only are you going to make your holiday and your kids' first skiing experience stressful by doing it your way, there are real risks with skiing.

Also, think beyond yourselves. You have a responsibility to others on the slopes as well.

You're talking about one reasonably competent (we assume) skiier whose ability to teach it isn't proven looking after 4 non skiiers. You'll be a liability.