To not understand the snobbery around skiing?

[Cappuccinowithonesugarplease]

An actual conversation I overheard:

"Virtually anyone can afford to go skiing these days"

Do people really still think like this in 2024? It just seems so classist....

I live in Europe, most people of all backgrounds here go skiing so I wasn't sure why it's considered upper class in the uk.

Surely you can understand then why skiing would be more expensive for people who have to travel overseas to do it. It's like someone living in Florida saying "I don't know why people think Disney is a once-in-a-lifetime holiday. We go all the time."

Just done a quick search on Crystal Ski, 2 adults and 2 children skiing in February All Inclusive from £744 per person total £2976. Adding on all the extras like Ski hire, lift pass, lessons £3300.

Disney with TUI (same company which is why I'm choosing it) at the same time cheapest comes in at £4851 Room only.

And yet people think skiing is for the elite but have no issues with people going to Disney.

I know which I'd prefer.

We don't do more than the odd weekend away in the UK because we can't afford to. DH had to 'justify' himself in office chat the other day because he's 'only' visited a handful of other countries in his lifetime. We're quite happy with our lives and are content to amuse ourselves on a budget.
There does seem to be a lot of snobbery about holidays in general, not just skiing.

But I think basically if you can afford an all inclusive holiday, you can probably find somewhere to ski for similar price, even if you go a bit more off the beaten track.

Most of DH's colleagues also complain a lot about money, and squabble over overtime. And generally don't seem all that happy, and live for 'getting away from it all'. We're all different I guess.

@Cappuccinowithonesugarplease the uk is an island so simply getting to the resort in the first place is a considerable expense before even starting the think about the skiing.

Transfer prices have become bonkers over the last few years. Driving can work out cheaper but you have to have a car big and reliable enough to do such a journey filled with people and equipment.

If the Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) had reliable snow fall and a lift network, skiing would become more accessible for the folk from Merthyr Tydfil and Welsh valleys. It’s not rocket science!

Skiing is still prohibitively expensive for most. We have booked DIY for NY week. My husband and I ski, but not for years and years, and this is the first time we will be taking our two kids. So we don’t have equipment, and we need lessons. Self catering it comes to £5k without any food counted, and that’s also not counting the cost of buying clothes and a few ski lessons for the kids before we go at the snow dome. All these faux naive ‘you can do it for a couple of grand for a family of four’ responses don’t include ski lessons, kit hire, etc. Which is akin to claiming it’s cheap to go to the Bahamas because you can stay in your friend’s holiday home. Like most expensive things, skiing becomes cheaper when you actually have money and privilege. When you grew up skiing, and so don’t need lessons. When you can stay in your family/ friend’s chalet.

I do have a good salary, and I am privileged. But our summer holiday won’t be AI, we’ll be going to France self catering for a week. And I recognise that I am very privileged to be able to do that on top of a 5k skiing holiday earlier in the year, and I do it because I have skiied before, and know I love skiing. If I hadn’t had the opportunity to ski before, would be dropping 5k on a holiday that meant I would have to spend less on my main summer holiday? Would I fuck.

In the early 1990s my school organised a ski trip to (i can't remember where) and they wanted to charge £500 which my parents simply couldn't afford. And yes, the kids from the better off families went 🤷🏻‍♀️.

As for snobbery...yes, there is, because skiing is such a pricy pursuit (stiil), but some people will overstretch themselves to go.

I would rather hike through the mountains in summer than ski down them but each to their own.

Just priced up the costs of the nearest slope to us (Finland) and its not bad at all actually - 155e for the week equipment rental per adult, 230e ski pass for the week, could get a cottage for the week for 600e. Actually tempted to go now! But of course there's no extra costs for me for flights etc. (though you could do Norwegian Air for pretty cheap, then train then bus and it wouldn't be too bad) that's part of what makes it so expensive so out of reach for many Brits, but there is definitely cheaper ski holidays out there than 10k in the Alps!

That's horrible. What type of workplace is it, I'm guessing law or banking? Is it somewhere where being in the clique pays dividends (so to speak)?

In my workplace, if you spoke about skiing you'd be considered a bit of a w**nker.

I live in Europe, most people of all backgrounds here go skiing so I wasn't sure why it's considered upper class in the uk.

Use your brain 🙄

We have been fortunate to be able to pay for both our sons to go on skiing holidays with the school . They have since gone on to go on ski holidays on their own with friends.
I'd love to have gone as a family but it would have meant we couldn't afford a summer holiday.
Skiing holidays I would say are only for the better off.

This puts it into perspective

I live in a very deprived area I don't know any one my age (45) or above who has been skiing.

If we go abroad we spend around £600 pp all inclusive. I doubt you could do a week's skiing and accommodation and food for that.

My dd did go skiing in year ten which was about ten years ago it cost 1000 pounds and we didn't have a holiday that year so she could go. I bet it would be more like 1.5 k now and I doubt many working class could afford it.

Did you miss my post where I quoted an actual holiday with prices from a package company? Which included all the extras?

I despair at mumsnet sometimes, people just want to play ignorant.

DH grew up skiing. I don't ski and neither do most of our DCs. We have horses, which is more a lifestyle than a sport / hobby.

This misses the point. Apart from the people who are purist about skiing as a sport, it's as much about WHERE you ski.

So our DC have school friends who ski at least twice a year in the right resorts in the alps, US is also acceptable.

My DD told me that 'everyone' does Cornwall before the state schools break up for two weeks in July, France or Tuscany in August, Lakes/Euro city break or similar October half term, Carribean at Christmas, then skiing at Feb half term and Easter.

A lot of families who ski, know a lot of other families who ski. Plus I can't tell you how many of DCs friends we used to run into in Cornwall after the private schools break up.

FWIW, I've never skiied and can't imagine a worse holiday 😁

It's a multiple holidays issue. We are a moderately chilly island so most people prefer a waem summer holiday and not many would be content for their only holiday to be in winter in a cold place.

Most people cannot afford two big family holidays a year. So unless you are well off you would have to really really like skiing to go regularly.

Sounds great!
I would totally try skiing for that price especially if you could throw in the northern lights and a dog sled at the same time!

This was true at my state school too- but my parents sent me because there was no way that themselves could afford to ski themselves taking a family of four skiing is different from one kid on a coach trip and sleeping in a hostel dorm in the Valle d’Aosta

( my mum went to boarding school in the alps so can ski well, but married down by a long stretch so skiing was no longer part of life once she’d married)

Do you not realise £3k is a fortune for a lot of people?? Disney is too. But for a lot of people who want a once-in-a-lifetime holiday, Disney offers more value than just skiing. Especially for young children.

Indeed - skiing in the Alps/France is pricey, but my kids went to Finland and Austria with their schools. Cost was around £700 (admittedly a 3 years ago), they stayed in hostels, 4 to a room, and obviously had school coordinated group lessons where the teacher from school wasn’t good enough (the head of biology taught my eldest to sk). You can still do that as young adults if you can face the dorm set up. As a family, been to Italy as well, but they did do France last year (L2A). That was exorbitant and will get me pilloried here if I list the cost. Some years the kids have skiied and we’ve gone camping, but as my DH grew up caravaning he has vetoed any more tents/cabins now the kids and we are older. He works hard, we have only few years left when the kids will want to go away with us (and are still bound my school/uni holidays) so yes, we do more than one holiday a year, not least so that I can come too.

Essentially, people who are sporty and like being outside in the air after a year in school buildings/company offices often like ski holidays; other people who get fed up of grey British winters and unpredictable summers, and maybe the constant running around after their kids, like a week of guaranteed sun and low maintenance entertainment by a pool/beach (I’m the outlier in my fam, as that’s me). It just different strokes. Different budgets, different interests, different wants from a holiday and different periods family life. There’s no need for the inverted snobbery that British people seem to have for the concept of skiing.

One of the main issues with skiing is that you want guaranteed snow - so yes, you could pay less and go to Scotland or a cheaper resort at a lower altitude, but you then run the risk of nothing being open, or only being able to do a handful of runs.

If you go when it's cheaper (ie late or early in the season) you could well end up not being able to ski half the mountain which kind of defeats the whole object for most people.

Your post didn’t include any travel. If it does in fact include flights, then I’d be very interested if you posted the link to this incredible unicorn of a ski package.

And yet people think skiing is for the elite but have no issues with people going to Disney.

Disney is a once in a lifetime holiday for many people, it's not generally something you do every year.

My school organised a trip to the seaside because so many students had never seen the sea! We definitely weren't going abroad.

Some people are so wanky about travel and how many countries theyve been to. One upmanship 🙄