Boots and skis for little ones - worth buying?

[claireper]

Hi - we are off on our first family trip to the snow with 3 and 1 yr old in feb. Really want to get the 3 yr old on skis (and possibly snowboard courtesy of Burton Riglet kit) - I have heard someone recommend that it is easier to buy/rent small ski boots here before going as the really small sizes are in short supply in resort - has anyone found this? He has quite diddy feet - a UK 7.5 (mondo 16?). And has anyone got a pair they would like to sell?!?

I'd hire them, you'd only get one weeks use if you bought them.

Dd has skied since 3 and they have thousands of small boots in the hire shops.

Plus if the hire boots don't fit for some reason you can swap them there and then in resort for different ones. Sometimes you can't tell if they fit properly until actually skiing. Less so with little kids I suppose but a consideration.

My DS had just turned four the first time he tried skiing, he wasn't that interested in it and only had the strap on skis on a couple of times. He enjoyed what he did but the ski kindergarten had lots of other things that he was more interested in.

We put our Dd on skis aged three and we've never had any problem getting little kit in the resort (this year will be her 4th season).
I really wouldn't buy.

Brilliant thanks we'll just hire in resort then. There is a significant chance he may freak out and spend the week in the chalet on the ipad....or he may LOVE it...who knows?!?

Agree with the others. Mine have been skiing since they were 2 in a relatively small resort and we've never had problems with kit.

Mine both loved it at that age thought DS refused to have private lessons until he was 4, much preferred the skiing with us or our friends til then. DD loved the attention of a private lesson though!

We've hired for both of ours at the age of 3 and never had a problem. I think it would be really hard to get a 3 year old on a snowboard though and think you'll struggle to get snowboard boots. DH and I are both boarders and we're going to wait till ours are 8 before we try them on the board. Most snowboard schools won't take them till 10.

I would hire.

We have however bought for our boys....but we do at least 2 weeks skiing a year, and they get reused....so a pair of ski boots costing about 45? (Decathlon) does at least 4 weeks, possibly more....and financially it is no more expensive.

hire.
not worth buying for one week of use, by next season they won;t fit. Personally I'd hire in resort, then you can change them mid week if a problem arises.

another vote for hire.

and i would wait a while before getting him on s board. most resotrts only do boarding lessons from about 7 or 8.