Best snow holiday with kids.

[Ian (WA)]

Hi All,

We are taking our two boys 11 & 13 to the snow next month. I haven't finalised a booking yet mainly because we are undecided.

Wondering if any of you would care to share opinions, tips, recommendations. Cheaper accommodation, hire places etc.

We've never been to the snow before and aren't hung up on learning to ski....toboggans & snow boards more appealing to the boys presently.

We'll be driving down from Hervey Bay in Qld. and plan to be on the road for 8 - 10 days, so 3 - 4 days in the snow.

Any thoughts greatly appreciated!

Cheers,

Ian.

 

[depreciator]

When we take the kids, I go to the Thredbo Youth Hostel. And I'm many years past being a youth.

A friend of mine who worked for the YHA suggested it. I thought she was crazy - I remembered hostels when I was a youth. When we went there one school holiday, the place was full of families - there is even a 'family room' that has 4 bunks and a bathroom. We went one time out of school holidays and it was people older than us!

I told a bloke I know about it and he took his kids one year. He told me that there were a few blokes like him who had busted up with their wives and had the kids for the week. After dinner, the blokes sat around comparing how badly they had been screwed in the divorce settlement.

I've been three times to the Thredbo YH. It's right in the centre of the village. It has a great kitchen for cooking your own meals. There is NO telly. And there are often other kids for ours to play with.

Scott

 

[Propertunity]

We are taking our two boys 11 & 13 to the snow next month. I haven't finalised a booking yet mainly because we are undecided.

I'm happy to stand corrected but if you are going to the snow fields in NSW in mid October, I think you'll find most of the snow melted

 

[travelbug]

Hi, friend of mine owns a lodge. It's actually a farmstay and a great place for kids. It's 30 minute drive top the snow but the farm is great too. The kids can feed the animals, collect the eggs, ride the horses etc. If you have 4 days you may not want to go to the snow everyday. The units are self contained (sleep 6) so you can cook or make breakfast if you like (Patrick will give you fresh eggs to cook) saving you money on restaurants.

Lynne

http://www.highlandlodge.net.au/index.html

 

[Roachy]

Going there 4 - 11 sep, so this Saturday. I agree with Propertunity the snow will be gone next month. If you try and get there next week, you should be able to get the late season prices. Go to www.perisher.com.au. Always hire from down the hill, never on top of the mountain ( you save 25%). Get first time lessons, its a cheaper deal and you get a 2.5 hour lesson. Ummmmm HAVE FUN!.

Its going to be awesome. Hopefully will see some of you crazy investors up there.

 

[eXc]

I would check out Selwyn Snowfields. I went there a few weeks ago for my first time at the snow, it is directed mostly at kids. My mates that went there got a little bored, but they were suprised at how much nicer it was than perisher. Apparently most people at Perisher are rude and expect you to be a pro to be on the slopes etc etc.

I had a great time learning there, I see no need for a beginner to go to anything better. It's also cheaper than perisher for lift tickets.

http://www.villageski.com.au/index.html


Was the cheapest rental we found. No need to book ahead, they have heaps.
you can use the above whether you go to Perisher, Thredbo or Selwyn.


Only use the below places for Selwyn...

We stayed here, which was the cheapest we could find...but that was with short notice. It was 45 mins drive to Selwyn car park without chains. The first day we had to use chains it was more like 1.5 hours. I doubt you will need chains at the time of year you are going..if there is any snow left...

http://www.anglersreachcabins.com/accommodation.html

We were thinking of staying here next time (a little bit closer)

http://www.snowymountainscabins.com.au/

 

[Ian (WA)]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

To clarify, we are looking at going last week of Sept. 26th onwards.

Any idea when these places start shutting off their snow making machines for the season?

Cheers!

Ian.

 

[depreciator]

I'm sure I went to Thredbo last year in October and it was okay - not being an experienced skier, any snow was good snow for me. The kids had fun, too. There was no snow in the village (which made walking around much easier). Being the tail end of the season, there were fewer people around, too. I'm not sure which palces lose their snow first e.g. I don't know whether Thredbo is higher than Perisher?

 

[brrmm]

Been a skier for over 20years and taken the kids to Thredbo twice. Here's my advice:

For 3-4 days skiing with 11 & 13 yo boys, I'd get them learning on snowboards and stay on mountain, i.e. Thredbo.

The beginners area at Thredbo is called "Friday Flat" and any accommodation in the "Woodridge" area of the village is easy acces to FF, so I recommend staying there.

They have a sheet-load of snow at the moment that should last waaay into October and I'm sure they'll keep the lifts running while the snow is there since they had a dismal start to this season.

Get yourselves an apartment so you can prepare some meals cause food is very expensive on mountain.

Make sure somebody in your party wears a backpack and put in water bottles, muesli bars etc for each day.

Hire your gear (skis boots poles and clothing) at Friday Flat, that way if something goes wrong (too big/small broken/repairs etc) you're right there and won't waste your precious skiing time. After all those lift tickets are expensive.

Oh, and have a wonderful time - the boys wil LOVE it !!

 

[depreciator]

There is also a thing at Friday Flat called Thredbo Freeriders.

You can hand over the kids for either a half day or a full day.

They teach them to ski - those boys of yours will get sick of toboggans pretty quickly.

They also feed them.

My kids loved it because the teachers are all kids in their late teens and much more cool and fun than a mum and dad.

While the kids are there and being well looked after, you can take-off and do your own thing - even if that means just finding somewhere warm to have a drink and read a book for the afternoon.

It's not cheap, but when you go to the snow you have to recalibrate your value calculator anyway.

 

[perky29]

Hi Ian,
If you are going mid season, then Selwyn is great for kids.
However - on 26th Sep - Perisher is best. There should still be some snow around Mt Perisher , Eyre and International. Only thing is that these slopes are for intermediates. With some luck front valley may still have some snow - but it will be slushy.
Thredbo will have snow at the very top , at over 1900m (you will need to take the Kosciusko chairlift to get there - but there are 2 very easy beginner tbars up there and quite comfortable to ski.