Spring Skiing in the Sunshine

Alex Buckle on 08 April 2017
Emma and I are blessed with 4 great children, Archie is 6, George is 9, Alice is 11 and Maisie is 14.

Now I'm a terrible skier (Bambi on Ice springs to mind!) however, Emma has been skiing since she was a little girl and loves it and I am desperate for the children to learn whilst they are fearless and flexible!

Skiing can be expensive, so we do have to cut a few corners to make it work, firstly we load up the 'Buckle Bus ' (our car) and drive to the mountains. Secondly we normally take a few prepared meals for the chalet and plenty of homemade cakes to keep the kids stocked up after a hard day on the slopes!

This Easter we decided to head to La Tzoumaz in Switzerland, this is a small resort within Les 4 Vallées (Four Valleys) and neighboring the more famous Verbier. Why? Because we managed to get a great price on a chalet plus the slopes of La Tzoumaz are north facing and hold the snow later in the season.

So here are some facts - journey time from Calais = 8.5 hrs, from our home in Cambridgeshire it took 13 hours door-to-door including the Tunnel.

I booked our chalet through one of my suppliers, we have used them many times before for our clients and always received great feedback. I must say their directions, welcome pack and key collection was a doddle and hassle-free. The local office had also organized our lift passes and also a nice discount from the ski rental shop before we had arrived, so it was all nice and easy.

Our chalet was a 5-minute drive up through the village and on arrival we were all blown away by the view, you would never get tired of that. It was stunning, all you wanted was for Heidi and her grandfather to come strolling round the corner! The chalet was equipped with all you need for a family, dishwasher, plenty of space, hot tub and WiFi.

We organized our ski lessons through Tzoumaz Evasion, Maisie and George were allocated to Lukas and Alice and Archie to Adam. Both instructors were superb and Alice was so nervous but Adam worked wonders with her and I would highly recommend them both.

During the week the snow in la Tzoumaz started to melt and the best time of day was 9.30 til midday, however in this resort you are just two cables and a short bus ride from Verbier. So on a couple of occasions during the week we headed up to 2700m plus and found great snow conditions and beautiful blue skies.

Now a word of warning, skiing isn't cheap, the average glass of beer on the mountain is £5-£7, a plate of fries is circa £7 and a small cup of coffee is £4 to £5. However, you can't beat a beer in the mountains with all that fresh air and sun beating down on your face. So just enjoy and take it all in, just sip rather than gulp!

We are already planning our trip for next season. So if you fancy a ski trip, whether it's a first or you're experienced and looking for a new resort or some fresh ideas. Please do get in touch as we would love to help.

Here is a video of Archie and Emma on the slops - https://www.facebook.com/AlexBuckleTravelGuru/videos/1259133100849589/