Can anyone give insight as to whether these are good family spots, or recommend another place. We would like the 3 year olds to go to ski school part of the time, but there need to be other activities as well (snow shoeing, sledding, etc).
We are planning a ski trip to the Porte du Soleil region and I would like to find the most "kid friendly" area to stay in. We will be traveling with two 3 year olds and two small babies. The regions that keep popping up are: Les Gets, Chatel and Les Houches.
Hi Jenny I think you mean Les Gets, lol. Unfortunately you'll find that the French Ski School will not take little ones into ski school before the age of 4. With our grandson, who is very tall for his age, they refused even though he was less than 2 months short of 4. Many resorts have a Kindergarten where they will play in the snow, etc, but no skiing. I've never been to Les Gets or Les Houches, so can't comment.
We like Chatel, but the skiing is all at the top- so I'd choose a resort where your chalet/apartment is by the nursery slopes and the lifts and a comfortable café so you can take it in turn to go skiing, and look after little ones. On the Swiss side, Torgon would be ideal if you can get a flat next to the beginners area. Or Siviez/Super Nendaz above Haute-Nendaz- with a few hotels/apartments right by the slopes, with car access, and access to the whole of the Verbier 4 Valleys. That part of the resort is tiny, but right in the heart of the 4 Valleys- you can sit in a café with a kids play area, and ski right to it, and take turns.
In France, the best resort for this is St Foy - if you can get an apartment right by the beginners area, the main chair-lift and ski school. But it's got really expensive (look at Première Neige' apartments). We were there last year with our kids and grand-kids and it was perfect. But as said they won't take little ones into ski school until aged 4. Obviously, avoiding February and school hols is best to cut crowds, and mainly prices. Early March is always our favourite time for good snow, nice weather and low(er) prices.
If at all interested in Torgon on Swiss side, I have a friend who has apartments for rent, as well as their own 2 chalets for group ski trips there and runs a British Company in the resort - so ask for details if you wish. He might even be able to sort something out with the ski school for the little ones as he brings 90% of their business. They do all their own ski/boots/snowboards hire- and there is a lovely chocolate café with kids play area next to the slope. www.skicompany.net
haha... good catch! Les Gets not Les Gens
Thanks for the tips. Some of the places I have looked at (Les Houches) offer a ski nursery starting at 3. I guess it's not ski school, but they still take the kids out and get them used to wearing the boots and I think they let them go on skis as well. That's all we really need, I think the 3 year olds will be happy as long as they get to play in the snow all day and make an attempt at skiing.
Do you know if the Swiss resorts start ski school at 3? The other family we are going with are Swiss, so they prefer to stay in Switzerland .
I'll look into the places you mentioned. Thanks again!
Snow kindergarden (Siviez)
Package lessons - hire
In collaboration with the kindergarden Arc-en-Ciel.
Every day, morning or afternoon.
For the children from 2.5 to 4 years old
Taking care of the children from 11:00am to 12:00 or from 10:00 to 11:00 or from 15:30 to 16:30: CHF 6.-/ € 4.5
Siviez is very small- just a few cafés, restaurants, hotels - but right next to the slope and access to the whole of 4 valleys. The other local resort, Haute-Nendaz, is a much bigger resort, and has a great kiddies area at the top- near the restaurant- but it means the whole family having to go up for the day. Torgon has an option for babies and toddlers aged 2 and 3.
The French Ski School does offer a Club pioupiou for younger ones- mostly play and snot skiing, although there might be local variations.
I am a bit confused on your geography, but will give you a bit of a run down of the places, I've skiied them all. If you want to ski/stay in Switzerland, then most places you list are out, as they are in France.
First, Portes du Soleil, typcially used to refer to the Swiss side of Avoriaz, ie. Champery and the like. This is the only small part that is in CH. Actually the Champery region is the only one I have not skiied, so cannot give any comments, but it is quite steep up that way.
Les Gets (in France) probably gets my top rank for skiing with very small kids, the lower part is very easy, and even going up a bit, it is not too dangerous. However, Les Gets is quite low, so if we don't get snow, or it gets warm, Les Gets gets quite questionable with the weather.
Les Houches, is at the beginning of the Chamonix valley, quite a different skiing region than what you mentioned, and also in France. Les Houches is indeed a small place but it would definitely come in second or lower behind Les Gets for small kids. It is a good intermediate place, but lacks at the lower and upper ski ability ends in my opinion. Also, its orientation, makes it cold and lack of sun for a good part of the day, sort of is a turn off. But if you want to go to Les Houches, there are a few places to stay around there, but basically it is much better to stay in Chamonix, since you are so close. By staying in Cham, you have more ski areas in that valley if Les Houches doesn't fit and there is always shopping and good food.
If you are indeed looking at the French side, the lower part of Avoriaz is very good for small children in my estimation. There is also very busy ski school there, but do check on age limits.
Also, just commenting on the skiing, I really do not know of other amenties like sledding.
Abondance Avoriaz Chatel La Chapelle d'Abondance Les Gets Montriond Morzine-Avoriaz St Jean d'Aulps Champery Morgins Torgon Val-d'Illiez - Les Crosets - Champoussin Les Portes su Soleil cover a huge area both in Switzerland and FRance. I've never skied the far western sector- but when we go to Champery, Champoussin or Torgon - we ski over to France and back again several times in a day. The Ski Pass we get from the Ski Company covers Torgon, Plan de Croix, in CH, then Chatel, Super-Chatel and Chapelle d'Abondance in F, and down to Morgins and up to Champoussin (CH) and back again. From Champery you go up the big bowl in Les Crozets, with links to Champoussin/Morgins CH, and over to Chatel, etc, in F, if you go East, and over To Avoriaz in you go North. We love the area as if you stay there for one week - you never get bored as you can ski different slopes every day.
Les Houches is indeed in a totally different ski area.
If your set on Portes Du Soleil then the advice from Odile here already covers it. just to add, we stayed in Nendaz for a season and can recommend siviez as a great place to learn for kids but I would stay in nendaz itself for having some other things to do, siviez is only 5 mins in the car.
if your not yet decided, perhaps also look at Les Mosses. Its a small place, however its extremely child friendly, to the extent it is more or less known as a child learning resort on the skiing front. It has a travelator run (ski down about 10 metres, come back up on a travelator) for very young children and then after this you promote to the baby slope then on to the drag lifts and so on after that.
Les Mosses itself is quite small, not like siziez which is just a run and a couple of hotels, but its a smallish village, so you would have to look for yourself about whether its suitable in that sense, but from a kids learning perspective its ideal.
Mike
Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll check them out.
Sorry if my post was confusing. I would prefer to go to France since it seems to be cheaper than a ski holiday in Switzerland. But the couple we are traveling with are Swiss and they prefer to stay in Switzerland if we can find an affordable, family location.
What I'd really like to find is a place where everything is centrally located. Where we can go to the lifts as a family and just drop the 3 year olds off at a ski nursery and then get right on the slopes ourselves. It would also be great if there are other "non ski" activities (sledding, ice skating, snow shoeing, etc) so we have something to do with the kids after ski nursery.
After seeing the website for Chatel, it looks like a great place with lots of things to do. But the only downside is that it seems to be very spread out and we would have to take shuttle buses to get to different activities. Les Gets also looks good, but we will be going the first week of March so I'm not sure of the snow conditions then.
Has anyone heard of the town or Ardent? I found a nice 2 family chalet and saw they have a ski school at the top of the Ardent bubble lift. I just don't know if this town has any other "non ski" activities
We have been to Chatel several times and used this place for our little one.
http://www.chatelsensations.com/site/
Very safe small learning area, our daughter went in from 3 yo. Chatel is split into 3 areas. Chatel village which, as previously mentioned, is high up and you need to scramble with all the gear to get on the telecabine, not recommended for the hassle factor with young ones.
La Linga which is where the linked ski school is and is ideal as you can drop the kids off at school then straight up the telecabine.
Finally at the far end of the valley Pre la jeux which also has some very tame nursery type slopes for the very young on a drag rope (not tbar or button). This is also a nice area for non skiers as you can take the chair lift up to Plain dranse and its selection of restaurants, they then let you get back on the chair lift to come down again. Or you can walk down the very easy green run through the forest.
Edit The shuttle buses in Chatel get very busy New Year week and weekends. There are sledding areas in Pre La Joux.
There are several English speaking nanny companies active in PDS: Family Ski, Jack Frosts, Cheeky Monkeys...
Family Ski have a creche facility in Ardent, I believe, while Jack Frosts has one in Champery (right next to the teleferique). With the latter, at least, you can also ask for the nanny to come direct to your chalet, and are flexible to your wishes, timings etc.
I've also spent a fair bit of time in Morzine and there are babies and young kids all over town - a pretty good sign!
Might be little late with this and excuse typos as using phone. Urggh small screen. Just got back from PS region. We usually stay in Morzine and ski Avoriaz. Avoriaz ski school took our youngest when he was 3 but it is hassly getting them to morning ski school as some of the lifts don't start running on time. This time we booked our youngest two into two hour private slots in Morzine as problems getting to Avoriaz due to extreme snow conditions Lol, which they preferred and was better value for money. Warning though Avoriaz seems to have got busier and busier over the years. Les Gets seemed less crowded but we have only done a couple of days skiikng there.
I would recomend Flaine in France as probably the best family resort there is anywhere in Europe.
Certainly has a lot going for it, and not just for families. Also one of the best for accessible but challenging off-piste, variety of terrain and sheer scale. Much easier to get around then some of the other large "super-resorts", with a modern (first 8-man chair in Europe) and well planned lift system. Multiple villages also means you don't tend to get many bottle-necks on link runs and lifts.
I've probably skied more weeks there than anywhere else (apart from Engelberg) having repped and lead holidays for the Ski Club there on many occasions.
Definitely recommend it too, despite its, err, "award-winning" architecture
I realize the OP has come and gone from his holiday vacation, but for others reading this, here are a few pointers.
Chatel is a great family resort. We researched for two years before finally buying our chalet in this village. It has something for every age and skiing available for all levels, including little guys.
There is a lake in Chatel called Lac de Vonnes and three times a week in the mornings and afternoons, a guide conducts ice fishing excursions both before and after lunch. You need to sign up in the Information Center in the middle of town, so the guide knows how many fishing rods to bring and how many holes to cut in the ice. There are probably about 15 participants for every session and you don't need to bring a thing. I've seen ice-fisher-people from the ages of 4 to 70 catching lots of beautiful trout.
Also in the lake, there is an ice diving excursion. Again, reservations are necessary at the information center and you must be an experienced diver, but the experienced guides take the guests out into the middle of the lake, into pre-cut holes in the ice, and jump in. To me, it looks crazy, but I guess for divers it is fun!
The ice skating rink at one end of the lake is VERY popular, especially with kids. You can rent skates right there at the rink. There is night skating on Tuesdays. I think it costs about 6 euros for skating and skate rental. We live right above the rink and from our vantage point, NO ONE there is a professional. It just looks, to us, like families having fun and kind of "clomping" around.
The ski lift right out of the village in Chatel is called Super-Chatel. It is open to both pedestrians, sledders and skiers. If you have children in ski school right at the top of the lift, (age 5 and above), you can sit directly in the restaurant just outside their training area, either outside in the sun or inside near the fireplace, and watch them. You, yourself, do not have to be on skis, because, at the end of the day or the end of the lesson, you can ride back down in the telecabine with them. There are many moms/mums in the restaurant or on the deck with tiny kids who all hang around and wait for their older kids to get out of ski school.
I have more detailed info if anyone needs it. Just send me a PM.
Hi,
Chatel is an excellent place however opposite PS roughly 32 Kms is Villars/Gryon and there they take 3+ kids for skiing. My 3+ daughter is presently enrolled in ski club here. Kids below 9 ski free (Train & chari lifts are all free as well) which is super saver and skiing conditions are super. However be early coz it becomes very difficult to find place to park car. Bus runs frequently throughout the village to take you to train station or telecabine and is free as well. You can check on www.villars.ch for further details call Villars Tourist Office. Ski instructors speak very good english and you can ski to Diabletres glacier from Villars.
The slopes are not difficult ones.
Cheers
I've already been skiing this season over here, but I might just have to go again later before the spring.