How much does it cost to go skiing?

[5KidzRUs]

I want to take the kids skiing. We have parkas, caps, scarves, gloves, socks and snow pants.

We do not have any skis or any ski equipment. I know we can rent them. Are equipment rental and lift passes expensive? I am hoping we can do this relatively cheaply. Since skiing is only an hour or so away we might go up for one day or spend one night at the most.

Any tips or advice would be appreciated!

[wapiti]

It depends on where you are going. The lift ticket prices should be on the ski resort's website.

 

Renting before you get to the mountain (such as at the places you might see driving on the way there) is usually a bit less expensive than renting at the mountain. Call around.

 

Lunch might be expensive, depending on the place. When DH takes the kids skiing, he brings along things like cheese sticks, salami and granola bars. When they have lessons, they take a sack lunch that the instructor keeps in a backpack.

 

Don't forget: long underwear, wool socks (we like Smartwool), balaclava (rent a helmet), goggles. Sunscreen for face if you're in the Rocky Mtns.

 

I'd use either a fleece neck gaitor or balaclava rather than a scarf. Also, no cotton next to the skin (literally, our ski lesson instructions say no cotton allowed).

 

It is not an inexpensive activity.

[5KidzRUs]

It depends on where you are going. The lift ticket prices should be on the ski resort's website.

 

Renting before you get to the mountain (such as at the places you might see driving on the way there) is usually a bit less expensive than renting at the mountain. Call around.

 

Lunch might be expensive, depending on the place. When DH takes the kids skiing, he brings along things like cheese sticks, salami and granola bars. When they have lessons, they take a sack lunch that the instructor keeps in a backpack.

 

Don't forget: long underwear, wool socks (we like Smartwool), balaclava (rent a helmet), goggles. Sunscreen for face if you're in the Rocky Mtns.

 

I'd use either a fleece neck gaitor or balaclava rather than a scarf. Also, no cotton next to the skin (literally, our ski lesson instructions say no cotton allowed).

 

It is not an inexpensive activity.

 

The trip I just found online is transport $30 each, lesson $10 each and half off equipment rentals. Hmm, I wonder what equipment rental fees are?

What is a balaclava? At first I read "baklava" and thought "mmmm!! I will bring the Nutella too!" :lol:

[mamato3 all-boy boys]

Do you have any homeschool ski lesson programs around you? If you are within an hour of a ski resort, I imagine a multi-lesson program would be MUCH cheaper than a single trip.

 

I live in New England, and we have at least 3 different resorts that offer HS ski lessons -- at different price points. The most economical HS programs are ones set up by HS parents.

 

The resort we use for 5 lessons + 1 all-day lift ticket (6 full-days of skiing with 10 hours of lessons) costs about $90 TOTAL. That is only slightly more expensive than 1 single day adult lift ticket, which is about $75 these days. Rentals for lessons are an amazing $36 TOTAL. I feel very blessed that we can participate in this program! This year, my youngest is eligible to participate in lessons, so I get to go skiing, too!

 

If you really only want to go 1 day, mid-week is usually a bit cheaper than weekends.

[momofkhm]

Do you have any homeschool ski lesson programs around you?

 

We have a program in NC put together by those who live near the slopes, but any homeschooler can go. It's the way we've been skiing in recent years. DH takes the day off, we drive up the night before, spend the night and ski. We're 4 hours away from the slopes.

 

The bad thing is that if the schools local to the slopes have a snow day, there's no homeschool skiing. We wouldn't know until we got there. :glare:

[JumpyTheFrog]

Are equipment rental and lift passes expensive? I am hoping we can do this relatively cheaply.

 

I grew up in a skiing family, near the VT border. Skiing and cheap do not go together. Even small ski areas in the northeast that are not much bigger than the bunny hill at a larger resort are still about $50/day. Good resorts are about $70-80 these days. Even if you get your equipment for free, it's still going to cost as much, or more, than an amusement park.

 

I love skiing more than just about anything, but it's just too expensive as a hobby anymore.

[DianeW88]

Hmmm, where we are lift tickets are about $75 per person, per day. I don't know the exact amount, because we have resident tickets, which are substantially cheaper. Equipment rental can be expensive as well. Lessons are free. For our family of five, if we weren't local...it would cost about $500 per day. Maybe more.

[Cera]

Rentals are usually much cheaper if you get them as part of a package (lift ticket, rental and lesson) and the per day price goes down as the number of days goes up.

 

It would probably be worth it to call the place you are considering going to find out what the best deal is (also if you can find another family or two you could do a group rate package which usually requires 10 people).

[Carrie12345]

I'm surrounded by ski resorts. We've never gone, because a single trip for our family is over $250, not including lunch, and not including rentals unless there's a special. Season passes would be in the thousands for us.

[Roadrunner]

We spend about $800 for 3 days. That includes my lift tickets and 3 days of ski school for 2 kids (rental is included in the ski school and I own my skis). Yes, it isn't cheap at all. Oh, I forgot to add lodging and food.

It's outrageous, but it's my passion, so I am determined to pass it on to my kids.

Edited November 28, 2011 by Roadrunner

[MamaT]

There is a ski resort 20 minutes from our house. Every Tuesday they have a $15 all day deal for homeschoolers. It includes lift and equipment. I guess, looking at everyone else's responses, we are lucky!

[acurtis75]

We've never been skiing but I want to plan a trip next year. We are in Colorado on vacation right now and went to Rocky Mountain National Park to a free sledding area today. We bought a $16 toboggan and had hours of fun. Since today is a school and work day we were there by ourselves for most of the time. It was awesome for our family. We're from Texas and considered this an easy first step to see if we wanted to pay for skiing. Maybe if the price of skiing in your area is too much you could try this instead.

[jennynd]

If you plan to ski a lot in one season. you might want to rent the equipment for the season. Around here (NY) it cost 100 for kids, 150 for adults rental for the ski season. Lifting ticket depends on the mountain. It everywhere from 75/day to 40/day depends on the size of the mountain.

Ds is taking lesson for the third season. It costs us around 200 everything included for 6 lessons

[DawnM]

NC person here too. There are a few places that offer HS skiing. One place is $20 per person and includes a lesson and equipment.

 

This year I plan to go up and spend the night as I just can't get us out the door in the morning to make the 2.5 hour to 3 hour trip and have enough time to actually ski!

 

Dawn

[Bassoonaroo]

I quickly scrolled through the responses... So, I might repeat some.

 

Check into military, AAA, or other discounts for tickets. Consider ticket options (daily, 3-day, 7-day, season). Also, week days are cheaper and less crowded than weekends.

 

Consider going to resorts that bill themselves as "small" and "family oriented" because they are often less crowded, less intimidating for beginners, and easier on the wallet. Beginners, regardless of the resort, tend to do the same one or two easy runs over and over. So, it's your choice whether you pay a lot for those two runs or a little.

 

Lessons are a great value for someone who is just figuring out this crazy sport. Group lessons are a lot less expensive than private, of course. Long ago, I wanted to get beyond "beginner" and signed up for a group lesson on a weekday. Guess what? Nobody else signed up and I had a private lesson for a group price!

 

A PP recommended renting somewhere besides the resort. While that IS less expensive, I recommend renting at the resort, despite the slightly higher price, simply because nothing stinks more than renting skis (and boots and poles) and finding that after just two runs, that right boot is just digging into the pinky toe... Boots SHOULD be snug fitting, but sometimes it takes a run or two to determine that your boot is ill-fitting. If you rent at the resort, you go to the rental shop and tell them what hurts and they will set you up correctly.

 

And do rent a helmet. They are pricey but life-saving. And help keep your head warm!

 

See if you can borrow outerwear (ski pants or bibs, ski jacket, waterproof gloves or mittens) or even buy them at the thrift store. They are too pricey to deal with otherwise! And get a neck gaiter (sp?) or scarf.

 

Pack in your own lunch. A loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter are good. Also, my kids like those awful styrofoam cups of ramen (the resorts will have hot water). Remind the kids to STAY HYDRATED and take it easy! A thermos of cocoa or hot decaf tea helps, as does whatever drink they like (Gatorade, pop, etc.) if they aren't "into" water.

 

Quit when tired. Many people get injured on that "one last run" that they just had to make!

 

Colorado has a "School of Shred" for fifth graders. I don't know if it is only for residents or not. Google it and find out.

 

Buy your sunscreen BEFORE you head up the hill. I like to get a bottle of cheap (think "No Ad" brand that they have at Walmart) liquid and then get the pricier chapstick-style stick kind for each kid. In the morning, put the cheap stuff on. Throughout the day, during bathroom breaks and before heading out after lunch, they can easily put on the stick style sunscreen -- they can even put it on without taking off their gloves or mittens. Coppertone and a few other brands make this stick style sunscreen.

 

Similarly, get each person a tube of chapstick or similar brand with some SPF in it.

 

Good wool long underwear is necessary. And good socks. We wear wool socks over these thin white "liner" socks. That helps. Actually my husband wears those horrible white sport socks that you buy in six-packs. He's okay with that.

 

Handwarmers (such as Hot Hands brand) are good on really cold days. Pick them up beforehand at Dollar Tree (ours has them) or online at a sports store or Sierra Trading Post.

 

Check your jacket pockets before you leave on the trip. Will the hold a granola bar, a small water bottle or two (we get those small 6-8 oz. bottles), a cell phone, a chapstick, and a stick of sunscreen? And they will need a pocket for a trail map which you'll pick up at the resort. We like to put cards in front pockets that list the child's emergency info (allergies, cell phones, parents' names, etc.). Since these cards can get wet, slip them in a sandwich sized ziploc or laminate them. If the jacket doesn't have enough pockets, you can get the child a small fanny pack that has a long enough strap to fit around the ski pants.

 

Have fun.

Edited November 29, 2011 by Bassoonaroo

[mom4sons]

where do you live

what resort is this

[mom4sons]

There is a ski resort 20 minutes from our house. Every Tuesday they have a $15 all day deal for homeschoolers. It includes lift and equipment. I guess, looking at everyone else's responses, we are lucky!

 

which ski resort

 

thanks

 

Patti