Our Family Ski Holiday in Puy St Vincent

Going skiing is a really special holiday for us, it always feels like we are going home in a way.  We have visited the same resort for a few years now and we know it well.  The guys in the ski hire shop ask how we have been all year, the ski instructors recognise me and ask about my sister (who worked out there for a few years) and we know exactly where to find our favourite French treats in the little supermarkets.  The journey there feels long (as do most journeys when you have four children under 8) but once we arrive and breathe in the fresh mountain air, we feel at home.

It was our sixth year visiting Puy St Vincent with Snowbizz so in many ways I have nothing new left to say but I still feel like I have so much to share.  It was the first year that all four children could ski which made it so much more exciting.  The 'Totons' which is the youngest group start learning at 3 years old and Cora had been desperate to try on a pair of skis like her brothers.  She was the first one to the hire shop to request a pink helmet and her skis were so adorably small, I think possibly the smallest pair in the store.  Every morning we dropped her off at the creche in her thermals with everything she needed and at 10am she walked with the other two children in her group and the nanny that accompanies them on their lesson up to the Toton Garden.  She had so much enthusiasm, she got up with a smile every time she fell and she never gave up.  She asked to go back each day and loved every minute.  

The three boys were all in ski school and we got into a habit of dropping Finn off first for some play time and taking the bigger boys out for a pre-lesson ski.  Finn found the two hour lesson was plenty for him and he liked to insist on two snack breaks in it, but the older boys had more stamina and I loved being able to spend time with just them without guilt as their younger siblings were having the best time.  I would take it in turns who I sat with on the lift and I loved that little pocket of time where we could chat together before we climbed off and they skied ahead of me as I tried to keep up.  They loved being out on the mountains, showing us the skills they learned during their lessons and relishing the one on one time with a parent.

The afternoons were spent doing all sorts.  Some days one of us would take the bigger boys back out on the slopes as they had endless energy for racing back down them.  Finn, Cora and I loved the pool which you climbed into indoors and then swum into the outside.  The pool was surrounded by snow piling up over 1 metre but the water was a warm 32 degrees and it was glorious to climb out into the cold and jump back in again.  We all went to the sledging fields carrying with us a variety of shapes that we had borrowed from the creche and racing down the hill with huge grins across their faces.  Sledging has to be followed by Chocolat Chaud of course and nothing tastes better than a cup of hot chocolate after a day out in the snow.  The creche is open until 5pm and some days a few of the children chose to go in there to do some arts and crafts which meant all four of them had some one on one time with a parent - something that is such a novelty in a larger family and is so rewarding for all of us.

It was the first year we could all sit around the dinner table and discuss our skiing that day and I loved that it bonded us more. The pride the children had in learning a new skill and mastering an existing one was incredible and their faces by 5 o'clock were rosy and warm and full of joy.  It was the first year that all four children could go to some of the evening clubs.  The outdoors ones like treasure hunt and winter olympics were always going to be a bit much for our little three year old but she got stuck in at the disco and won the talent show as well as falling asleep half way through the movie night, snuggled up on her bean bag.  It was the first year we could go out alone and enjoy the hearty French mountain food in the evening, have a Raclette, and know that the children were all entertained in a club for a couple of hours.

The children are so comfortable in the small resort, they know where everything is, how to get around and where they need to go.  They walk around as though they are always there, like it is a second home and we are all sad when the alarm goes off so early on Sunday morning and alerts us that it is time to board the coach that is the start of our journey home. There is something special about this place, with the small family feel, the personal service every step of the way, the dedicated and enthusiastic pink ladies that I entrust my children to each morning and those mountain views that take my breath away in every direction.  If you are even a little bit curious about taking a family ski holiday then I can't recommend Snowbizz enough.  Of course there are always more pictures than there are words and I can't choose which ones not to include. . .

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Our Family Ski Holiday with Snowbizz

We have just returned from a week in the beautiful resort of Puy St Vincent in the French alps with the family ski company, Snowbizz.  Neither the bloke or I had ever attempted to ski before, and with two children under 3, we hadn't seen it in our future for quite some time either, but Snowbizz have everything covered and the four of us had an easy and fantastic family ski holiday.

I feel like I am giving away a little known secret, as everything in our resort was so perfectly laid out, that it seemed strange that we often found ourselves with the mountain just for us, no-one else in sight.  Not only were the slopes quite literally on our doorstep, but the chances of crashing into someone else were so slim that I felt much more confident on the snow than I imagined I would.

From the very beginning, our trip was well organised which is what you need with two small children.  I used to love planning my own holidays but nowadays I just want the stress taking away and the lovely ladies in the Snowbizz office sorted everything out ready for us.  We left Gatwick incredibly early on Sunday morning knowing that everything was booked and ready for our arrival.  We were greeted by a 'pink lady', one of the team of qualified and ofsted regulated nannies that look after the children in the creche, and the coach took us directly from Turin airport along the windy mountain roads to our resort at 1600m.

Our apartment was spacious with everything we needed right on hand.  Our bed was comfy, and the boys shared a room with bunk beds in.  There was a cot already set up for Archie too and plenty of space for their toys on the floor in there.  The living area had a well stocked kitchen with hobs, a kettle, a microwave and a filter coffee machine so we could prepare pasta, risottos and breakfasts ourselves.  There was a dining table, TV, board games, a sofa that pulled out into a bed and a huge balcony where we sat every morning to enjoy our croissants.  The apartment was clean and most importantly, was almost directly on the slopes.

We collected our hire boots, skis, poles and helmets and the guys in the shop where happy to spend a bit of time making sure we had the perfect fit.  This was all booked in advance so we just had to turn up to try them on before taking them away to our locker.  After a few hours to explore and enjoy, we had a welcome drink where we could meet the other guests, the pink ladies and Michel the owner and head of the ski school as well as finding out about all the fantastic activities that the company put on, from pirate treasure hunts for the kids to quiz nights for the adults.

It took us about 30 seconds to get from our apartment to a small section of cafe's, shops and facilities and we had plenty of choices of where to eat as well as a supermarket, a bakery, a delicious sweet shop and a place to buy souveniers.  

The next morning the boys were due to start in the creche and I was nervous as they don't attend any childcare at home.  The children under 3 can book in for morning, afternoon or all day sessions in the creche and once they turn three, they can start taking ski lessons too.  The pink ladies in the creche, led by head nanny Maria were happy and confident and I was reassured that we could come and see them at any time and take them in and out as we pleased.  I left two happy boys who were heading towards some paint and stopped in the little bakery next door for some fresh croissants to eat in peace on our balcony.  I need not have worried as the boys loved the creche.

I felt more than happy leaving them there, as every one of the nannies was brilliant with the children, outgoing, friendly and competent.  Every day Dylan came home telling me that he had done painting, drawing, playing in tents, singing, going for walks in the snow to see the horse, baking and all sorts of other things and Archie was smiling and happy too.  The creche had plenty of space for the boys to have naps and we soon realised that by 1 o'clock when we finished our lesson they were far too tired for lunch, so we sent them in with a packed lunch and the lovely ladies helped them eat that before putting them down for a sleep.

As for us, on our second lesson we were taken up in a two man lift to do a short green slope and every lesson we progressed trying new things, bigger slopes, and progressing to the blue runs that were faster and steeper.  Our instructor Sam was brilliant, offering lots of advice, and happily going back a stage when my confidence failed me.  As we were there in the quiet season, it turned out to only be the bloke and I in our class so it was fantastic to have so much attention.  Snowbizz classes are known for being small so it seemed the perfect place to learn.

I am proud to say that I fell only a handful of times in the whole week and on the last afternoon I was going down quite steep and very long blue slopes quite happily alone and building up quite some speed.  There is nothing quite like the freedom, the beautiful surroundings and the sun on your face as you swish and turn on the soft snow.  I never expected to love skiing as much as I did but I am sat writing this just desperate to get back out there!

I never imagined that going on a family ski holiday with two young children would work so well, but we all had a brilliant time.  The bloke and I got to learn an exhilarating and exciting new sport whilst the children had a great time playing inside and out and we changed our afternoons, spending some skiing on our own and others with the boys - sledging, snowman building and playing in the snow.  Next year Dylan will be old enough to join the totons -  a special ski school just for 3-4 year olds with an instuctor and one of the nannies in every lesson.  Snowbizz have a fantastic reputation for teaching the youngest of skiiers and I would love to take him back to try skiing on his feet (he is certain that sliding down the hill was called skiing on his bum).

We were so impressed with every aspect of our holiday.  The customer service was second to none, from the packing advice before we went, the fantastic pink ladies and the personal service from owners Wendy and Michel.  All the stress was taken away from us and we could enjoy an energetic and exciting family holiday and the beautiful sunshine and snow in Puy St Vincent.

I would highly recommend Snowbizz as a ski travel company, as they not only looked after the big things, but all the little details too.  If you have always fancied learning to ski then now is the perfect time!

Discliaimer:  Our holiday was courtesy of the incredibly lovely people at Snowbizz but all thoughts, opinions and photos are completely my own and I cannot recommend Snowbizz highly enough.

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