Full day ski school for 3-4 year olds? What are North American options?

[marzNC]

For parents who don't live within short driving distance of a big mountain in N. America with ski school that starts at age 3, there are a few options if looking for a full-day program. The list grows if a kid is already 4.

I waited until my daughter was 4 to get her started at Massanutten in VA, our home mountain (4-hour drive one-way). The full-day program starts at age 4. It runs 9:30am-2:00pm, essentially 3 lesson periods with a morning snack and lunch. The lift ticket runs until late afternoon so there is time for a run or two afterwards, assuming the kid is up for more sliding. I was very happy with how things went her first few seasons. She was up for Alta blues by age 7 based on what she learned from Massanutten instructors, even only skiing about 10 days a season.

Apparently Big White in Canada has a program for 3-4 year olds. The deal is that a 3yo gets enrolled for the morning. Parents go back at lunch time and if everyone agrees the 3yo is good to go for the afternoon, they pay for the upgrade. Saw a recent thread by an Aussie parent who is planning a stay at Big White in 2020 with two young kids.

Any other ski school suggestions for a 3yo? 4yo?

 

[SallyCat]

Having worked at a ski school this season, a full day is a LOT of time on snow for a 3-4 year old. The point of diminishing returns arrives quickly at that age.

I dunno if such a thing exists, but what might be ideal is a mountain that has some sort of hybrid program wherein the kids can ski for a certain amount of time then play, nap, and/or have story or arts and craft time.

 

[marzNC]

Having worked at a ski school this season, a full day is a LOT of time on snow for a 3-4 year old. The point of diminishing returns arrives quickly at that age.

I dunno if such a thing exists, but what might be ideal is a mountain that has some sort of hybrid program wherein the kids can ski for a certain amount of time then play, nap, and/or have story or arts and craft time.

Any "full day" program for kids under 5 really means a few sessions on snow for 30-45 min, followed by time indoors. Some programs are morning snow time, with the option of afternoon daycare. What skiing parents (both parents or a parent traveling alone) are looking for is a program that means the parents can go skiing until early afternoon without having to go back to the ski school midday, assuming everything is going well. Fair to say that the daycare and ski school at Alta are pretty busy on a powder day during late season since no reservations are required.

What I'm hoping for is suggestions from parents who have first hand experience. As the Aussie found for Big White, just looking at website info isn't always enough for a 3yo.

 

[Tvan]

Smuggler’s Knotch has a full day Program for kids that starts with 3 year olds and on-snow partial day programs for kids starting at 2.5. I think the full day programs are similar to what @SallyCat described.

 

[Jilly]

Tremblant has a program that is full day. They ski for 1/2 day, have daycare for 1/2 day and lunch. Cost also includes lift ticket. Daycare is play and possibly a nap if needed.

 

[Hammie]

Sunshine Village and LL in the Canadian Rockies both have programs. My kids did SSV, so I'm much more familiar with it. They do daycare only for under 3s.

For 3-6 year olds, they do "Tiny Tigers" lessons + daycare. Separate daycare building with its own magic carpet for Tiny Tigers only. Kids are dropped off, have a cubby with all of their ski stuff, and are picked up in small groups for 1 hr lesson per half day (rest of time in daycare). They do also play outside if the weather isn't crazy cold. They can do half day or full day, with an optional lunch add on if doing the full day. Once they're 6 years old, they have the option of staying in tiny tigers one last year (if they're small, tire easily, or unenthusiastic) or "graduating" up to the kids programs (1030am-330pm) if they have the stamina. You can do single day or multi-day lessons, and they offer 3 day packages over Family day weekend (February), spring break (end of March), and Easter. My kids enjoyed it & still remember/chat to instructors they had then (now 9&11, went there since they were 4 &6).

 

[sibhusky]

Whitefish, $159. I have no experience with their program. Lunch is an extra fee of $17, I guess they expect you to pop in for lunch?

Child Ski/Board – Full Day
Ages 3-6. 9am—4pm. Program includes on snow lesson, indoor playtime as needed, lift ticket and daily gear storage. Please arrive at 9am as classes start on snow as soon as they are ready. Groups are formed inside by ability level as kids arrive. Check in at the Kid’s Center. Call 406-862-1999 for more information.

 

[MsWax]

Sugarloaf has a great program for young kids. They even take 2-year-olds for lessons as part of daycare (assuming the kids cooperate).

Cannon will do 1/2-day at 3 and full-day at 4, and Bretton Woods will do full-day lessons at 4 as well.

 

[marzNC]

Sugarloaf has a great program for young kids. They even take 2-year-olds for lessons as part of daycare (assuming the kids cooperate).

Cannon will do 1/2-day at 3 and full-day at 4, and Bretton Woods will do full-day lessons at 4 as well.

What age did you start your kids? I imagine the kids who are skiing by 4 at Cannon are quite good by the time they are 6.

 

[MsWax]

What age did you start your kids? I imagine the kids who are skiing by 4 at Cannon are quite good by the time they are 6.

I started my kids at 1.5 on the little plastic skis that go right onto their snow boots. At 2.5 I had them on the bunny slope between my legs, and at that age I had the youngest on a "ski leash." At 3.5 the older kids were still on the bunny slope, but we were skiing often enough that when the youngest was 3.5, he could ski most of Bretton Woods and all the blues at Cannon. By 4.5, all the kids were proficient in a wedge, but again, the youngest was doing every groomed trail at Cannon by the end of the season. This year, the 5-year-old skies beautiful parallel turns on the steepest of trails.

My kids didn't do many lessons, usually just 1 or 2 per season to reinforce what I was teaching them. They prefer to ski with my husband and me than in the seasonal programs, and since we both work, we enjoy spending that time with them too!

 

[Kimmyt]

Taos has an incredible ski school and childcare and iirc once they turn 3, their day of 'daycare' includes on snow time although not as much as my 5yo's full day lesson when he was on the snow all day long. In fact I think they call it a ski lesson starting at age 3, instead of childcare. In general I've found that most actual full day skiing programs start closer to 5, and there is almost always the qualifier that the kids must be self sufficient at using the potty (which is a big deal when dealing with ski clothes). The multi week program we had our son in this year at our local ski hill Eldora, was ages 4-5 with the kids having to be self sufficient using the bathroom in ski gear. He started the 6 week program (Eldorables) when he was a few months shy of 5 and he was on the snow all day (with the exception of lunch) from 9-2:30, and tbh if he was any younger he really would have struggled with all that skiing.

 

[SnowSeeker]

My kids have done the Sugarloaf and Smugglers Notch ski school vacation programs starting at 2 and 3 years old. Both are excellent programs. Sugarloaf took my son out at age 2 for @ 1 hr each day. The rest of the time, they played, napped, snacked etc. Sugarloaf was great for very young kids. However, I thought Smuggs was fabulous for more eager, young little skiers. My daughter was barely 3 when she started skiing. We had already taught her the basics on our local hill but she was struggling with stopping. We went to Smuggs for vacation - within the first day she was stopping and skiing 100% in control - at age 3. After 5 days in the Smuggs program, she was skiing all over the lower mountain. They take them out in 1-1.5 hour increments in very small groups with two instructors. They have a very low lift specifically for little kids. And, the kids have a gps band so you can track them on the mountain. She skied @3-4 hours each day with big breaks in between. If the kids are tired or just not having it, they bring them in to play with the babysitters. They also have entertainment at the end of the day (magician or movie). The instructors were energetic and fantastic with very young kids. I can’t say enough good things about the Smuggs ski program. My older child was @7 at the time (this was 5 years ago) and he also progressed a lot in 5 days. Smuggs is a very structured program, but with flexibility for different types of kids.

Our local hill now offers a “3s on Skis” program and it’s very popular. It’s one on one for about 1 hour. As long as the sessions are short and kids are interested, I think 3 is a great age to start skiing.

 

[rhymeandreason]

My son did ski school at Park City and Deer Valley when he was 3 yo. PCMR is an all day program - I believe they go out once before lunch and once after lunch for 1.5-2.5 h, depending on the child. At DV, they can stay all day, but they just go out once for 1.5-2 h. Kids have to be fully potty trained.

My son preferred PCMR to DV because he enjoyed having more time on the snow. We had a great experience with both places, but for 3 year olds with enough stamina, I would recommend PCMR over DV. Photos are now included in the lesson price, which is a change from a few years ago.

 

[SallyCat]

It looks as though Bromley has an interesting program:
https://www.bromley.com/winter/kids...wSpDBqbsg8on61SvltmpITSDS_ke7eMF_4A0VU-5EcxPg

 

[marzNC]

It looks as though Bromley has an interesting program:
https://www.bromley.com/winter/kids...wSpDBqbsg8on61SvltmpITSDS_ke7eMF_4A0VU-5EcxPg

Definitely seems to be geared to parents who want to get in some skiing as well as make sure their little ones have a great day. Have heard that Bromley is very family-friendly. Terrain looked reasonably entertaining when I drove by a few years ago and took a look from the parking lot. Can see the mountain from Stratton and vice-versa but very different vibe. Bromley is operated by Fairbank, which also runs Jiminy Peak and Cranmore. They understand the market of families who are willing to pay a little more for slopeside lodging at a relatively sane mountain on weekends.

The program for 2.5 year olds sounds like a good way to get started. Especially if parents are only intermediates themselves. For me, I wasn't a good enough skier to enjoy skiing with a little one unless they were able to make turns pretty reliably and had been taught by an instructor how to load a chairlift.

 

[marzNC]

Jiminy Peak (western MA) has a program for 3yos. I've observed instructors at JP working with kids. They know what they are doing.

3 Year Old Program

• The 3 Year Old Program consists of a half-day on the slope and a half-day in the Cub's Den Playroom.
• Children must be toilet trained and out of diapers and pull ups.
• 3 Year Old pre-registration must be made by calling 413.738.5500 x 3680. Be sure to book in advance, the program fills up quickly.

 

[WaterGirl]

Isn’t this what grandparents excell at ? Make it a multigeneration vacation or trade off between parents or other friends. I can’t imagine spending $250 a day for baby sitting with a few snippets of snow play....... and that’s a pretty random “Aussie thread” not sure what the relevancy is? most mountains provide some kind of child care and early lesson program.

 

[marzNC]

Isn’t this what grandparents excell at ? Make it a multigeneration vacation or trade off between parents or other friends. I can’t imagine spending $250 a day for baby sitting with a few snippets of snow play....... and that’s a pretty random “Aussie thread” not sure what the relevancy is? most mountains provide some kind of child care and early lesson program.

For parents who are planning their first trip to a big mountain with a kid under age 5, having some ideas of the possibilities for full-day ski school/day care might be helpful. The programs being mentioned are generally under $200. At Jiminy Peak, it's $132/152, non-holiday/holiday, if reserved online for 9:30-3:00.

Parents who have active grandparents who can help with babysitting to allow the parents to ski are very lucky. In my case, my parents were still around when my daughter was little but in their 90s so not up for babysitting and my in-laws were not either. For families who must fly to enjoy skiing at a big mountain, adding the cost of a plane ticket for other adults is a planning consideration. For families who don't live in ski country, finding another unrelated family to travel with when the kids are under age 5 is not easy.

As for the thread I linked in Post #1, I'm a member of that ski forum as well although I mostly lurk. I've learned a lot about skiing in Canada, Japan, and Europe from that forum because some Australians take full advantage of the summer school vacation weeks in Dec-Jan to take 2-3 week ski trips to other continents. The efforts of that parent who is planning a ski trip almost a year in advance from Australia to Canada with two kids under age 5 is what inspired me to start this thread. What Big White offers for kids of all ages is very impressive. I imagine some parents wish more resorts would do something similar for 3-4 year olds at a reasonable price.

 

[SnowSeeker]

To add to the above - for very young kids, lift ticket are often included and we always paid far less than $200 day for ski school. I think it was usually @$80 day because of package deals and specials on less popular weeks - ie, go on non school holidays. For comparison, it’s $20/hr for babysitting where I live so $80 for all-day ski school seemed great to us. We offset the cost by eating in the condo for breakfast and most dinners rather than eating out. Also, teaching three year olds to ski is backbreaking work and I’m not letting grandma slip a disc on my watch!

Putting money and grandma’s bad back aside, my kids enjoy and learn skiing best when in the company of other kids. It’s more fun and motivating than skiing with a parent. Besides, I want to ski on more challenging runs on vacation. Ski school is childcare with the bonus of fun and skill development.

 

[Jilly]

Have to agree with @marzNC about this topic. Not everyone has a grandparent to start with, nor a @SkiBam that can ski with the grand children.

Yes, it's glorified daycare with snow, but as @SnowSeeker states, you want to ski your stuff on vacation too! And kids will learn better without you, unless you are a qualified ski instructor. Even then....pass them off.

Rates at Tremblant are $119 off season to $129 high season/day. This includes lunch and lifts too.