Why should I try skiing or snowboarding before I commit to booking a holiday?

Your first ski or snowboarding holiday should spark a life-long passion for snowsports and will let you embrace the best things about snow - cosying up by a fire, stunning mountainous views, and even creating snow angels. Let’s not forget about spiced mulled wine and a little bit of après ski. Best of all, waking up to the magical sight of snow every morning fills you with feelings of excitement and impatience to get out and ride the fresh snow with your friends or family.

The reasons for putting a skiing and snowboarding holiday firmly on your bucket list are endless but to guarantee that you make the most out of your precious holiday time, the best thing you can do is to try skiing or snowboarding before you book. Particularly for nervous first-timers or families who might be wary of splashing their cash on a holiday without the guarantee of enjoying themselves when they get there.

A way to ensure that your holiday is as enjoyable as possible is to learn before you travel. By learning to ski or snowboard at one of the UK’s many real snow centres or dry-ski slopes, you’ll be able to put the unsteady snowplough or the shaky toe edge stage (for you aspiring snowboarders out there) behind you and keep your eyes up to enjoy the stunning views of mountainous vistas when you’re there. Learning in the UK will certainly not provide you with these views but it will provide you with a real taste for snowsports and help you find your snow legs. It’s also a fantastic way to get yourself hooked before you book and will without a doubt make your first ski trip that little bit smoother.

By practising beforehand you’ll also get to experience what it feels like to slide along a slope on a board or on skis for the first time and really get to grips with how the equipment feels. The sooner you can get from wobbly snowplough to linked turns, the more you’ll get out of your first week in the mountains and the more fun you will undoubtedly have.



Many indoor ski centres and dry slopes offer taster sessions at a low cost, so you can try snowsports out and have an expert walk you through it. You can also opt to sign up for beginner courses or private lessons and see what is like to take on a blue or red run. You may not be whizzing down the slope like the next Winter Olympic gold medallist after these sessions, but it will definitely help you take on the mountains with greater ease and confidence. After your session, your instructor might even be able to recommend a resort that will suit your abilities.

Our beginner lessons will take you from zero to hero in no time.

When it comes to snowsports, there’s a lot of jargon out there so one other thing that may help you is our guide to ski terminology.