Whether you are short of time or travelling on a budget, our friends at Heidi have all the hacks to help maximise your next ski trip, even when heading out to the mountains for just a few days. Read on to discover Heidi’s top 5 tips for planning a short ski holiday to ensure your next trip to the slopes is all-singing and all-dancing (especially come après time).
1. Narrow Your Search To Shorter Flight And Transfer Times
It’s simple – the less time you and your group spend up in the air and stuck on a coach transfer, the more time you can spend skiing the mountain and clinking glasses together at the après ski bar.
When booking a short ski trip, narrowing your resort options to resorts with shorter flights and even adding a private transfer (which can sometimes work out cheaper), means you can get on-the-go faster, maximising your precious holiday time by doing more of the things you love.
2. Fly Out Early And Return Late
If you can, maximise those all-important days away by catching an early morning flight out and a later return flight home – making your short ski trip that little bit longer. By getting to the resort early you can give yourself plenty of time to grab your ski equipment hire and those all-important lift passes before hotel check-in even opens.
And when it comes to returning home? Squeeze out an extra few hours on the slopes with a later evening flight to maximise your time on the mountains before the reality of work comes back to bite and your ski trip is truly over.
3. Keep It Flexible With Heidi’s +/- 2 Days Filter
Heidi is all about making your ski trip as flexible and hassle-free as possible. By choosing Heidi’s +/- 2 days filter when planning a short ski trip, you can find the best value ski holiday without the endless confusion of open tabs full of different dates and flight times. Think less time searching for the cheapest flights and more time picking that perfect resort.
If you can, try to avoid Saturday flights to snag an even better deal, with the extra bonus of a quieter airport and flight on your way out to the resort.
4. Book A Private Ski Lesson
Private ski lessons help accelerate your learning with direct feedback, tailored sessions and slope choices, as well as one-on-one assistance to help you master your skiing technique for the days ahead – which is really important when you’re on a short ski trip and are tight on time.
Group ski lessons tend to be restricted to Sundays and Mondays. So, if you are looking for a refresher lesson or you are a beginner skier just getting started, booking a private ski lesson could give you greater flexibility on dates and lesson times.
The best part of booking a private lesson? Your instructor always has your best interests at heart. So make the most of the one-on-one slope time to soak up the best of the local knowledge, ski areas and runs.
5. Choose A More Compact Ski Resort
Depending on your level of experience, trying to tackle a large ski area like the Three Valleys in a few days during a short ski trip might mean you’re not getting the most out of your lift pass and let’s face it, no one likes ending the trip with post-holiday run-envy.
By choosing a more compact ski area such as La Clusaz and Flaine in France or Italy’s Pila, you can get your money’s worth out of your lift pass without the stress of planning your days down to a – ‘t’.
Want a bonus tip for your short ski trip? Heidi recommends filtering your search for ski-in/ski-out access for ski accommodation directly on the slope. Ski-in/ski-out accommodation allows you to get those first lifts and ski from sunrise to sunset without the worries of catching transport back, so you can make the most of each day on the slopes.
You might also like: Short Ski Breaks: 10 Best Ski Resorts in Europe for a Weekend Ski Trip
