Living within Switzerland’s biggest ski domain, Les 4 Vallées, makes it easier said than done to pack all the family ski gear and visit other Family Friendly Ski Resort in Europe. So, being curious about other resorts we asked some of our favorite family travel bloggers to recommend their favorite family friendly ski resorts in Europe and we came up with this amazing suggestion list of these 10 Family Friendly Ski Resorts.
Spain Ski Resort ❄︎ Skiing in France ❄︎ Italy Ski Domain ❄︎ Ski Austria ❄︎ Skiing in Bulgaria ❄︎ Sweden Ski Resort ❄︎ Switzerland Ski Domain
1 ❄︎ Baqueira-Beret Ski Area – Spanish Pyrenees
Baqueira-Beret is the premier ski destination in the Spanish Pyrenees. At an altitude of 1800 metres, the resort is snow-sure and very popular with both French and Spanish families. Although a luxury resort, Baqueira-Beret is actually cheaper than other similar resorts in the Alps such as Chamonix, Courcheval or Val d’sere situated in France. There are approximately 160 skiable kilometres of groomed runs. The royal family of Spain skis at this resort. You get the feeling people are well-heeled but it isn’t snooty. An adult ski pass is 52 Euros for the day and children under 6 years old pay 5 Euro for the day.
We had no problem finding English speaking ski instructors for our children. It is a very family friendly ski resort. There are numerous hotels that welcome families. We ate with our children in the regular restaurants. Our hotel did have a children’s meal but it was a bit late for us (never mind our children) because it was at the Spanish kiddy dinner time of 8pm.
My favourite part of the whole ski experience (other than churros for breakfast!) was that the Spanish don’t wake up at the crack of dawn to ski in the mornings. You don’t get the crazy lines for the ski lifts that other well-known resorts encounter. Spanish skiers seem to wake up late, ski like demons, have a long leisure lunch, ski some more and then head for an après ski and dinner that lasts long into the night. It’s a relaxed timetable and we enjoyed ourselves very much.
Recommended by Shobha from “Just go places”. Find out more from Shobha about Family skiing in Spain
2 ❄︎ Avoriaz – Skiing in France
I grew up skiing every Christmas with my family, and I have to say, I have a lot of particularly happy memories in the family friendly ski resort of Avoriaz, France. Situated in the heart of the Portes du Soleil, it’s pretty easy to explore surrounding resorts – the Portes du Soleil area has about 650 km of slopes to enjoy! We generally used to stay in apartments as there weren’t a huge number of hotels when we used to stay (that might have changed a bit) – self-catering is easy enough though with supermarkets easy to find.
I learnt to ski in the Village des Enfants, a children’s ski school in the heart of town. Although it was a mainly French speaking ski school, I managed to get along just fine, now I come to think about it the one year I was in a class with an English-speaking child I failed my medal because we mucked about too much!
At Avoriaz Ski Resort a child’s half day lesson at the ski school including lunch will cost you around 39€. Adult ski lessons are available through Ecole Ski Francais from 52€ per day. Children 3 – 4 years old get a free ski pass whilst children aged 5 -15 will have to pay about 40€ and adults 15+ cost 53€ a day.
Recommended by Francesca from Gluten Free Horizons
3 ❄︎ Alpe Cermis – Ski Italian Dolomites
4 ❄︎ Söll – Ski Austria
(SkiWelt – Wilder Kaiser area)
If you are looking for a charming, yet family friendly ski resort in Europe, then the Söll, a ski area in Austria should be on the list.
With short driving times from Germany, Switzerland and Italy, and easy on the pocket in terms of pricing, it is clear why so many families and intermediate skiers frequent this Tyrolean village.
There is a wide variety of options for accommodation including private guesthouses, apartments, and three to four-star hotels. We enjoyed a nice stay at Dorfstubn Appartements, a two-bedroom apartment above a wonderful restaurant in the centre of the village. The apartment had a perfect amount of space for 3 adults and one toddler.
SkiWelt offers 90 cable cards and lifts with over 284 km of ski runs. They also feature 11 kilometers of illuminated ski runs (Wednesday to Saturday each week), making skiing possible day or night. If not everyone in your family enjoys skiing, check out their tobogganing, a fun experience for the entire family. You can rent toboggans either at the bottom or the middle lift stations.
We love SkiWelt due to all their child friendly care and family ski options. The “Kinderland Kornkammer” (KiKo) provides supervision for young children from 1 year of age up to age 5 in their fun themed rooms. Kiko is located right next to the valley station of the gondola lift in Söll. Alternatively, if your little ones are ready to hit the slopes, the Hexenwiese ski field is the perfect place to take those first strides and it’s free for the whole family. If you’d rather hire an instructor, the Söll ski school offers age-appropriate courses for toddlers all the way up to teenagers. There are also four kids zones for varying ages: Hexenkinderland (middle lift station), Minikinderland (bottom station), Crazy Kangaroo Park and Funny Bird Slope.
1 day pass pricing about 46 euros per adults, 23 euros per child (low season), 51 euros per adults, 25.50 euros per child (high season).
Recommended by Chelsea from “Pack more in to life“. Find out more from Chelsea about family friendly trips to Switzerland.
5 ❄︎ Schlick 2000 – Ski Austria
(Tyrolean Stubai Valley)
There are many good reasons why Schlick 2000 in the Tyrolean Stubai Valley is rated among the top 15 family friendly ski resorts in Austria. The fact that kids under 10 ski for free in the company of a paying parent is certainly one of them.
The Schlick 2000 ski resort is a short 15-minute drive from Innsbruck, the capital of Tyrol, in a beautiful setting near the start of the Stubai Valley. It has 22 kms of slopes, including 7 blue, 7 red, and 4 black runs. The long blue runs make it the perfect place for children and beginners to hone their skills.
Two ski schools and a Kindergarten (during peak periods) allow parents and kids to enjoy their days on the slopes of Schlick 2000 to the fullest. Even some nights are catered for, with an impressive light show on some Wednesday evenings to coincide with night tobogganing.
With affordable ski passes for the whole family, Schlick 2000 offers good value for money too. An adult day pass costs €38,50, with various multi-day options, including a 7-day pass for €223,50, available too. If you want to try some of the other resorts in the valley, there is also a Stubai super ski pass. To top it off, all resorts are connected by a free ski bus service.
Caption: Taking a picture in front of the frozen waterfall at Schlick 2000 is a must.
Recommended by Lynda from “Travel Tyrol”. Follow Lynda and her family on FaceBook
6 ❄︎ Bansko – Skiing in Bulgaria
Voted as the cheapest place to ski in Europe again this year, Bansko, Bulgaria is one of the best family friendly ski resorts in Europe. Situated just 2 hours from Bulgaria’s capital, Sofia, but also accessible from the cheap flight’s airport and Bulgaria’s second city, Plovdiv, Bansko is a mountain town with a lot of heart.
There are a variety of ski schools available – and as the resort is popular with many visitors, language support is also available for all Europeans and Russians too! There are 48 km of slopes and 8km of ski routes to test yourself on. The gondola begins at 990 metres and the top of the ski resort is located at 2,560m. 41% of the resort is for beginners and the ski slope to the town is a very gentle run back suitable for all levels.
Day tickets for adults cost approximately 30 euros. There is a junior ski club for kids between 4 and 7 years old and there are many services provided by English speaking expats in the town to provide lessons and support for families while staying in Bansko.
Bansko has a superb family atmosphere – from the mehanasin the old town providing well-cooked great Bulgarian food, to the hot spring spa pools where family comes first. It may be great for winter sports, but it’s also a super year-round place to visit too!
Recommended by Sarah from ASocialNomad . Follow them on FaceBook and see what else they recommend
7 ❄︎ Romme Alpin – Sweden Ski Resort
Romme Alpin is a family friendly ski resort in Europe located in the county of Dalarna in Sweden. With 33 slopes and 13 lifts, it is the largest ski resort outside of the mountain region of Sweden. Romme Alpin lies only 200 Km away from Stockholm, thus making for a perfect daytrip from the capital. Romme Alpin is a fantastic destination for families, offering large family rooms and a kids’ club at the Ski Lodge, as well as children menus at the restaurants. There are several activities organized to entertain children, both in the Ski Lodge and on the slopes. For example, you can sign up your kid for a waffle party with the resort mascot Rommi the penguin!
The ski school offers group lessons for children aged 3 to 9 and private lessons for all ages. Children up to the age of 6 ski for free, and discounted ski-passes are offered to children between 7 and 17 years old. An adult ski pass at Romme Alpin costs 405 SEK (about 40 €) for one day and 1725 SEK (about 170 €) for a pass valid 6-8 days. Near the beginners’ area there is a sledge hill, and there is even a small ice-skating rink on the main square of the resort.
Recommended by Eva from Electric Blue Food If you like to see more of Eva’s work follow her on Instagram
8 ❄︎ Les 4Vallées – Switzerland ski Domain
Switzerland’s biggest ski area “Les 4 Vallées” is situated in the heart of the Valais canton, and well known for its snow sure domain due to its high altitude, 3300m. With 420km of marked pistes and 92 ski lifts distributed over 4 Valleys, 6 independent villages, plus with the offer of an extensive backcountry access, it is a mecca for ski and board lovers. But best of it all it is the ideal family resort. Whether you have beginners, adrenaline seekers, or non-skiers, every member of your family is well catered for.
I will concentrate on the set up in the village of Haute- Nendaz which is the heart of the 4 Vallées ski domain.
Families will find a paradise up at Tracouet “Lac Noir” station which you can reach by cable car from the village centre. With three separate learning areas, two of which are setup with magic-carpets and fun obstacles to ski around and another one with a drag lift. It all allows a safe and comfortable progression to ensure to finish the week on the big slopes. A crèche is situated on the summit and organised by Ecole Suisse de Ski. Alternatively, the village also accommodates children on holiday in the local crèche upon reservation.
Non-skiers can take a seat by the Igloo restaurant right next to the kids learning and sledging area and enjoy the breathtaking surrounding views under the Valais sun. How convenient is this!
A little extra plus is the mini hill at Les Ecluses, an area within the village providing a magic carpet open to sledging on one side and beginners skiing on the other, all free of charge!
Children up to 6 years of age are skiing for free in the whole 4 Vallées domain. For a day pass at the local Printz area which includes Tracouet station an adult pays about Chf 59.- and a youth Chf 30.-
Recommended by us, Corina from Packed Again. Find out more about the area and it’s highest peak the Mont Fort
9 ❄︎ Ski Zermatt – Switzerland
365 days a year, 360 km of slopes, 2 countries. Sounds not bad? Well, that is Zermatt and it’s family friendly ski resort.
For the little or older ones who are starting their skiing adventure there’s Wolli Park on the Sunnegga. A perfect spot to learn! After Wolli Park you can take your kids on Findeln slope and then up to Gornergrat where slopes are wide and easy.
Matterhorn ski school, Summit, European Snowsports and Stoked are all great ski-schools to chose from. Most of them offer kids lessons that cost around Chf 600 for 6 days. Kids up to 9 years old don’t pay for the ski pass, 9-16 year olds have 50% discount. Price for adults: Chf 338 for 6 days, daily international pass (including Italy) costs Chf 80.
There’s also babysitter services – like Alpine Nanny for example. If you book a lesson in a ski school you can directly ask for a babysitter as well. Or just ask in your hotel.
The family friendly ski resort of Zermatt offers also sledging at Rotenboden at the Gornergrat side. A fun family friendly activity.
Recommended by Agnieszka ‘Aggie’ from “Aggies Switzerland“. Find out more from Aggies about Switzerland
10 ❄︎ Flumserberg – Ski in Switzerland
When looking for a family friendly ski resort in Europe, you need much more than fluffy snow and exciting slopes. After trying many resorts in Eastern Switzerland, we keep coming back to Flumserberg because it has all the elements that make a family friendly ski resort, both fun and functional.
First, we love that the beginner slopes and ski school are located directly adjacent the parking lot. This means we can easily get the kids to their classes and fetch extra clothes and food from the car when necessary (fyi, often necessary!). Plus we don’t have to pay for an adult lift pass if we aren’t skiing.
The beginner ski area has a nice variety of steepness, making it easier to build up your skills instead of graduating from a bunny hill directly to a steeper blue run. We also appreciated the free magic carpet, where we could practice without spending a fortune and entertain our youngest kids while the others were in ski school. My older son loves the “fun park”, with a racing course, jumps and obstacles, even a big air jump into an air pillow. For lunch, we recommend calling a day ahead to reserve a table at one of the many restaurants, saving some hassle finding a table for the whole family.
Of course, there’s plenty of excellent advanced runs with fantastic views for the adults, while the kids are in ski school. Some of our best powder days have been here and thanks to their excellent teachers, our kids are starting to join the off-piste adventures.
An adult day pass starts at Chf 65.- , Youth (age 12-18) pay around Chf 42.- and for your little ones above the age of 6 years old you need to count Chf 32.-.
Recommended by Tanya from “Swiss family Fun“
Have you made your choice in which family friendly ski resort in Europe you will be gliding down the mountain?
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9 thoughts on “Family Friendly Ski Resorts in Europe”
This is so useful – it’s really overwhelming knowing where will be good to take kids, especially if you haven’t skiied so much yourself so having the advice from people who’ve tried it is great for weighing up some of the pros and cons, and reminding that there are more options than just the big name ski resorts.
Thank you Cathy for commenting. I am quite happy with the list we put together, and most of them I never heard of as well.
Hi, you’re absolutely right, the choices is great. On the end it all depends on your needs and what you like to get out of it. Kids do not really need a massive large area, but maybe the parents want a bit more choice. If grandparents join another factor takes part. I believe with theses 10 resorts there should be one for everybody.
My kids have been asking to go skiing! We live in NY so within close range to many ski resorts. I had no idea the one in Zermatt was open 365 days a year! Thats crazy!
Hi thanks for commenting, although Zermatt is open 365, this is understandable only on the glacier part. But still if anyone fancy a ski during their summer hiking holiday, it would mostly be possible 🙂
These resorts look amazing. Because my son plays hockey we don’t get out to ski as a family very often but maybe one day we can squeeze a trip in 🙂
What a great Collab Corina! Thank you very much for letting us be a part of it x
Thank you Lynne, I am also happy the way it turned out. Some great ski areas on the list… The season in the 4 Vallées has started today, Saturday, so better get our seasons tickets…
perfect spot to learn! After Wolli Park you can take your kids on Findeln slope and then up to Gornergrat where slopes are wide and easy.