stevie1982

iTrader: (16)

People

been wanting to go snow boarding for years but always backed down and went on a beach holiday with the missus,

now being single the time has come to book something up but i am unsure on where is best to go, don't trust the travel agents as not sure if they will sell me what they will make the most money from or what is best for me

so where is best to go, assuming Europe would be best

also what to make sure i do, book before going etc

any tips would be greatly appreciated.

steve

Snazy

Most stuff can be rented but will depend on your budget really. Clothing and boots are the usual must's IMO.
Arinsal or anywhere in Andorra is a cheap and friendly start.

Fat Boy

Go somewhere where the snow is good (so high basically) as you WILL fall over a lot when learning and you want to do that in soft snow, not on ice as it hurts...

Tignes/ Val D'Isere/ Val thorens etc . Lots of lower and cheaper resorts which would be great if snow is good, but awful if the snow is poor. If you can go in mid Jan - cheapest/best time of year for snow- and what i used to do when I was young free and single was book the time off work but not book the holiday until the last second- that way i could check out where the snow was good and then shop around for last minute bargains.

If you can surf and/or to a lesser extent skate board, you'll find it easy. If not, it'll take you a few days and then you'll be away - much quicker than learning to ski.

Sneaky lessons in an indoor centre/ artificial ski slope would be money well spent too.

Snazy

Xscape and SnoZone are both good

jonc

+1 Went to one in Milton Keynes for 6 lessons. Definitely get a pair of snowboarding pants and jacket before going. The board, helmet and boots are supplied. I went Banff, Canada for my 'boarding honeymoon, definitely recommend that location!

hodgy0_2

Avoriaz (part of the Portes du Soleil) is one of the main snowboarding venues in the Alps

fly to Geneva, and a 1hr transfer


http://www.pv-holidays.com/gb-en/holidays-avoriaz_de

GazTheHat

Winter sports insurance a must.

You can hire the kit over here. Boardwise and the like. They usually have better stuff. Might be worth getting a few lessons and gaining balance over here at Xscape/SnowDome. Will set you up whilst over there and not eat into your weeks holiday.

Where to go, well i'm a sucker for what works and keep going back to the same place. Chamonix. Done 6 seasons there now and several other fortnight/3 week holidays. It's not that learner-friendly though. Anywhere can have good or bad snow. It's pot luck for the week you go.

stevie1982

iTrader: (16)

Thanks for all the advise so far, does any one have a prefered company to book it all with, one the would happily recommend to others. And overall what inc all flights, hotel, hire, lift pass etc should I be looking at?

I was looking to go mid April, is this a good or bad time to go, its my 30th bday so rather than just having another random night out on the drink, I wanted to be able to do something different and be able to say that I did something a little different for it, if that make sense

hodgy0_2

mid april, you need to go high and be lucky

plus it may be the end of season in many resorts

but the upside is you can get fantastic weather, I have been in April (early though) and been snowboarding in a t-shirt, under a bright blue sky with loads of snow too

imo very difficult to do it under £800,00 per person, and I have to take my wife and 5 kids

(we have to limit it to twice a year)

GazTheHat

Mid-april is one of my fav times, but you can expect more sun than snow. Powder days are few and far between. The slush is nice to learn/progress on. Plus all the queues are almost non-existent and the holidays should be cheaper. Sun cream is what you'll need. Gets to mid-20's sometimes.

Can't offer advice on who to book with, as normally just do it myself.

Dr Hu

*DEFFO* have some lessons in UK before you go.... or you WILL spend a week on your ****.

If you can snowboard on a dry ski slope you will be amazed how easy it is when you get on real snow - at least you will have got the feel of a board & how to ride/steer it.

Secondly - Buy GOOD gloves - best thing I ever did - preferably with Goretex linings, you will spend a lot of time with your hands in the snow doing up bindings or even just getting up - i went thru pairs & pairs of cheap, freezing, sodden gloves until I stumped up £50 on a good goretex pair - still using them years later!

Have Fun - I *love* snowboarding. Don't get to do enough of it now the kids are around

Recommend either Tignes - very high - in theory can do all year round - or Alpe D'Huez - with is very far south, and will be scorchio in mid-april