We spoke to a range of school tour operators to find out what the priorities should be for teachers and EVCs who are looking to book their first ever ski trip for pupils. Here’s what they told us…
Heading overseas for a school trip can be a big deal for the visit organiser, let alone when you throw skiing into the mix - it can be a real curve (or snow) ball.
From how to make your money go further, to thinking about the little details that can be overlooked, a range of school travel experts have shared their top tips to make your life easier.
Ollie Foulger, head of ski sales & product at Halsbury Travel, says that the time of year you decide to travel is crucial. He told us: “Dates are vital. You should be asking yourself: when can you travel, where do you want to go and what exactly do you want from the trip?
“Do all you can to travel in term time. Obviously this is tricky for many, but even weeks like the pre-Christmas week are starting to become more popular with headteachers to allow trips to travel – as not only is it more of a ‘winding down’ last week of term, but it’s also one of the cheapest weeks all season to travel.”
Karen Tickner, regional travel advisor at Select School Travel, agrees that the budget of the trip is the most important thing a teacher has to decide upon.
She said: “A teacher has to understand the budget expectations of parents. Once they have a good understanding of this, we as tour operators can then work with them to ensure the trip is both acceptable to the parents and meets the school’s requirements. Above all though and no matter what, the trip must provide a quality experience for the pupils.”
5 top tips from Snowsport England about booking your first ski trip
Chris Stroud, course organiser at Snowsport England, outlines his top five tips for teachers heading overseas:
- Choose your tour operator carefully. Make sure you get what you want from them rather than what they want to sell you.
- Choose a resort or area that offers appropriate pistes for the experience of your whole group, and a hotel that has the amenities you require.
- Choose your supporting staff carefully. You want people with you who you can trust should an emergency occur, whatever it may be.
- Negotiate increased staff/student ratios rather than the norm so the trip leader can delegate duties and cover any accidents or illness.
- Complete a Snowsport Course Organiser award through Snowsport England - it will explain the whole process from beginning to end, and the current best practice.
James Kirkham, ski customer service manager at PGL Beyond, suggests that anyone starting from scratch needs to decide what is the most important outcome for your group above anything else.
He said: “The outcome will differ from group to group and so it’s really key when speaking to any advisor that you have your end goal as your starting point.
“We can help you find the ideal holiday for you and your group, but if the most important thing to you is the ski area or the hotel, or you’re more driven by the number of ski hours or evening entertainment, let your ski tour advisor know and they can match the best trip for your needs.”
And what about those intricate details that are easily forgotten? Andy Matthews, operations manager at Rayburn Tours says that these should be at the forefront of your decisions.
He said: “The first thing to consider when booking a ski trip are your lift passes. Passes with hundreds of kilometres are generally more expensive, and usually unnecessary.
“Consider the type of skiers you’re planning to take. If it’s mostly beginners, ask about the nursery and beginner slopes, as well as what the progression for those skiers is like.
“If you’re taking lots of advanced and intermediates, resorts with ski school starting near multiple lifts means they can escape the ski school meeting point quicker to maximise their ski lesson times.
“In my opinion, the best resorts for beginners tend to be the smaller resorts. They’re less busy during peak weeks, making those first steps onto the snow less intimidating. Weekend skiing can be exceptionally busy at peak half term dates, so think about starting to ski on a Monday.”
