With most ski resorts too far away for a day trip, it can be easy to forget that you can still have a great family ski day out in England.
Whether you are heading to the snow for a family ski holiday and want some practice before your trip, or you are looking for an activity to tire out the kids (!) during the school holidays, a trip to one of the UK’s indoor snow centres is an excellent choice.
The Snow Centre at Hemel Hempstead
Last week we started the Christmas holidays by heading to The Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead.
With a main slope 160m long and 30m wide, served by two button lifts, there’s a long enough run to do some ‘proper’ skiing, even for advanced skiers.
Private and group lessons available
Like a ‘real’ ski resort, there’s a 100m beginners’ slope with group lessons running and you can also book a private instructor to bring your skiing or snowboarding on to the next level and brush the cobwebs away before your next trip.
Simple process to get you on the slopes
The process is remarkably simple. The video above gives you a great idea of what it’s like. You simply book your lift pass (usually a 2-hour block) in advance, collect your tickets and ski and boot hire and then you’re on the slope!
You don’t even have to worry about clothing as that’s also available to hire at reasonable prices. Make sure you take ‘proper’ ski gear though – it’s cold out there, with the slope kept at -2C during the day.
There are changing rooms and lockers to leave your clothes and valuables in.
Snow Report
The snow itself is, ironically, as good as you’ll find on most ski resorts in Europe right now. It’s granular with a good firm base – no ice at all.
And while we were there (a Sunday afternoon in December) there were no lift queues at all – it was simply ski down, go straight back up again.
A great family day out
I went to The Snow Centre with two 8-year-old children, who had a fantastic time. Both were tired out before our two hours were up, but as we’d skied non-stop for that time – with no queuing time – that wasn’t that surprising.
All in all a great day out and we’ll definitely be coming back before our annual family ski holiday to Les Menuires in March.
Article by Iain Martin