Skiing
Family ski holidays: ten resorts that work for the whole family
Short transfers, car-free streets or skiing from the door. Here are ten resorts in the Alps and Scandinavia that make a ski holiday easy for families.
Children care very little about how many kilometres of piste a resort has. They remember whether they were cold in the lift queue, whether ski school was a long walk away, and whether there was a sledging hill by the hotel. Those are the things that decide whether the family wants to go back.
We have picked ten resorts that make life easy for families. Each one has a short transfer, car-free streets or skiing from the door.
This page contains affiliate links. If you book through them, Picolo earns a commission at no extra cost to you. Our picks are made independently by our editors.
In short
Flaine is our first choice for a family ski holiday in the Alps. Almost everything is within walking distance, and the transfer from Geneva is about an hour. For a quieter week with shorter queues, Hemsedal in Norway is the Scandinavian pick.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Totem, Friendly Hotel
The Alps: car-free and ski from the door
Flaine was built for skiing, which you notice when the children need to get from the apartment to ski school. Distances are short and the car stays in the garage all week. The architecture is concrete and angles rather than chocolate-box chalets.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Totem, Friendly Hotel. Read our Flaine guide
Les Arcs can be reached by train to Bourg-Saint-Maurice and a funicular up. The village of Arc 1950 is car-free, and most apartments sit beside the piste.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Hôtel du Golf. Read our Les Arcs guide
La Clusaz is about an hour from Geneva airport, which matters when the youngest gets car-sick. The village stays lively off the slopes, with bakeries and a real market square.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Au Coeur du Village. Read our La Clusaz guide
Morzine suits families where not everyone wants to ski every day. The town has an ice rink and cafés, and the lifts take the keenest up into the Portes du Soleil.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Le Petit Dru. Read our Morzine guide
Saas-Fee is car-free and sits high in the Valais, with a glacier above the village. You leave the car in the garage at the entrance, and small electric vehicles carry the luggage on.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at The Capra Saas-Fee. Read our Saas-Fee guide
Wengen is reached only by cog railway from Lauterbrunnen and looks straight at the Eiger and the Jungfrau. For children, the train is half the adventure. A fair warning: not every run back to the village is gentle.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Hotel Regina Wengen. Read our Wengen guide
A ski day in Åre
Åre is big enough to keep teenagers interested, and the train runs almost all the way.
Norway and Sweden: quiet slopes, short queues
Hemsedal has steep peaks for the parents and gentle areas for the little ones, so the family can split up and meet for lunch. Lift queues are short by Alpine standards, even in February.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Skarsnuten Mountain Resort & Spa. Read our Hemsedal guide
Hafjell hosted the alpine events at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics and lies just north of the town. The runs are wide, and Lillehammer is close by for a day off skis.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Nermo Hotell. Read our Hafjell guide
Beitostølen is the calm choice, with gentle slopes and a large network of cross-country trails on the doorstep. It suits families who like to mix downhill with a day touring.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Beito Resort Hotel. Read our Beitostølen guide
Åre is Sweden's largest ski resort and has its own railway station in the village, so you can travel almost all the way by train. The mountain is big enough to keep teenagers interested.
Where to stay: Check availability and prices at Copperhill Lodge. Read our Åre guide
Before you go
Book children's lessons when you book your stay. Classes fill up during half-term, especially for the youngest.
Choose where to stay by the ski school, not the lift. It is the nine o'clock lesson start that needs to be a short walk.
Check school holidays in the country you are visiting. French, Dutch and British half-terms fall in different weeks, and prices follow them.
Plan something indoors. A stormy day will come, and a pool or an ice rink is worth its weight in gold.
Frequently asked questions
What age can children start skiing?
Most ski schools take children from around three or four years old. Before that it is mostly about playing in the snow. Check the age limit with the ski school before you book.
Which ski resort is best for families with young children?
Resorts with short distances and little traffic are the easiest. Flaine and Saas-Fee are good choices because children can walk to ski school without crossing busy roads.
When is the cheapest time for a family ski holiday?
Weeks outside school half-term are usually cheaper and quieter. If you have the Easter holidays free, high-altitude resorts can still offer good snow and longer days.
Is a hotel or an apartment better for a family ski trip?
A hotel with breakfast and a kids' club gives parents the most holiday. An apartment gives more space and makes it easy to feed children who eat early. Many families choose an apartment close to the ski school.