Good morning from dull, damp Cork.
I will be staying in Hotel del Clos, Soldeu in late December for a skiing holiday with my son. It is our first time on this type of holiday and I have lots of questions so please bear with me.
We are going on a package holiday for 7 days which includes accommodation,ski school, lift pass and equipment hire. Are there any other items I need to budget for apart from clothing?
SKI School.
What is the format of ski school?
How do you get allocated to a school/instructor?
How long is each session?
Have you any tips about Ski School?
Someone else on the forum said to make sure you get to the school early on the first day to be guaranteed a place on the session of your choice. How can you do this when on the first morning you will also have to collect your rental gear?
Where will we get the rental gear from?
Is it essential to rent lockers? Why?
If you are very close to the lifts/gondolas, is it necessary to take a locker? I believe Hotel del Clos is very close to the lifts.
Are Skis etc allowed to be taken into the hotel?
Are there other activities that you can get involved in such as snow boarding and tobogganing, or should first timers concentrate on skiing?
Is it recommended to take a day off mid week and do something else? What would you recommend to do? We also love hiking, cycling and anything outdoors really.
Is it expensive to buy ski clothing in the resorts? For example, I bought a pair of ski gloves in Cork recently for €40 and I would consider that fairly expensive.
If you have any other tips/suggestions for complete first timers who will spend most of their time skiing on their arses, I would really appreciate them.
Thanks very much and sorry about all the questions. They don%26#39;t call me Bryno the pedantic for nothing !
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I see from my travel itinerary that I will be arriving at Soldeu at approx 3pm on a Sunday afternoon. So I presume I can collect my hire equipment then and have them ready for my first ski class on Monday.
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So many questions
SKI School.
What is the format of ski school?
You will all meet and be asked your experience. You will then be put in groups of about 12. You should be able to keep your family together if they want to.
How do you get allocated to a school/instructor?
Your rep will sort that out - you should have booked a ski hire and school pack
How long is each session?
Depends on you holiday - check the brouchure. Some are 3 hours (morning or afternoon), some are 2 hours morning and afternoon
Have you any tips about Ski School?
Concentrate ;-)
Someone else on the forum said to make sure you get to the school early on the first day to be guaranteed a place on the session of your choice. How can you do this when on the first morning you will also have to collect your rental gear?
Don%26#39;t understand that. If you are on a package holiday they will sort all that out.
Where will we get the rental gear from?
See your rep
Is it essential to rent lockers? Why?
No. I have a cycling bum bag which is large enough for a couple of bottles of water. Suncream, lipsalve etc goes in our pockets. Otherwise a drawstring shoulder bag will do
If you are very close to the lifts/gondolas, is it necessary to take a locker? I believe Hotel del Clos is very close to the lifts.
Never hired a locker yet !
Are Skis etc allowed to be taken into the hotel?
Hotels should have a ski/boot room for you to change.
Are there other activities that you can get involved in such as snow boarding and tobogganing, or should first timers concentrate on skiing?
Don%26#39;t swap between ski and board until you are confident on one
Is it recommended to take a day off mid week and do something else? What would you recommend to do? We also love hiking, cycling and anything outdoors really.
Hopefully there will be too much snow to cycle. You could hire a pair of snow shoes if you want a walk
Is it expensive to buy ski clothing in the resorts? For example, I bought a pair of ski gloves in Cork recently for €40 and I would consider that fairly expensive.
€40 for ski gloves is reasonable for good quality ones. We have got some good bargains for clothes at the resort, but we have gone in February. I doubt that the resort will be selling their stuff of cheaply in December.
If you have any other tips/suggestions for complete first timers who will spend most of their time skiing on their arses, I would really appreciate them.
Bend your knees and lean forward
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Mr C has given you some excellent answers already, here are a few extra suggestions that might help.
Are there any other items I need to budget for apart from clothing?
Are you going on half board basis? If not then food %26amp; drink of course. Lunch - your Hotel might sort a packed lunch for you, or you could eat at one of the Mountain Restaurants, Or you could buy some bits %26amp; pieces in the Local Supermarket and make up your own lunches. I like to buy a bottle of spirit and some mixers to keep in the hotel room, it%26#39;s nice to have a drink as you relax and shower after your ski day - and in Andorra this will work out reasonably - you also might like some %26#39;snacks%26#39; like peanuts etc to go with this.
How do you get allocated to a school/instructor?
On some occasions the ski school will run a brief session where they watch you ski down a short section of slope so that the instructors can assess your ability. They will choose an appropriate class for you.
Where will we get the rental gear from?
This will be sorted by your package company and %26#39;Rep%26#39;. If you have your own ski boots, take ONE boot with you to the Hire shop, so that they can fit your boots to the ski bindings.
Is it essential to rent lockers? Why?
This will depend on how far your hotel is from the lifts/slopes, and how much you love or hate lugging all that ski gear around! Most ski hotels have a ski/boot room or drying room (usually in a basement somewhere!) As you say your Hotel Del Clos is near to the lifts, you probably won%26#39;t need to.
Are there other activities that you can get involved in such as snow boarding and tobogganing, or should first timers concentrate on skiing?
Yes - either ski OR board, not both. - Your rep will sort some evenings tobogganing and such no doubt.
Is it recommended to take a day off mid week and do something else? What would you recommend to do? We also love hiking, cycling and anything outdoors really.
Andorra is well set up for spas or you could take a Bus to somewhere like Andorra La Vella for shopping. There is a fair chance that your travel company might run a day trip to one of the spas, like Caldea. I think that there are also options to go Husky Sledding or Snowmobiling in some of the resorts.
Is it expensive to buy ski clothing in the resorts?
It Can be expensive but Andorra is renowned for %26#39;duty-free%26#39; shopping and has some large ski warehouses where you can buy decent kit a bit cheaper - I think they are near Andorra La Vella, your %26#39;Rep%26#39; should know.
If you have any other tips/suggestions for complete first timers who will spend most of their time skiing on their arses, I would really appreciate them.
As well as leaning well forward into your boots, work up the courage to look straight down the mountain - this will help to keep your shoulders perpendicular to the %26#39;fall%26#39; line and your skis well %26#39;edged%26#39;
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Thank you both very much, excellent info for me.
regarding these comments:
%26quot;You will all meet and be asked your experience%26quot;
%26quot;they watch you ski down a short section of slope so that the instructors can assess your ability%26quot;
Ha, that should be hilarious !!
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Hi All,
What%26#39;s the weather like there this weekend? I note no snowfall since 11th December. Any chance there will be falling snow in Soldeu over the next week?
What SPF do I need to buy before I leave?
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Last snow according to J2Ski was 10cm today, although that site is always very optimistic.
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I´m here. Don´t mind ski reports there has been no major snowfall for the past few weeks. They expect 1 metre fall next Thursday !! I´ll let you know if that prediction is true.
I knew the holiday would be great, but didn´t think it would exceed expectations and it has.
Got some good info before I arrived here but also some not very accurate from other ´seasoned skiers´ Will share all when I get back to Cork.
Hotel del Clos is EXCELLENT, what a New years party we had (and I hate parties). The Spanish/French/Andorans sure know how to party !!
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The snowfall predictions were correct it snowed yesterday in the Soldeu and El Tartar areas(Wednesday 2nd Jan) for about 5 hours beginning at 5pm. The first hour was light but the remainder quite heavy.
Not before time either, as the piste at El Tartar was getting a little bald in places and even some of the lower blue slopes were staying icy.
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More fresh snow falling all day today at Soldeu, El Tarter, and Andorra in general.
The pistes are looking great !! Nice for those of you arriving to ski next weekend.
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Hi...We are off to Soldeau on the 13th of January. We are first timers and I am not sure if I am looking forward to it or not. We are staying in the Hotel Sport. Any hints or tips for absolute beginners appreciated.
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