Sorry for asking a muppet style question but here goes:

We as a family want to start skiing, we have bought decent ski clothing and we're ready to get to a slope and have a go. Mrs Wu used to be a decent skiier but hasn't been on skis for 20 years, Mr Wu has been on skis once in his lifeline. Mr and Ms Wu juniors have never been on skis.

Questions:

1) When booking kids into kids ski school will the schools usually provide skis/boots/helmuts or do we have to organise this ourselves seperately?

2) When booking adults into private lessons or groups do we have to organise our own skis/boots/helmuts?

3) What would you recomment, sep. training for the kids and one-to-one or groups for the adults or a family training?

4) Insurance - are we covered under our normal health insurance? (we have the basic and private health on top of this)

Thanks for any tips you can offer, we're planning on the Flumserberg this coming weekend and have already seen that there are two kids ski schools there.

Cheers

You have to organise your own ski/boots/helmets (you can maybe hire them from where you are going skiing.

I would have seperate lessons adults, and kids seperated, you will be surprised how fast the kids will learn because they are not afraid of falling over where as being an adult i think we have more fear (i am talking from experience)

Insurance is covered for skiing in your normal insurance

Have fun.

So:

1) you will need to do this via a skishop separately
2) yes
3) probably most efficient for group lessons for all individuals, ie kids in kids groups, adults in adults groups - NB be sure to specifiy any language requirments when booking - most larger reorts (and many small ones) can accomodate english speakers but need to be asked...
4) I think so... but check the small print

Good luck!

Don't skiing accidents fall under your accident insurance??

In answer to questions 1 and 2, you usually you need to hire the equipment separately and according to the Flumserberg website I assume that this is also the case over there:

http://www.flumserberg.ch/winter/de/...ortgeschaefte/

If you are all pretty much beginners and I guess even yourself after 20 years would need a kick-start, then I suggest you take a half day lesson for the family in order to ascertain individual levels and needs afterwards with help and consultation from the ski instructor.

Bad news for Mr Wu: Mrs Wu will still be a decent skiier. It's like riding a bike, you never forget it. I reckon it will all come back to her within a couple of minutes...

One lesson I would definitely take on board is, when hiring the boots etc, try and pick the nearest shop to where you intend to go skiing!!!

Sounds obvious, but a couple of years ago my wife and kids came over (when I was doing a weekly commute to Switzerland) and we got the train to Davos. for a weekend The train tickets entitled us to 20% off Intersports prices so, seeing there was one next to the station, we got our stuff there. Then we worked out where we were going to ski, which turned out to be a 10 minute walk away. Make that 45 minutes with me carrying everything and my son moaning that his feet hurt him. Poor guy, we didn't have proper ski socks for him and his boot didn't seem to be fitted properly, though he didn't say a word in the shop! When we finally got to where we were going, very flustered, it turned out there was an Intersport shop there we could have used!

Although we got him sorted out there with socks and boot adjustments, I don't think we ever really recovered and their first (and to date only) experience of skiing wasn't the pleasantly memorable experience for them I hoped it would be!

Organise separately, but some ski schools might have an affiliation with a rental centre. Either way you need to have it sorted before your lesson begins.

Ditto, as above.

Mrs. Wu will probably not need any lessons. I started skiing at Christmas with my better half. She had not done it in 15 years or more, and I had never done it. She stood on the ski's and went off like she had never been off them.

If you can snowboard you may not need lessons. I snowboard fairly regularly, the guys at the rental place told me that if I can snowboard proficiently skiing should not be a problem.

Accident insurance (SUVA or similar) from your work will cover you. Not sure about your family.

Don't go to Flumserberg. It will be so crowded you will spend the day trying to avoid other people rather then actually learning how to ski.

I have one rule with people new to skiing - you carry your own stuff!!

Helping a family with 3 kids - total beginners - get to their first ski lesson was a nighmare. They left things on the bus, things outside the buy and the lady even took someone elses skis by mistake. I really enjoyed skiing with the the little one, then just turned 3. The family have been skiing every year since and now put me to shame!

Many thanks to everyone for all your help, some good tips there. I will try and organise ski equipment rental for all of us tomorrow, I tried locally but the shop is out of stock, they recommend Ochsner sport in Sihlcity for rental - anyone concur with that?

Re Flumserberg, we're going with friends and planning to get there at Lark's Fart in the morning, hopefully it won't be too crowded at that time of day. For future tips though, where do the good folk of EF recommend to go from Zürich?

Thanks!

Lots to choose from here!

Larks fart will mean you get your rental sorted and your lessons started before half of Zurich's population land on the pistes.