Family flurries

Christmas, they say, is a time to reconnect with family – and what better place to do it, asks BRIAN O'CONNELL, than while cloistered together skiing in Val d'Isère

THE LAST TIME I went on holiday with my family was to a French campsite when I was 15. I remember being acutely aware of my awkward adolescence, or Irishness, or both, arguing with my parents about the price of a Levis 501 T-shirt and spending most of the holiday with a girl from Scotland called Isla.

Since then, aside from weekends home, a few days at a family wedding in Italy was the longest I've been away with my parents or siblings. So, I struck upon an idea to spend the first week of the ski season in a chalet high in the French Alps with my father, brother and sister, my wife and my sister's fiancé. The idea was that it would provide for some family bonding Wham's Last Christmasstyle, allow certain members of the family their first ski experience and facilitate us all going away together without living in each other's pockets, as tends to happen with a sun holiday.

My father Decco, an abbreviation of Declan, had never tried skiing before, but was anxious to have a go as retirement beckons, when he’ll have more time on his hands and the need for more hobbies. The chalet, organised by More Alps, seemed the perfect solution for a family trip. Run by Irish/English couple Dan Last and Sarah Kearney, the company has been building up a property portfolio in places such as Greece and France over the past decade. They can organise your transfers, ski passes, lessons and equipment and also take care of your meals and snacks.

We chose the well known resort of Val d’Isère, and it’s just as well we did, because for the first week in December there was more snow and ice on the fish fingers in my freezer than there was in many parts of the Alps, following one of the mildest winters in decades.

Situated at the end of the famed downhill run from the 1992 Winter Olympics, the chalet (reputedly worth in the region of €2 million) had plenty room for us all, was well designed and of high standard with many of the rooms ensuite. Importantly, it was located a few minutes walk from the ski lift. The added bonus, though, was that it comes with hosts – in our case the wonderful Jimmy McNamara and Tracey Gill, who seem to have struck the perfect work/life balance. They kept the place ticking over, and despite protesting he wasn’t a chef, Jimmy cooked up some great meals in the morning and evening, including a super shepherd’s pie. Each afternoon, when we got back from the slopes, there was also a freshly baked cake or sweet thing waiting on the table for us.

Due to the lack of snow, we spent all our time on the glacier above the tree line, where conditions were perfect for the experienced and intermediate skiers among us, but a little trickier for the novices. It meant that my father and brother had to learn to ski on rather icy and less forgiving areas of the slopes – it’s worth thinking hard about conditions, especially for beginners, if you are going on a trip so early in the season.

Of course, as Sod’s law would have it, on the day we were leaving, the snow began to fall.

Lessons and equipment were provided by the Oxygene ski school (oxygene-ski.com). It is always suggested that even the most able skiers should take refresher lessons, and generally this will cost you about €58 an hour in Val d’Isère. Not cheap, but you do get one-on-one attention for that price, and not having to wait for the rest of ski school to catch up or slow down to your level is worth the extra spend.

Three of us were brought out by Pierre de Monvallier, head of the Oxygene school, who was part motivational expert, part ski specialist. “Hey, you guys, we don’t want control freaks on the slopes. Leave that to the politicians and bankers. We are skiers,” was one of his memorable mantras when teaching parallel skiing.

By day three, it was almost as if our hosts Jimmy and Tracey were part of the family, joining us for the odd night out, and going for an afternoon spin or two with us on the slopes. Never have I seen a couple make so little noise when cooking in a kitchen, and it felt like we were part of a Masterchefspecial of Come Dine With Me. Taking a catered package is definitely worth considering, especially in a resort such as Val d'Isère, where French onion soup in a restaurant will set you back as much as a staggering €19. The one good restaurant we found was a place called 1789, where they cook your steaks to order on an open fire, and the prices are reasonable (restaurant-1789-valdisere.com).

We all improved as skiers during the week, and enough of the resort was open to ensure we had plenty runs for a five-day trip. My brother was fast to pick up the basics, and by the end of the week, my father had been re-christened “Decked” because of the amount of time he spent on the ground. In fairness, he was getting there also, despite the tricky conditions. It was quite icy underfoot and none of the beginner slopes was open (they’ve had more than a metre of snow since, I’m told).

All in all then, if you’re a family who hasn’t been away together for a number of years, a catered ski holiday such as those offered by More Alps, offers the perfect mix of intimacy and detachment, which goes a long way to also describing the ideal family relationships.

VAL D'ISERE: HOW TO GET THERE

Aer Lingus (aerlingus.com) flies to Geneva and Lyon, Ryanair (ryanair.com) flies to Grenoble. We had two Aer Lingus flights cancelled, which meant rearranging transfers, so be wary of booking in advance early in the season. The nearest airport to Val d’Isère is Chambery, but locals warn it is prone to closure if conditions are bad. There’s also the option of taking Eurostar from London to Paris and then getting another train to nearby Annecy.

Family-friendly resorts

AUSTRIA

The perfect place for a family to learn to ski together is St Johann, which has an impressive range of beginner slopes. More advanced skiers may get bored especially if the stay is longer than a week, but there’s enough to do at night to keep all entertained. Many catering and self-catering options are available, and family run BBs often offer the best value in Austria. For a bigger challenge, nearby Obertauern (where The Beatles shot the Help video) is one of the best in Austrian. obertauern.com, skiaustria.co.za

SWITZERLAND

By mid-December, all of the slopes in Verbier will have opened. The resort is sometimes considered the most cosmopolitan in this area, with views of nearby Mount Blanc. It’s a pretty expensive destination, full of Gucci goggles and designer ski suits, but it does offer some excellent skiing and is worth visiting, if only for a day. Perhaps look into staying outside the main resort itself, which has a famed nightlife. Other Swiss resorts worth checking out are Val d’Anniviers and Zermatt, and flights to Geneva are regular and cost less than €100 out of season. switzerland.europe-mountains.com

ITALY

Courmayeur is recommended for families, with a good selection of slopes for beginners and children. For the more experienced, Chamonix is only a bus ride away. Located at the foot of Mount Blanc, a big draw in Courmayeur besides the skiing is the choice of food at night and all over the slopes. It is accessible by flying into either Turin or Milan both of which are approximately an hour’s drive away. courmayeur.com

More Alps has catered chalets in Val d’Isère and the nearby La Rosiere resorts. Prices start from €450 per person. Discounts available on selected weeks. Packages can include transfers, ski hire and lessons. morealps.com