What’s the Right Age to Start Kids Skiing?

If you ski, you’ll likely hope your kids join you on the slopes and feel the same thrill you do as they glide down a snow-covered mountainside. Especially if skiing means traveling some distance and you are make the ski trip a family vacation, you’ll want everyone to enjoy all the activities.

What is the right age for kids to begin skiing? Of course, they must be able to walk and maintain balance. Most ski-learning programs prefer to begin at age 4. Our oldest was so eager to ski —  she’d watched skiers and was itching to be on the slopes with us that we started her at 3. Go by their interest and don’t push them if they seem reluctant or fearful.

All kids may not immediately see the appeal of sliding downhill on slippery sticks. If yours aren’t interested, don’t rush them or make them feel guilty about not skiing. Choose a resort with alternative activities or a childcare center where they can have fun with other kids while you ski.

Introduce them to skiing with a lesson, either private or with a small group of same-age kids. Ski instruction, especially for kids, has changed since you learned to ski, so leave it to the professionals to get kids started out on the right feet. Do enquire beforehand to find an instructor trained to work with young beginners.

We opted for a private first lesson, where our daughter could get the instructor’s full attention and not be worried about “keeping up” with other kids or be distracted by them. Look for a resort with dedicated beginner areas, especially those with carpet lifts and where snow is groomed and contoured for beginning skiers.

Stay to watch the lesson and listen to the language — you’ll want to use the same terms when skiing with your child. These may have changed since you learned to ski, with a “snow plow” now a “pizza slice” and “parallel skiing” now “French fries”.

When it’s time to take your new skier on the slopes, stick to the beginner area and carpet lifts; beginning skiers, especially young ones, don’t belong on main slopes or trails, and trying to ski on these won’t teach them how to ski.

What if your child just doesn’t like skiing? Our youngest never really took to it — or to any other sport that took her outside into a cold winter day. Even building snowmen had no appeal.  That’s why even small ski resorts have supervised play areas and childcare, where she spent her days while the rest of us skied.