How I warmed to the snow

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This was published 10 years ago

How I warmed to the snow

Slippery slope: Falls Creek ski school covers all ages.

Slippery slope: Falls Creek ski school covers all ages.Credit: Chris Hocking

Ski convert Kate Cox and family fall for the ease of the Falls Creek ... even sans snow.

A girlfriend has taken an anti-snow stance: why on earth, she moans, would you spend oodles of cash taking kids to the snow when they can't even put on their own boots or carry their skis themselves? It's a big, fat, freezing hassle, her theory goes, and the money is better spent on beach holidays by the pool in Fiji until the kids can pull their weight.

Inspired by delayed flights, mountains of luggage, grumpy, hungry kids and a missed coach, I'm halfway to agreeing with her. Then I see my four-year-old's face as we round the winding road to Falls Creek, the (hastily booked) hire car dwarfed by towering mountains. He's seeing snow for the first time and he can't believe it.

No hassles: Scott Ellis and family at Falls Creek.

No hassles: Scott Ellis and family at Falls Creek.

Then, even greater rapture when we stop the car and he picks some up. "Mummy," he screams. "It's cold!" For all of his little life, he has believed snow was warmish, like sand. And how would he know otherwise?

Not that there's much of it - but the kids don't even notice. It's early in the Victorian ski season and, unlike last year's wonderful weeks of dumps and more dumps, this year had been a dud, until recent bumper falls.

But the ease at which everything happens in Falls Creek, and how brilliantly it's all set up for families, goes some way to alleviating that pain.

The ski school is a wonderful mix of charm and professionalism. Falls Creek has the country's longest beginner run, Wombats (2.2 kilometres) as well as Mousetrap and Boardwalk: a couple of learner slopes complete with the obligatory magic carpet.

After three days of lessons from 9am to 3pm, the six-year-old can now ski down the mountain and thinks he's a future Olympian, and Mr Four, although not super-proficient, is at least happy and warm and still enjoying life in the snow.

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For the more skilled, there's a range of terrain, a largely undiscovered off-piste and cross-country skiing.

As for me and the hubby? We have both skiied since knee-high, but not for seven years, and never together, so we opt for lessons, which far exceed expectations: instructive and addictive. Boy, it was fun. We'd forgotten - the wind in our hair, the smell of the drying room, the mulled wine, aching bones, feelings of freedom.

But the piece de resistance? If you've ever had to put up with a tired, hungry, sore, snotty-nosed six-year-old refusing to walk in his heavy ski boots, let alone carry his unwieldy skis under any circumstances, you'll understand how magnificent this is: it's 100 per cent ski-in, ski-out. So, no commute to the snow, and a cosy, wintry village vibe that's rare in Australia.

When there's snow, this place must be simply brilliant. The food is mostly good, with a massive range of options, from buffet to gourmet with innovative apres-ski snacks and cocktails in between. The gear hire system combines computerised efficiency with friendly service; same with the snow lifts that are open.

Someone who knows tots has been put in charge of activities, I suspect, for there seems to be more exciting options than usual: they can go out and learn about snowmaking, or even ride the snow plough on snow grooming tours when it's snowing.

There's also tobogganing, snow play, kids' luge, snow tubing and a blue dude called Pete the Snow Dragon high-fiving the little people up and down the slopes. (We also see him teaching the kids to make snow angels at the bottom of the mountain, while their parents watch on - and thaw out - in the nearby bar. Win!)

Other activities include snowmobile and behind-the-scenes tours for adults (children also welcome), sunset tours and night-skiing. In August, mums ski free. Babysitters can be booked through the daycare centre or organised via accommodations in most cases.

And there's loads of accommodation: from slick hotels or penthouses to budget apartments and family lodges. We stayed at the friendly Nelse Lodge, where meals were provided, and the living was communal and kid-friendly - and there was a well-stocked bar. My friend was wrong, you know. We're already planning our return.

The writer was hosted by Falls Creek Ski Lifts at Falls Creek Alpine Resort.


TRIP NOTES

GETTING THERE

QantasLink flies daily from Sydney to Albury, a 90-minute journey. qantas.com.

From Albury, book a coach via the Falls Creek Coach Service from Albury Airport to Falls Creek Alpine Resort. fallscreekcoachservice.com.au.

If you miss it - or it drives off without you, like it did with us! - there are plenty of car hire outfits at the airport, with car hire costing about $60 a day. Falls Creek is a spectacular two-hour drive from Albury.

STAYING THERE

Accommodation ranges from budget to luxury, from self-contained lodges to fully-catered five-star hotels. 1800 453 525, skifalls.com.au/accommodationdeals.

MORE INFORMATION

For accommodation deals and gear, dining, and activities information, skifalls.com.au.

The Falls Creek Snow Pass is available at snowpass.com.au.

MOUNTAINS OF FUN: LODGES LOVE KIDS

Taking kids to the snow can be a hassle, but throughout the Australian Alps moves are under way to make it as pain-free as possible for parents.

At Falls Creek, lodge owners and resort management have started a plan to woo mums and dads, with the aim to be the top family destination in winter.

With a terrain mix leaning heavily towards intermediate skiers and large "green" beginner areas, the resort has tailored its ski school curriculum to give parents more freedom - there are "mums ski free" deals this year (plus, hopefully, next) plus more.

Keeping families happy, ski school director Titus Gius says, just makes sense.

"Our aim is to be a family mountain ... we look after the kids and the parents and we have a number of programs in place, starting with kids as young as three years old to do just that," Gius says.

"For example, from this year we have either half- or full-day classes where children can go anywhere on the mountain with their instructor so parents don't have to keep coming to the same spot to check in. They can actually go and have a ski.

"The kids leave [the ski school headquarters] in the morning, they come back at lunchtime to pick up other kids, then head off again ... the parents can talk to the instructors, find out where they'll be that day, meet up, then head off again.

"This is the first year we were doing this and so far it's been very successful.

"It's important the kids have fun, but it's just as important the parents have a holiday as well. We found we needed to change things because of the parents. They were running around like crazy looking after their kids, making sure they were in the right place, and then it's not a holiday any more."

The aim, Gius says, is to be the the No.1 family mountain in Australia within five years.

"There is investment being made, plans in place and everything we are doing is geared towards families," he says.

The lodge owners are working hard to achieve their goals.

At Nelse and Diana lodges, for example, menus are tailored to all tastes, the rooms are kid-friendly and babysitters are on hand for parents if needed.

At the Falls Creek Hotel, once best known for its bands and Harvey Wallbanger nights, there's now a playground opposite the front door, family-friendly movies available on the in-house televisions and a kids' club to make sure nobody is left out.

"There are kid-friendly meals if the kids and the parents want it and then, while the parents are in the main restaurant area eating, the children are right next door - you can see them from the tables - with a babysitter," says the hotel's manager Glenn Docking, who lives there with his family year-round.

"There are activities, face-painting and games every night. It's a lot of fun," Docking says.

SCOTT ELLIS

The writer was a guest of Tourism Victoria and Nelse Lodge.

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