Recommendations for Chalet Family Ski Holidays with 6 and 8 year olds

[superstepmum]

I'm looking for recommendations for family ski holidays in a chalet in Europe. Both the girls ski (age 6 and 8), so we'd be looking for somewhere where the girls are picked up from ski school, have lunch with other children and activities are on offer in the afternoon if they don't ski with us. We've tried Ski Famille and Family Ski, but are looking for a different company for next year so please don't recommend either of these....many thanks

[IwishIwasmoreorganised]

Esprit? Friends have had good holidays with them but we've never been.

[IWasThere4Aug12]

We en route to 3rd Esprit holiday with DS 6&4 Works well for us & our friends We choose to collect DC 2pm after lunch but they do offer pm kids club. if not busy ie half term they may have space in pm club so you can mix&match rather than paying for a full week. Do you prefer chalet or hotel?

[IWasThere4Aug12]

Why did you not like ski famille and family ski? We're happy with esprit for now but open to other ideas

[Paddlinglikehell]

Try Premier Neige in Sainte Foy. We were there last week and they were very much in evidence.

Alternately, hire a Nanny in resort for the afternoons.

[superstepmum]

Definitely prefer a chalet. Our chef at Ski Famille had a sickness bug and came back to work 24 hours after he was last sick rather than 48. His sickness bug was then passed around the chalet. The management handled it really badly so it put us off using them again. Shame, because apart from that they were brilliant. We tried out Family Ski this year, the chalet was beautiful, the location was great, the childcare/ski-school arrangements couldn't be faulted. Unfortunately the chalet staff were terrible, the cook not only seemed to have left his manners and personality back in England, didn't seem to want to be there at all. The chalet host treated us all like school kids with her rules and regulations, she did less than the bare minimum to run her chalet which included not offering us food/drinks which we were suppose to receive each day. Saying that, the chalet was spotless. I never understood why either of them were there as they didn't seem to enjoy the skiing either. I could go on, but honestly I bored of discussing it!

[superstepmum]

Thanks, Paddlinglikehell. We nearly booked with Premier Neige last year, but we thought that there was a major lack of runs in Sainte Foy - but it looks so beautiful. We've been looking at T4 nannies so it would be great to hear if anyone has used them or other nanny companies in resorts.

[Beehatch]

Le Ski have some lovely looking family chalets (we have been with them but only pre kids). Their meals are superb!

[Paddlinglikehell]

We had our first time in SF. Oh is an experienced skiers and was very happy, some good runs and safe off pistes. Apparently it is one of the best resorts for off piste skiing. I was worried he would be bored, but no.

Lots of good runs for me and dd, sweeping blues, easier ones through the trees and a few taxing (for me) reds. Certainly enough for a week or more.

Also Les Arcs and Tignes are only 20 mins away. We may go back next year, booking one of the PN chalets for us and friends, they looked so good.

[PatriciaHolm]

PN are great, we have been skiing sainte Foy for 11 years and we/friends have always been very happy (though we use them as crèche/babysitting, we have a private chalet there). SF keeps all our snow fiend friends happy, and that is no mean feat as most have been skiing since they were small children. The resort isn't ginormous but works very well.

[Skiingmaniac]

Another vote for le ski (la Tania) went with 5-6 yr olds last year - brilliant wrap around childcare.
We're going back at the end of march!

[Olivermoliver]

We used Ski Magic in La Tania last year and they were very good.

[bluebizzy]

I used T4 nannies in Val D'Isere and I was very happy with them.

I have also stayed with Ski Magic in La Tania and was very happy with their childcare provision. They came early in the mornings to help get my DD ready so that I could get off to ski school. The chalets are a bit basic and on the smaller side but still good and the chalet staff are always very helpful.

[hillyhilly]

Third vote for ski magic in La Tania, best child care I've experienced, made life very easy indeed

[Ash74]

I will always recommend Morzine, France. We've had fabulous family holidays there many times - we think it is the perfect family friendly resort.

The runs throughout Portes Du Soleil are wide making for easy and medium runs for less-seasoned skiers and snowboarders. There are also plenty of English speaking ski schools and kids clubs in and around Morzine for first-timers.

//www.aiglonmorzine.com/index.php/news/2013-news/item/8-what-makes-morzine-the-best-family-ski-resort#.U0UwtahdUUM

[superstepmum]

Thanks Ash74 - I've been to the Morzine area about 6/7 times now and I love it. What I'm really after is recommendations for companies who run good chalets but who also offer childcare. The girls love skiing but also enjoy meeting other kids and taking part in the organised activities which the childcare companies put on if the girls don't ski with us 'boring' parents after ski school. Any recommendations would be great...thanks.

[Ash74]

L'Aiglon de Morzine don't offer in-house childcare but we have used and would recommend the Piou-Piou Club which is operated by the E.S.F. We packed the kids up on a nature trail while we skied...which they loved because it gave them a break from the slopes.

Here's their site...

www.esf-morzine.com/ski-school-morzine/

[VivaLeBeaver]

Problem is its the chalet host which can make or break a holiday and they can vary so much. Though you'd like to think a good company with good training would weed out the idiots but I'm not sure.

We've had some great holidays with Esprit and then some not so good ones. Though have to say the childcare has always been fab. But we've had some holidays where the host has always done the bare minimum as they're off skiing, so no cake I nteh afternoon, etc.

Their hotel in Val d'isere is very good and run by someone in the role of a proper hotel manager rather than an 18yo on a gap year. Their big hotel in La Plagne is nice but I felt it was too big for us.

Mark Warner?