Top five mistakes for rookies taking ski trips

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Going skiing for the first time? Here are five mistakes that rookies typically make when planning their trip to the piste.

� Think about the resort not the slopes

There’s a lot more to a ski trip than the skiing, and you’ll be spending the largest part of your time of the slopes and indulging in apres-ski. Make sure your destination has great resort facilities, for festive evenings and relaxation when you’ve had enough on the snow. Think about having fun with warm cozy bars, meeting others, sauna and massage services and good food. If the weather turns miserable and you have to hang your snowboard up you’ll thank yourself for it.

� Wrong apparel

It’s all about looking cool on the piste, make sure you have the right gear. If you’re not a regular skier this could present problems for your purse. If you’ve never skied before you’ll soon realise that a day spend falling over can soon turn into a nasty cold if you’re kit isn’t waterproof. Waterproof clothing is a must. Cotton is out, polyester is in. Long ski socks, gloves or mittens and goggles or sunglasses are other essentials.

� Borrowing friend’s equipment

Thinking of saving money borrowing your friends kit? Don’t, unless he or she is exactly your size. There’s nothing more uncomfortable than a day on the slopes in ill-fitting, hard-moulded ski boots. It’s better to hire kit from the resort and have the option to exchange it for other sizes when you’ve had a run or two.

� Leaving your mates behind

Going skiing in a group is always great fun, if you can get a group together. A week spent alone at a resort becomes a drag if you’ve got no-one to drink with after hours. Of course everyone has differing abilities and you’ll need to find someone who is equally inexperienced to join in the ski-101 while the others tackle the advanced slops. Trying to keep up with more experienced skiers can be a painful disaster.

� Pennywise – pound foolish

If you’re unfamiliar with ski resorts and skiing, you’ll ending paying more if you cut corners and try staying remotely or try to organise everything yourself when you arrive. An all inclusive packages saves the stress when you should be enjoying yourself and learning how to ski.