Ski school

By Alex Hazell

Skiing and snowboarding can make for a great winter getaway, but if you're a novice it can also be a recipe for holiday disaster. Follow our guide to a trouble free time on the slopes

In your dreams you're the very picture of skiing perfection, whooshing through the virgin snow, your hair flying out behind you, your face bathed in crisp sunlight. You look cool, sophisticated and in control, but the reality can be a little different.

My first ski trip began with a slope-side tantrum directed at my ski instructor (I was 25 not 12 but there was no way I was going down that slope), a permanently wet bottom and multiple bruises. Despite this, once I got the hang of it I had the time of my life because I went with friends who really knew their stuff and were prepared to help a struggling beginner.

Fitness

What to wear

Ski lessons

Budgeting

Fitness
Learning to ski is all about letting go of your inhibitions. Accept now that you're going to fall over. A lot. It is also hard work, you'll find you'll use muscles skiing and/or snowboarding that you've probably never used before. To limit the aches and pains it's well worth warming up your body with some sort of cardio, weights and stretching plan a month before you go. Look here for some ideas but also speak to an instructor at your gym about a skiing workout plan. It also really pays to keep up the stretching before and after a day on the slopes.

What to wear
If it's your first time there's no point in buying all the gear. Ski wear is expensive, especially if you're not sure if you'll ever go again. Seasonaire and world traveller Katie Gormley advises buying some good thermals, socks, hat and gloves and then borrowing the rest. `If the jacket and trousers you borrow are a bit old and tatty, buy a waterproof wash from a specialist store like Snow+Rock', Gormley advises. 'If you're wet and cold you won't be having any fun.