Posted by
sf-admin onLast Updated 2nd October 2018 at 12:00 pm
It’s the day before your family skiing holiday. Your suitcase is jam-packed with all of your winter essentials and, for once, you think you’re ahead of the game when it comes to packing!
You climb into bed, knowing you have an early start in the morning. And who knows what time the children will wake up?
You know you’ve forgotten to pack something, but the question is “what”?
You’re desperate to ‘switch off’ and get a good night’s sleep but the thought of leaving something behind is too strong. It’s only now that your brain is going into overdrive.
You check your suitcase one last time and go through the motions… “Passport… yes, travel documents… yes, phone and charger… yes”.
All of a sudden an idea pops into your head – “Why not search the app store for some useful skiing apps?”. Not knowing what to search, you (rather unimaginatively) type in “ski apps”. Unsurprisingly, your search doesn’t bring up any useful apps.
If this sounds like you, we’re here to help you out. Below are our recommended skiing apps.
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Spotify
It is hard to beat a glass of prosecco around the warmth of the fireplace after a day on the slopes. If you really want to enhance this experience, why not connect your Spotify account from your smartphone to your chalet speakers? All of our chalets have Bluetooth soundbar speakers and WiFi so you can stream your music whilst relaxing with a glass of fizz in hand. Depending on your music tastes, we’ve found gentle and relaxing music can really set the tone during the evening. If all else fails, you could always use a calming playlist to send your children to sleep!
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Official Tourism Apps
Whichever resort you choose to ski in, you’ll find the resort has an official tourist board. Some tourist boards have even gone as far as developing their own skiing apps. Even if your resort hasn’t got an official app, it’s worth a search to see if the larger skiing domain that your resort is based in has an official app. Better still, these apps tend to be free.
We’ve listed which of our resorts and skiing domains have an official app.
Resorts
Les Gets – No
La Plagne – No
Les Menuires (Les Bruyeres and Reberty 2000) – Yes – Search “Les Menuires” on the App Store
Skiing Domains
Portes du Soleil – Yes – Search “Portes du Soleil”
Paradiski – Yes – Search “Paradiski YUGE”
The Three Valleys – Yes – Search “Les 3 Vallées”
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GoPro
GoPro cameras specialise in recording action-packed activities and sports without blurry footage. Simply record your moves on the mountains without needing to hold onto a camera! GoPro’s can record all other activities on your family skiing holiday too; whether this is taking photos of your little one in ski school or capturing the relaxing chalet experience. If you cannot justify the price tag of a GoPro, many alternatives do exist. A simple Google search of “Action cameras” should provide you with products of a similar quality and specification – often at a lower price. We recommend you keep an eye on your children unless you fancy a photo album full of ‘selfies’!
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Snow Forecast
There is an abundance of apps which can give you snow updates, but we highly recommend Snow Forecast for their detailed and usually very accurate forecast information and snow reports. Their forecast includes temperature highs and lows, chill factor, wind speed, freezing level (snow line) and the time of sunrise and sunset for the next 6 days.
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Instagram (or Facebook)
Family holidays and photos are almost synonymous, and it therefore makes sense to keep your friends updated by posting your photos on Instagram. If you bump into our friendly mascot, Monty The Marmot, don’t forget to upload an Instagram photo with him using the hashtag “#IMetMonty” for your chance to win a copy of the Monty Goes Skiing book, signed by his author, Richard Liddle. Alternatively, for your chance to have your Instagram photos reposted on our own Instagram channel, tag @SkiFamille in any of your photos during your week away with us.
If you’ve not warmed to Instagram, Facebook is a good alternative for sharing photos with friends and family during your family skiing holiday. Again, use the hashtag “#IMetMonty” on Facebook for your chance to win a Monty Goes Skiing book, or tag @Ski Famille on Facebook for your chance to have your photo(s) reposted.
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Ski Tracks
Ski Tracks is the ultimate ski companion, tracker and social media app all combined into one. You can record your entire day on the slopes without the need for data roaming. The app records everything from speed, altitude, ski distance, runs, slope gradient, duration, and pinpoints exactly where you’ve been all day using your phone’s GPS. Compare your results with your friends and family to add a fun element of competition to your skiing holiday! Ski Tracks has added features such as the ability to add photos, play music and is also compatible with your Apple Watch. Available for iOS and Android £0.99.
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Fatmap
Fatmap allows you to plan, record and share your ski trips using detailed 3D ski maps. The 3D map allows you to find accurate information on the mountain terrain and slope gradient as well as avalanche zones. You can also use the 3D mapping to locate viewpoints and (far more importantly) restaurants for that all important hot chocolate break! Fatmap works offline too so it’ll always be on hand if you remain unsure on where is best to ski.
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Ski Fit App
Ski Fit is a video-based app and online training programme for people who want to get fit for their trip to the mountains. The eight-week training programme is suitable for all levels of ability with its main aim being to develop strength in key “skiing muscles” as well as improving flexibility and balance.
For more tips on improving your ski fitness, read our blog post here. Or why not try yoga for skiing?
Available on iOS and Android: £9.99
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Games & Entertainment Apps
This might be more suited to your children than you as parents, however, it’s the perfect solution to avoiding the dreaded “are we there yet?” question. A simple search on your smartphone’s app store should bring up a whole range of apps to keep your children entertained during the flight and transfer period.