037: Tips for Planning a Ski Trip

Mara from Mother of all Trips shares what to pack, where to go and how to prepare for your first family ski trip this week on the Vacation Mavens podcast. ON THE PODCAST 00:25 - Tamara and Kim talk about about recent trips to Iceland and Punta Cana 17:40 - Tamara and Kim’s ski experience 20:10 - Mara Gorman from Mother of All Trips 22:31 - Ski school experience 28:00 - Lessons for your kids 30:11 - What to look for in the resort 35:58 - What to look for in ski lessons 40:50 - How to save some money 46:00 - Packing for your ski trip 50:23 - Favorite resorts 55:43 - Altitude sickness 57:15 - Favorite Gear 1:00:28 - App of the week ABOUT MARA GORMAN Mara Gorman is an award-winning freelance writer, family travel blogger, and the author of The Family Traveler's Handbook. She loves to ski with her sons Tommy and Teddy and her husband Matt. In addition to writing about family ski trips on her own site, The Mother of all Trips, Mara is also a regular contributor to the All Mountain Mamas website published by Ski Vermont. Follow Mara on: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. TIPS FOR PLANNING A FAMILY SKI TRIP Ski school is a great resource to use for kids and even for yourself if you're not as confident in your skiing. If you are a beginner and you live anywhere near a ski resort, whether it’s big or small, take some day trips to get a feel for it before you commit to a full vacation. Everyone should have ski lessons, it’s like swimming lessons. It is critical to be at least a half an hour early for your ski lessons, especially the first one. This will give you enough time to get the lay of the land and to get all the paperwork and gear. Mara likes Smugglers' Notch and Mad River Glen in Vermont. Tamara is a fan of Sunday River in Maine. FAVORITE TRAVEL GEAR ‘Darn Tough Socks’ are ski socks that are made in Vermont and are the most durable and comfortable socks. Mara wears them all winter long for everything. APP OF THE WEEK ‘Ski Tracks’ an app to keep track of you skiing activities, kind of like RunKeeper or Map My Run for skiing. MENTIONED ON THE PODCAST Smugglers’ Notch Choosing a Ski Resort for Your Family Let's Go Skiing: Getting Geared Ski Vacations All Mountain Mamas Keystone Resort FOLLOW US AND SPREAD THE WORD! If you liked this show, please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play and leave us a review! Have a question or comment? Send us an email or leave us a voicemail at +1.641.715.3900, ext. 926035# You can also follow our travels on Stuffed Suitcase and We3Travel, or follow the Vacation Mavens on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. Thanks for listening!