Snow Before You Go at The Snow Centre - Who’s Hitting the Indoor Slopes!
12 January 2017
Did you know in last January alone, 4,314 Adult Group Lesson places were filled at The Snow Centre Hemel Hempstead? Many of these visits were in preparation for a trip to the mountains, but not all! That's a lot of skiers and snowboarders progressing their skills — and that figure doesn't include the number of kids, or the skiers and snowboarders with Lift Passes who also enjoyed The Snow Centre's real snow slopes.
Open from 8am - 9.30pm on winter weekends, and even later on some weekdays, The Snow Centre team are used to delivering snow fun around the clock. And with many more 'pre-ski holiday' visitors expected this January and February, SnowSure took a look at who’s making the most of ‘snow before they go,’ the benefits and more!
Beginners with partners that can already ski or board
Skiing or snowboarding on the mountain is something most couples would like to be able to enjoy together; rather than spending the week on separate slopes or in separate ski school groups! That said, it would be a very happy coincidence should 2 people boast the very same level of skiing or snowboarding ability.
Indoor ski centres can help bring a couples skill set closer together; so many people take lessons or coaching sessions at The Snow Centre to improve their skills and ensure they spend more time together during their holiday.
Adult Group Ski or Snowboard Lessons, Ladies Group Lessons and Private Lessons at The Snow Centre are a great way to make sure you, and your husband or wife, boyfriend or girlfriend can hit the slopes together.
Boys & girls
Unlike many European skiing resorts, the Snowsports instructors found at UK indoor snow centres speak fluent english; so youngsters will have no problems understanding them, asking them questions or enjoying some friendly chatter.
In fact, indoor snow centres are a great opportunity to put children at ease on snow, help them get to know their Snowsports equipment and encourage excitement about their up and coming winter holiday.
Every parent knows; children are often far more comfortably when they know to expect — and time on the slopes can be made much easier once the kids have got used to the heavy fitting ski boots, a little sliding on the snow, and colder than normal temperatures. For these reasons, 'snow before you go' can be very beneficial to youngsters.
Families jetting off to the mountains for the first time
If you’re trying skiing or snowboarding for the first time, indoor snow centres can offer you the opportunity to get your skills up to scratch before you head to the mountains! Learning to ski or board in the UK cannot only provide you and your youngsters the chance to get to grips with all the new equipment (how to put it on, set it up and use it), it can also ensure you’ll be spending your family holiday exploring the mountain and it’s many pistes, rather than learning the basics on the baby slopes!
Plus, 'snow before you go' can bring you some enjoyable family time before your holiday even starts! Make the most of Family Private Lessons at The Snow Centre or Adult or Junior Group, Adult Ski Lessons, or Private Lessons.
Very little people looking to find their snow legs
From 2 years old, infants can begin to find their feet on the snow at The Snow Centre! A child's first experience on the white stuff can be overwhelming, so snow play can often be enough of an introduction to snow. The Snow Centre’s Snow Garden, for children aged 2-5 years, offers a fantastic, fun environment for little people to find their snow feet!
And once they are feeling more comfortable with the concept of snow, they can start Private Ski Lessons at The Snow Centre at age 3.
Skiers or snowboarders making the switch
The experienced snow enthusiasts among us, and those who are keen to make the switch from skiing to snowboarding will know all to well the importance of keeping up with friends or family on a ski holiday! For those who don’t want to waste mountain time on the beginner slopes or hold up the rest of the crew, an indoor UK centre is the ideal setting to get a new found Snowsports discipline up to scratch, or get those rusty ski legs working again!
Ian Brown, The Snow Centre Managing Director, gave his personal experiences of trying snowboarding indoors; “My family and I are frequent skiers, visiting the mountains yearly on our family ski holiday. However, none of us had ever tried snowboarding, but weren’t keen to give up any time exploring the pistes of a new resort to learn to board. The Snow Centre offered the perfect solution, and we thoroughly enjoyed our time snowboarding on the lesson slope with the comfort of real fresh snow. Now we can take to the centre’s Main Slope on our skis or snowboard to practice our skills or indulge in some simple Snowsports fun without an Instructor. What’s more we can take our ski or snowboard pick when exploring the mountain too!”
The Snow Centre offer Lessons in both skiing and snowboarding, so everyone planning on making the switch, can save time on their holiday and learn all they need to know indoors with 'snow before you go'!
Group holiday makers
For those of us whizzing off on a big group ski or snowboard holiday, there’ll often be a complete ability mix! And there’s no better place to find out who’s ability matches who's, than on an indoor slope! Besides being a lot of fun, and getting some group bonding and excitement bubbling — a session or two at a UK indoor centre, allows beginners and less confidence group members the chance to cram in a few extra lessons and catch up with the rest of the group.
The Snow Centre, like many of the indoor centre’s in the UK offer Group Learning packages, so everyone can hit the snow together or Group Lessons and Private Lessons are also available; all make for great 'snow before you go' sessions.
Stragglers & confidence-lackers
We can’t all be super smooth on 1 plank or 2, and even the very best skiers or snowboarders can lack confidence or get left behind in a group of high ability. So, whether the individual’s actually pretty awesome on the snow or they're just finding their ski legs, if a confidence boost or some tips for keeping up with the rest of the group are required, indoor real snow centre’s can offer just that!
Lift Passes run all year round at The Snow Centre and Coaching is available for adults and children to brush up on their skills before heading to the mountains.
Enthusiastic go-getters
While indoor centres are great for learning they’re also the place for perfecting skills and learning tricks. The Snow Centre runs weekly freestyle parks for landing tricks, and occasionally offers mogul and ski and boarder cross sessions; quite a find on an indoor slope! So for those who are keen to be at their best on the mountain, training a few added techniques or stylish moves at an indoor centre can really help get snow lovers on their way!
Keep an eye on The Snow Centre’s events calendar for Mogul and Ski or Boarder Cross Sessions, and join a Freestyle Coaching Session or the Freestyle Park night on Thursday and Friday evenings to land some tricks.
Sensible skiers or snowboarders
Sensible skiers know it’s not all ‘snow before you go’ at UK slopes; indoor, real snow centres allow skiers and snowboarders of all abilities, the chance to keep their skills at the ready throughout the year. Alternatively, they can provide progression in-between holidays to the mountains or general fun and progression without the participant ever needing to visit a winter ski resort. And there are a choice of real snow indoor ski centres up and down the UK, so nobody is ever far from a practice session on the snow!
At The Snow Centre, Lift Pass and Main Slope Coaching Sessions are available to keep ski or snowboard legs ‘on the go’ all year round!
Masters of the slopes
We don’t become a master of the slopes with just a week a year to cram in as much skiing or snowboarding as possible! Indoor real snow centre’s are open all year round and it’s those you see taking the term ‘snow before you go’ to mean ‘getting on the snow all year round’ that continually prove their worth on the snow!
Many of these ‘masters’ make the most of memberships, bulk lesson deals and monthly passes at indoor centre’s, check out The Snow Centre’s options here.
So it would seem ‘snow before you go’ can be a great thing for just about any skier or snowboarder, which one are you?
