Quality time as a family, trying new activities and all the fun and excitement that comes with being in the snowy mountains. There’s a lot to be said for taking your kids on a skiing trip. But, like many memorable events in life, skiing holidays take a bit of effort and organisation to get right. Your first task is to find a ski resort that ticks all the boxes for a smooth-running, relaxed family holiday.
A world-class ski area, excellent ski schools, ample activities and a wide range of dining and accommodation options: Morzine has long been a favourite amongst families and has everything needed to keep mum, dad, kids and teens happy. Let’s take a look at what the resort has to offer for families.
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Quick travel time via Geneva airport
No one wants to start (or end) a holiday with an exhausting day of travel. Fortunately, Morzine is super easy to get to. Unlike the well-known resorts of Val d’Isere and 3 Valleys, which require a three-hour or more transfer to reach, Morzine’s closest airport in Geneva is just a 90-minute transfer from the resort. Flights are usually easy to find, with airlines including EasyJet, British Airways and Swiss Air flying to Geneva from many of the major UK airports.
Travelling by train is also possible, and thanks to the resort’s focus on sustainability, special discounts and rewards are offered to those who choose the slower, but more planet-friendly way to travel.
Family-friendly ski tuition
In Morzine, there is no need to be nervous about your child’s adaptation to skiing. Its wide selection of ski schools makes it possible to find a supportive environment that suits your child’s needs. Starting with fun nursery style ski clubs for tots from as young as three years of age, to ski school, snowboarding and freestyle lessons, Morzine has a huge range of expert ski tuition to choose from. You can take advantage of convenient morning or afternoon group lessons offered by the huge ESF operation (France’s biggest ski school), or take your pick from smaller independent outfits, which are run by local instructors, such as Billski or Mint Snowboarding.
A ski area for the whole family
Morzine sits in the massive Portes du Soleil (PDS) ski area and competes with Les Trois Vallées as the second largest ski resort in the world. That might sound a bit daunting, so it’s useful to understand that Morzine is one of 12 interconnected resorts that span across the French and Swiss Alps to make up the PDS domain. You, therefore have the advantage of having the local Morzine Avoriaz slopes to learn and ski on, as well as an endless amount of piste to explore with terrain suitable for all levels. Kids are taken care of with gentle nursery slopes and fun ski areas designed specifically to engage and support little ones as they progress and build confidence. Magic carpets, easy drag lifts, themed areas and fun characters, from penguins to Indians and unicorns, make skiing super fun.
What’s also wonderful about the PDS is its many intermediate runs, including plenty of easy-going blues, that make it possible to simply cruise all-day long with the family. And teens will love the ‘Stash’, a large freestyle park area through the forest with a number of adventurous routes and kid-friendly features, including a picnic table to slide over.
Serious skiers will also find the terrain they crave when the kids are in ski school, with steep blacks, moguls, and plenty of accessible off-piste areas.
Fun off the slopes
Families love exploring Morzine’s charming town centre, with its vintage merry-go-round, ice rink, boutiques and pastry shops. The Parc des Dérêches also has a larger indoor ice rink and a swimming complex with a spa area, 25m swimming pool and children’s paddling pool. The town is beautifully lit in the evenings and is often a hub of activity, with the tourist board hosting family orientated entertainment during the Christmas, New Year and February holidays.
Morzine boasts a great choice of restaurants serving the traditional French and mountain fare you’d expect, as well as gourmet burgers, pizza and modern Asian cuisine.
For wildlife fans, Les Aigles du Leman at the Point de Nyon restaurantis an amazing, unique experience, which gives visitors the opportunity to watch falconry shows on the mountainside. Owls, buzzards and condors fly above restaurant diners and skiers.
Places to stay
Morzine has a great range of accommodation to suit all budgets and styles, from self-catered apartments to catered chalets and 5-star hotels. For a central spot in Morzine’s pretty old town, The Farmhouse Hotel is a charismatic boutique hotel nestled inside Morzine’s oldest building. Guests are welcomed into a cosy lounge area with a crackling open fireplace, and enjoy meals in an atmospheric flame lit dining room, whilst bedrooms include a former cobbler’s shop, carpenters workshop, seamstresses and the town’s only prison cell.
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