This March, Luke and I went on a quick ski trip, over to Vail. We had never been and I love to try new mountains with the kids any time we have the opportunity.

We flew into Denver and drove to Vail and checked into the Four Seasons. You know I’m a big fan of the Four Seasons because of the service and amenities. They absolutely never fail. 

We work with the awesome team at Fly Smoother to help us with our travel plans. They make everything so easy for us from flights to the transfers to the hotel, activity and meal bookings. When we arrived at the hotel, there was a pretty awesome spread waiting for us in the room. Always such a nice touch and makes you feel special and like your trip is off to a great start.

Luke and I arrived just in time for a late lunch. Had a bite and then got him fitted for skies at the rental location in the hotel. Was super easy.  It was too late in the day to ski so we went to explore Vail Village which was a quick walk through the back of the hotel. 

Luke quickly found a skating rink. He brought his skates along with him because he was determined to find the ice and he did. Quickly. He skated, I sipped on a hot coffee and then we went on our way to browse the shops.

Luke needed a helmet because he outgrew his current one, so we hit up a store that specialized in helmets and had a huge selection to choose from. They also had amazing truckers hats so we got a few to bring home. Luke chose one that read:  SEND IT. I said Luke what the heck does that mean? He said “you know Mom - you send it when you go down the mountain. Like you “bomb” it down the mountain”. Ok man.  Ok.  Super cute whatever it is.

We had a lovely afternoon settling into the town and getting familiar with it. After a few hours of exploring, we went back to the hotel to shower and grab dinner.

We had our first dinner reservation booked at Sweet Basil. I’ll give it an “OK”. Was a small menu and the food was fresh and tasty but nothing that blew my socks off. We had a lovely meal together though and then got ourselves a really good night’s sleep so we would be ready to hit the mountain hard the next morning.

When I ski with my kids, I get an instructor.  This is high priority for me because of a couple reasons:  

1. My kids are much better skiers than I am.  I like to take it easy and go at a slow and steady pace. They like to “send it” like the hat says.

2. When I’m at a mountain for the first time, I think its imperative to have someone to show us the trails. Especially when it’s freezing outside and hard to take out a map without your fingers falling off from frost bite.

3. If I get cold or tired, I have the option of leaving Luke with the instructor and heading inside.

We were at the mountain for 9am sharp to meet our instructor. You never really know what you’re going to get with these guys (I say guys, because we are yet to have a girl) and when I saw our guy walking towards us, I had no idea what to expect. He introduced himself as Danny Boy. He then told us that he’s the very best instructor in Vail and was dead serious about it. We said….well that’s amazing.  Let’s go!

Turns out, he was the very best.  Patient and new the mountain inside and out. Took us on amazing runs and took it easy but made sure we had fun. He kept on complimenting our ski skills so there was little instruction which is PERFECT for me and Luke. We want to SKI!  We don’t want to spend our time getting pointers.  I don’t think we’re that great - but we’re good enough to ski our buns off all over the mountain and that’s all we cared to do.

It was March and I didn’t think it was going to be super cold, but it was just the opposite. It was FREEZING. In the negatives!  I was NOT dressed warm enough. When I was in Aspen in February I saw this lady wearing this amazing one piece and I just had to have it. I ordered it and put it on for my first day out in Vail and I literally thought my whole body was going to crack because I turned to ice. I had to go in.  Around 1pm I booked it back to the room and left Luke and Danny Boy to go on their adventures.  They were actually really happy to get rid of me.  They went through the trees and on the black diamonds which is Luke’s preferred way to ski. It was perfect.  After ordering some room service (a crazy bowl of French onion soup that was topped with a perfectly buttery baked phylo dough!) a dip in the hot tub and a burning hot shower, I regained consciousness and went back out. But this time, I layered up big time.  I put on so many layers when I got onto the gondola I was sweating buckets.  

I easily met up with Luke and Danny Boy and we had a leisurely couple of extra hours on the mountain and then called it a day.

That night, Luke and I had dinner at a place called Almresi. Now this place…was FUN! And so different! They serve fondue!  It was amazing. Luke and I ordered a Raclette fondue.  It was a miss. There was no melted cheese!!  Just beef broth that you cook the meat in. So next time, I would absolutely order the traditional fondue.  But none the less, it was super fun playing with our food and this restaurant was just such a great spot to eat at.

The next day, we did it all over again. Ski, eat, hot tub, repeat. For our last meal, we ate at Yama. Traditional sushi, relaxed scene and yummy food. 

On the last day, we had several hours before our flight so Luke and I decided to hit the mountain again before jetting off. We did not have Danny Boy anymore but he had taught us so well, Luke was able to guide me through the mountain. It was a very snowy day so although we got out for the first, freshly groomed runs, they were quickly covered with snow and actually became quite difficult to get through.  We persevered and kept going and after a 1 hour white out, the sun came out and it was just lovely out there.

You never know what you’re going to get on a ski trip in terms of weather, snow, conditions and your instructor but I always know, we’re going to have an epic time because of all the things we do as a family, skiing is my absolute favorite.