Have you ever been thinking what is a good age to go skiing with a child? We have three kids (2, 4 and 13 years) and we think about that question always when our kids are about two years old. When could I take my son skiing with me?

I was six years old when my sister took me skiing with her, which happened in 1980. I remember how fascinating this new sport was and how extremely enthusiastic I was. I really fell in love with skiing. This might sound funny, but it is true. Now I am over 30 and I have own kids. When our second son was two years old, I almost took him skiing with me. I discussed with people in forums and most of them said it would not be a good idea, while some folks said “go ahead”. I decided to wait another year. Now our youngest child, my daughter, is about two years old. I find myself thinking this same question again..

So what is a good age to start skiing with children? It depends on few things, but I say it is best to wait until your child is over four or five years old. I have seen a couple of mothers posting to forums that their children were 1-1/2 when started skiing. I must say I would not have courage enough to even try with so young kids. There are few reasons why I say 4-5 is a good age to start skiing with children. Let’s find out why.

Why 4-5 is a good age to start skiing with children

As kids grow, they gain body mass and they become stronger. When they go skiing, that body mass is needed to avoid falling, in order put all the clothing, boots and skis on, etc. It simply means that child’s body is strong enough for go to pistes. When kids are 4-5 years old, they have much better motor and social skills than one year before or earlier. They need motor skills for learning to ski and social skills to interact with a skiing instructor (such as Megeve-Mike). Usually skiing instructors ask parents to wait somewhere until the lesson is over, so a child has to stay together with in instructor. If they are lacking social skills, they might not concentrate in learning. Instead they are worried about “loosing” parents.

My personal opinion is that children should not go skiing before 4-5 years. Some kids grow faster than others and are stronger and equipped with better motor skills than others. This means the best age to start skiing should be seen “case by case”. Generally speaking my recommendation is to wait until they are 4-5 years old.

When you go skiing with your child, be patient. Do not push him/her. Give time and space, let him/her learn with own speed. If you start pushing, the result may be that your child starts to hate the sport, and then you can forget skiing with your child for a couple of years. Skiing with children might sometimes cause a headache, but usually I find it fantastic. As a life-long backcountry skier I need to “switch myself” into “skiing with kids” mood and then it goes fine. There is no hurry and it must be fun. When your child has fun in pistes and he/she clearly enjoys, then you are on the right direction.

Have you been skiing with kids? Do you go skiing with your kids? What do you think is a good age to start skiing? Please leave a comment. I would like to hear your opinion to this question.

Happy skiing with children!