Guide 2 Val d’isère

Val d'Isère Ski Schools, Instructors & Mountain Guides

Photo credit - ICE

With most sports, you need a few lessons when you’re starting out to get to grips with the basics – and skiing is no different.

But after that, surely it’s just a question of practice makes perfect? Once you know what you’re doing, there’s no point wasting any more money on expensive tuition…right?

Wrong, actually. Even Mikaela Shiffrin has a whole team of trainers and coaches. However good you are, you’re never too good to fine-tune your technique.

Then again, perhaps you don’t really want instruction as such. You might simply like someone to take you and your family out for your first couple of days, show you around the area and help you find the runs that suit you best. Or perhaps you’d like to explore Val d’Isère’s famous off-piste and backcountry terrain and need a guide to take you safely to the best snow.

Whatever you’re looking for, Val d’Isère has some of the best ski schools, independent instructors and mountain guides in the world.

And if you’re used to the cripplingly high cost of ski instruction in North American resorts, you’ll also be delighted to hear that lessons here in Val d’Isère generally cost around half what you might expect to pay over the pond.

One final thought. However good your instructor is, they'll struggle to help you improve if your boots don't fit properly or your skis aren't suited to you. Good equipment won't magically make you a better skier, but bad equipment can certainly stop you becoming one.

01. Group Lessons

Most beginners and many intermediates start with group lessons. It’s usually the cheapest way to get going and, because everyone is at the same level, you learn quickly, have a lot of fun and make new friends at the same time.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme / Evolution 2

02. Private Lessons

If you want to improve as quickly as possible, nothing beats a one-to-one private lesson with a good instructor. Yes, it’s more expensive than joining a group, but the instructor focuses on you and no one else for the whole lesson, so you’ll get a lot more out of it.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme / Development Centre

03. Children's Ski Lessons

We can't quite remember who it was that said, "Give me the child and I'll show you the man," but we do think the same applies to skiing.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme / Evolution 2

04. Private Coaching and Clinics

We’ve all heard of the infamous “plateau” – after a couple of weeks’ lessons you get to the intermediate stage where you’re comfortable getting round the easier runs on the mountain by yourself.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme / TDC

05. Off-Piste Guiding

Along with neighbouring Tignes, Val d'Isère is rightly famous for its off-piste skiing and it's one of the reasons so many people come back year after year.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme

06. Snowboarding

It's fair to say that snowboarding is less popular in Val d'Isère than skiing, but there are still plenty of people keen to give it a try. Like skiing, you'll learn much faster and enjoy it far more if you get some proper instruction.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme / Evolution 2

07. Specialised Coaching

Val d'Isère is one of Europe's most popular resorts for skiers training for instructor qualifications, and many of the exams themselves are held here each winter.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme

08. Which Ski School / Instructor Should You Choose?

We reckon there are over 20 ski schools in Val, ranging from the ESF with over 400 instructors right down to boutique schools like Elevation and Alpine Edge with just two or three.

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Photo credit - Val d'Isère Tourisme / ICE

Photo credit - Blizzard Skis

Early / Late Season Opening Hours

PLEASE NOTE: the above opening hours apply 12th Dec - 11th April. If you require information on early or late season opening hours please contact us.