While the Swiss and French Alpine resorts have their biscuit tin charms, many are drinking from the poisoned chalice of high end boutiques and Michelin-starred melee.
The fragility of their snow-globe charms and Alpine traditions is never more apparent than in Dacha-glam stretches of Courchevel or W-Hotel-centred Verbier, where a profusion of Bentleys and bling feels wildly incongruous with the puffing chalet, snow-blanketed landscape.
Edge east to the Dolomites, and the Italian-owned (historically Austro-Hungarian) autonomous region of South Tyrol has, mercifully, preserved its Ladin good looks and culture. Dramatic, jagged peaks surge from their pine forest coats – beneath them, amber-glowing chalets evoke a Brother’s Grimm tale, firewood neatly stacked against their facades and roofs heaving with gingerbread house icing.
Along with the visuals and sense of cultural integrity is the unsung fact that South Tyrol is by far the best choice for family-friendly ski holidays.
It could be that blend of Austrian-Italian culture, both of which embrace children with open arms, but the region’s family-ski formula far outperforms that of French and Swiss resorts. They’ve mastered the art of convenience (easy-access ski slopes and ski schools; early suppers for smalls; family suites with separate children’s rooms), and understand off-duty time as integral to a holiday-for-all (see the exceptional, often complimentary, Kid’s Clubs for varied ages.
What’s more, in many of the family-friendly ski resorts, from Plose to Merano 2000, under 8s ride the cable cars for free and hearty mountain lunches are considerably less pricey than the French or Swiss Alps.
From trailblazers with on-site farms and organic, highly nutritious children’s menus to contemporary, spa-focused mountain escapes with superlative Kid’s Clubs, these are the five hotels that convince families to swap the French ski holiday for South Tyrol.
Sonnwies
The prevailing feeling at family-only Sonnwies is frustration – that this anti-screen nirvana for frazzled parents and energetic children wasn’t on the radar sooner. As the standard-bearer for the very notion of a family-friendly mountain holiday, Sonnwies has deftly smoothed out all the bumps of holidaying with smalls, without giving up the high design, elevated local fare or adult-only spa spaces.
Set on the fringes of the Dolomites, the hotel is imbued with an outdoorsy spirit – most notably in its weekly activity programme (expect scenic pony rides, wildlife spotting, foraging workshops) – and its tiny, on-site farm for egg-collecting jaunts. The hotel also has its own nursery slope for ski school. Supremely convenient.
Cashmere-clad families slump fireside for afternoon tea following the day’s heart-racing activities, tucking into a fine spread of traditional Tyrolean cakes, fruit and thick hot chocolate. The rhythm here then tends to be an extensive dip in Sonnwies’ five swimming pools, before readying for a delicious fairly early supper (6.30pm) of ready-to-roll pasta dishes with organic meats and plenty of veg, in tandem with parents’ more elevated set menus, mainly championing regional recipes and local fare.
Family-optimised rooms, suites and chalets twist towards the valley views, with all the tot paraphernalia imaginable.
But it’s the Kid’s Club here that really sets the hotel apart. Envisage light-filled, subdued rooms brimming with smart, wooden toys, and criss crossed with tastefully-crafted climbing frames and mini shops. An enormous theatre hall dotted with all sorts of ride-on trucks and cars hosts evening puppet shows and playtime while parents lean into wine menus. And with a generous scoop of complimentary childcare hours, daytime sessions here buy parents ample time on the Plose Slopes (a twenty-minute transfer away), or in the spa for a well-earned hot stone massage and steam).
Family rooms from £517 per room per night based on two adults and two children sharing a Double Room on a full-board basis, excluding alcohol and drinks from service. book it here
Feuerstein Nature Family Resort
With no limits on baby age for the kids’ club, and 70 hours complimentary childcare per week, Feuerstein Nature Family Resort has won over most parents before they’ve even dropped their bags. The Montessori-informed programme helps wash any guilt associated with leaving the smalls for the adult-only spa, the bells-and-whistles gym or the slopes (Ladurns is only 4 kilometres away with its 18km scribbles of varied pistes).
Here, there’s a Fichti’s children’s ski school, and families wishing to carve, snowplough or toboggan further afield can hop on transfers to Ratschings-Jaufen or Rosskopf.
Family time here is golden – there are farm visits, pony rides at the stable, a two-story playbarn with climbing ropes suspended over a haybed and splashing in the mountain spring water-filled swimming pond. A stellar kids club is divided into 0-3 then 4+, with plenty of messy play, crafts and outdoorsy adventures, such as waterfall walks and foraging the forest floor. And the all-inclusive nature of Feuerstein really comes into its own at mealtimes – a feast of local cheeses, meats, yoghurts and fruit for breakfast, then gourmet-grade lunches and suppers worth hiking or carving home for.
From £385 per night, book it here
Parkhotel Holzner
This 1908 stalwart puffs out its art nouveau chest from the Oberbozen plateau, just above Bolzano in South Tyrol (now running direct flights from London). As such, families staying here have the best of both worlds: the Narnia-like magic of the mountains, snow-dusted pine forests and the ski slopes, and Bolzano’s buzz, history (castles and museums a-plenty) and foodie scene a ten minute cable car ride below.
True to South Tyrolean form, wellness is a guiding force - they’ve even carved out family zones in the spa to ease children into the art of self-care – and a weekly programme of 3+ children’s activities lures them outside into the spanking fresh air, whether it’s farm visits, scavenger hunts through the Ritten Mountain’s snowy wonderland or team sports.
Children learn to cook and eat together, occasionally with chef Stephan Zippi and always using local produce. The ‘children are life not turmoil’ ethos permeates every aspect of the hotel, with multi-generational activities put on three times per week, and tennis or swimming courses available for upskilling. They’ve even thought of a single parent package, called Mamma Mia, where room rates for stays of at least three days are on the house, along with two children under the age of ten.
And as for the skiing, the Ritten mountain won’t impress the serious skiers, but its gentle, wide slopes, cross country, and (crucially) a pocket-sized ski school make it prime family ski holiday territory – a safe, gloriously scenic spot for mastering the ski turns and whooshing down toboggan runs.
Doubles from £292 euros per night (half-board), book it here
Family Hotel Posta
If a contemporary bells-and-whistles kids club ski hotel leaves you feeling queasy, and you ache for the cosy chalets of yore, Family Hotel Posta in snow-globe Val Gardena hits the sweet spot. Yes, it’s fresh and zhuzhed up inside, but the fires roar, the snow-dusted views spin outside and there’s all the family-owned warmth of a traditional chalet – one that happens to don playrooms, craft rooms and snug cinema corners.
Built solely for children, Villa Dumbo features an impressive climbing wall, kitchenette and cooking sessions. Parents can dock little ones here before hot footing it to the spa – for its steamy indoor-outdoor pool, organic hay sauna and tempting treatment list, or, when the time’s right, bring them along for the family sauna with a steam bath.
Light-filled rooms have been cleverly carved up for families of all shapes and sizes, and downstairs, floor-to-ceiling windows pull the snowy, Val Gardena magic in as children tuck into hearty, farm-to-table breakfasts and pastry-laden afternoon teas. Those keen to get on the slopes (or off-piste with a guide) can book their clans into ski school, taking full advantage of the hotel’s shuttle and ski pass service, with the Saslong and Dolomiti Superski lifts nearby.
Seven nights from € 1,350 per person, book it here
Family Hotel Chalet Mirabell
Perched high above Nutcracker-esque Merano on a sunny plateau, Hotel Chalet Mirabell is adored by loyalists for its top-drawer family offering and traditional Alpine setting in the postcard-pretty village of Hafling.
Skiing families will relish the direct access to the Meran 2000 ski area’s well-groomed slopes and ski schools, as well as its squiggle of cross-country routes and hiking trails. The unsung perk? Under 8s receive a free lift pass.
Back at base, children can feed and pet the alpacas at the hotel’s small farm, then stretch out their ski legs in the hotel’s cavernous family spa, with its indoor-outdoor heated pool, baby splash areas and children’s slides… even family-friendly saunas.
Restrained, fire-lit rooms blink out across the Dolomites in its finest winter coat, with large balconies for parents to relax on while tots settle in for their afternoon nap (opt for the family chalet junior deluxe suite for the balcony hot tub). Older children can hunker down in the chill out lounge after long days on the slopes, and, with broods fully supervised in the kids club, parents can skip off to the adult-only spa for its steam baths, saunas, and a steamy infinity pool tipping over the valley vista.
Rooms from £497 per night, book it here
