For beginner skiers, Day One on the slopes can seem pretty daunting, but it really doesn't have to be. By booking a few dry-slope lessons at ski centres in the UK and Ireland, during the weeks before you head out to Les Gets, you can build up your confidence and get a solid grasp of the fundamentals, while having fun on the slopes and heightening that pre-holiday anticipation and excitement.
There are many ski centres in the UK and Ireland, so you won't have to travel too far in order to find a good facility with qualified ski instructors. Beginning with an introductory session, a short course in skiing will cover the basics (how to put your boots and skis on, how to establish good posture) before moving on to the core techniques of skiing: the 'snowplough', stopping, simple turns etc.
If you've been skiing before, that doesn't mean you won't benefit from visiting a UK and Ireland ski centre before your Les Gets holiday begins. An hour or two on a dry-slope can help dust off the cobwebs and make sure that you hit the pistes ready to go on your first morning. As you cruise off the top of the Chavannes Express chair lift, it's good to feel confident that you have a couple of refresher sessions under your belt.
View Dry-slope skiing in the UK and Ireland in a larger map
198 Fairwater Road
Cardiff
CF5 3JR,
+44 29 2056 1793
John Nike Leisuresport Complex,
Great Orme,
Llandudno
LL30 2LR,
+44 1492 874707
Alpine Park
Plymouth
PL6 8LW,
+44 1752 600220
Lyncombe Drive
Churchill,
North Somerset
BS25 5PQ,
+44 1934 852335
Sir Herbert Wragg Way
Swadlincote,
Derbyshire
DE11 8LP,
+44 1283 217200
Festival Way
Festival Park,
Stoke-on-Trent,
Staffordshire
ST1 5PU,
+44 1782 204159
Town Park
Palace Fields,
Runcorn,
Cheshire
WA7 6PT,
+44 1928 701965
Alston
CA9 3HB,
+44 1228 561634
Caution: Yad Moss itself has no postcode but can be found about 1 mile south east of CA9 3HB.
Bellahouston Park
16 Dumbreck Road,
Glasgow
G41 5BW,
+44 141 427 4991
Cairnwell
Ballater
AB35 5XU,
+44 1339 741320
Lecht Ski Centre
Corgarff
AB36 8YP,
+44 1975 651440
Killegar
County Wicklow
+353 (01) 295 5658
The Glen
County Cork
+353 (021) 455 0511
Stillorgan
County Dublin
+353 (01) 293 0588