Ski Wear

If you’re a first-time skier you don’t want to spend a fortune getting kitted out for a holiday that might turn out to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but you also want to make sure you’re going to warm and toasty and, possibly just as important, right on trend on the slopes, so read our guide to find out all you need to know about skiing clothing and more.

What to wear

The key is to layer clothes, then you can always add more or start stripping off, depending on the temperature. Start with thermal vests and leggings and buy the best you can afford. Merino wool undies are the warmest and the most comfortable. Add a polo neck sweater and, if it’s really cold, a fleece then a ski jacket and ski pants, salopettes or an all-in-one ski suit.

Your outer layer should be both waterproof and breathable – if you fall in love with a jacket that is neither don’t buy it, even if it is Prada, because no-one looks good when they’re freezing to death.

Accessorising is essential when skiing and you’ll need ski goggles and sun glasses – not just one or the other as glasses are no good when it snows and goggles are too restrictive to wear in the sun- hat, gloves and ski socks.

Where to buy it

As a general rule of thumb, you should buy ski clothing at home where you’ll probably find a greater range than in resorts. Prices in the UK are likely to be lower too, especially if you’re going to countries in the eurozone. For skiing equipment, like ski boots, the opposite is true as buying in resorts gives you a chance to try them out and exchange them at the shop if they’re no good. Specialist outdoor stores like Blacks, Millets and Snow & Rock have a great range of ski clothing at this time of year and they are the best places to shop for the top gear – we’re talking high tech fibres here. If you’re skiing late in the season, say from mid-March onwards, you might want to wait to buy and try to pick up some bargains in the end of season sales.

For really cheap ski clothing right now, try the larger supermarkets like Asda, Sainsbury SavaCentres and Tesco. Likewise high street clothing store H&M does a very affordable range of ski wear and Matalan’s first ski range, Glacier Point, has just arrived in stores across the country. If you can be bothered to dig in the bargain basement, T.K Maxx has some cut-price designer gear – right now it is offering up to 60% off women’s ski jackets and pants, which start at just £29.99 and £14.99 and it’s got some on-trend men’s ski clothing in fashionable pin-stripe and herringbone. But be warned, all of these stores have only a very limited stock and they might be sold out by December.

Snow babes

You don’t want to spend a fortune kitting out the kids, particularly if they’ve never skied before. They might not take to the snow and even if they do they will have outgrown those designer salopettes by next winter. That said, you’ll want to make sure they’re nice and warm and that they’ve got practical clothes that are easy to take on and off. Look out for the L.O.G.G. jackets and trousers in H&M that have technical features such as sewn in hand warmers with thumb holes and ski boot cuffs with Velcro access.

If you’re sure of you children’s sizes, try online shops like cosikids or kidski for jumpers, fleeces, thermal undies, gloves and goggles.