The best Ski Trips and experiences For Solo skiers and snowboarders
Naturally you know that nothing can ever be more fun than going on an awesome ski or snowboard trip, and to us that’s obvious right? Unfortunately for some, this is not so clear and you may find at times that people in your life just aren’t on the same page as you about making ski trips an absolute priority. Whether it’s your spouse, or your friends, or kids, it’s hard for everything to line up and for people to be free to ski with you whenever you please.
This leaves us in a daunting position of finding a ski trip that’s totally awesome, which can be a bit intimidating. You don’t want to be the only guy alone at the ski resort, sitting at the bar talking into your beer, or be held back, not wanting to venture into the deep glades alone for fear of tree wells or getting lost. The singles line at ski resorts is over-saturated these days so the perks of moving through lines quicker is not as alluring anymore either!
So what do we do? We need to find the perfect ski trip for solo travelers to enjoy. Ideally one that is better than a ski holiday with friends, and certainly better than one with your spouse (kidding!). Well this can be tricky, so we burned the midnight oil finding some great solutions for you to go on a solo ski trip.
And to be clear, we aren’t talking about a “singles ski trip”, which also exists. We are talking about a ski trip for solo travelers who’s friends or family don’t have time to ski with them. No speed dating, no chairlift flirting (well, maybe), but just some good old fashioned skiing and snowboarding.
The Best Ski Trips For Solo Travelers
Guided Ski Tours/ safaris for solo travelers
With a guided ski tour for solo travelers you can join a small or large public group of skiers and snowboarders just like yourself, who’s friends couldn’t join. Most of the time these are passionate powder junkies, just like yourself. With some careful research you can find a tour operator that caters to travelers just like you, ranging from coach buses full of snow loving party animals, or smaller groups of skiers/ boarders who prefer to have some fun in the evenings but focus on the snow, skiing from first to last chair. Be sure to ask each tour operator for some data on who their typical traveler type is and what the demographics on their groups are. You wouldn’t want to be the oldest one on the snow-rave or the only passionate partyer on the ski masters tour for gentlemen in their sixties, right?
Here is an example of what our guided ski tours for solo travelers are like:
- Average Age: 45 years old
- Age Range: 30- 75 years old
- Group Size: 12 travelers with 2 guides
- Group Breakdown: Roughly 70% solo travelers, 30 percent couples or friends
- Typical Group Gender: Roughly 60 percent male, 40 percent female
- Skill Breakdown: 20% expert, 40% advanced, 30% intermediate, 10% beginner
- Typical Nationalities: Canada, USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand, European.
- Group Focus: First to Last Chairlift, 1 hour après, social group dinners, social hot tub soaks
There are various types of guided tours that cater to solo travelers, ranging from backcountry lodges to hosted roadtrips, to basecamp style resort holidays. We offer hosted roadtrips and basecamp style ski holidays as well!
Pros: Many tour varieties to choose from, various groups and demographics, everything is handled for you with expert local knowledge, lots of fun social drink and dinner opportunities.
Cons: These trips have high running costs so they tend to be pricey
Why Go On A Guided Ski Tour for Solo Travelers?
There are so many reasons but here are some of the biggest factors: Skiing with local guides makes all the difference. Most people don’t even know that skiing with local guides is an option as they fumble around the resorts missing the real treasures over and over again. Skiing with a local guide means that you benefit from ten plus years of exploration, trial and error, missed turns and getting skunked and can rock up and ski the absolute best stashes like a VIP genius. Your guides have put in the heavy lifting to bring you to the trophy right away without wasting time and energy.
Another great reason to join a guided tour is the social aspect. Most of the guests on our tours are traveling solo just like you and in our experience pretty much everyone has been excited to meet other like minded travelers with similar passions. It’s not uncommon for our groups to continue traveling together on future ski trips, or to be in touch years later, sharing travel stories etc. We could all benefit from a few more passionate ski buddies, yea?
The third most obvious benefit of joining a guided ski tour is having everything planned for you. You ski guides will have everything planned to the minute, so you can sit back and enjoy the ride. We have planned out our routes to perfection, anticipating things like highway closures, crowded times, lines at cafes, and everything else, so you can jump in the van and have a smooth and perfectly planned trip. Come see for yourself!
Ski/ Snowboard Progression camps for Solo Travelers
Progression camps can be a great type of ski/ snowboard holiday for solo travelers, as they almost always are social. Groups typically range from 10 to 50 people, and last anywhere from 1 to 12 weeks. There is usually a strong focus on instruction and improvement, which is how the ski course builds value, which can be very appealing for some, or a total turn off for others. It all comes down to what you prefer.
Be sure to do your research as well, as many ski/ snowboard camps cater to a younger demographic, so you could risk being the sore thumb if you choose a camp that is not appropriate for you.
If you are looking to improve your skills and don’t mind some coaching along the way, ski camps can be one of the best social options for solo ski travelers.
Pros: Good opportunity to progress as a solo skier
Cons: Typically a younger crowd, often aimed at a low budget
Singles Chalet Week In Europe
This is a classic ski holiday experienced by solo travelers from all over the world. The most typical version of a chalet week is in the Alps, where a large chalet gets rented out by a tour operator and individual spaces are filled by skiers travelling solo. You typically book a bed, which could be a private room or a shared room with multiple twin beds in it and same sex room mates.
Chalet ski weeks can be very regimented with a set daily plan and group leader, or they can also be more chill with each participant able to come and go as they please.
We definitely recommend that you touch base with the experience organizer to ensure the group demographic is right for you and the ski focus and ability is as well!
Pros: Fun, Europe has a great social scene
Cons: Europe can be a lot, Usually not much value in the guided component
local Ski Clubs and associations
One often overlooked way to enjoy ski vacations as a solo traveler is to join a local ski club, which typically plan a one or many group ski trips each season. There are obvious social aspects to joining a group trip like this and you can often benefit from the group buying power that these larger groups have.
Travelling with a club or association like this can come with some drawbacks though, as the trip is catered to a wide variety of people and tends to shoot squarely in the middle of the pack, delighting no one but satisfying everyone. We would recommend a group ski trip if you are a solo skier looking for a good deal, and are flexible on the type of trip and location that you go.
Pros: Group buying power means lower prices
Cons: Groups are usually fickle and choose their destination based on price over quality
Backcountry Ski Lodge guided ski weeks
As a solo skier, you can book a space at a backcountry ski lodge and benefit from skiing with a guide and also with a new group of other skiers that you are assigned to be paired with. This option for solo travelers is great because most ski lodges have a wide variety of groups and individuals that visit, so you will not be the odd one out for travelling alone.
Naturally this type of solo ski trip is only appropriate for skier and snowboarders who are interested in backcountry skiing and don’t mind putting in the work to to tour up the slopes and earn your turns. British Columbia has many backcountry lodges, many of which are available with guided and catered programs. If you are interested in backcountry skiing then staying at a lodge for a week would be one of the best ski holidays for solo travelers.
Pros: Powder, Guided Experience, Remote and Peaceful
Cons: Must be in shape, human powered (earn your turns)
Volunteer patrol Groups for solo skiers
Volunteer patrol isn’t exactly a type of trip for solo ski travelers, but it is an interested opportunity that can help to connect skiers with a network of like minded people and present some travel opportunities.
The first benefit is that you learn lots and spend time with other passionate skiers, which is always a great thing. Sometimes there are travel opportunities for volunteer patrollers to visit other mountains and spend the days tagging along with their patrol team and learning the way they do things. There is usually a bit of guiding going on here as the host patrollers tend to host you around the mountain and show off their best terrain (for research reasons, right?).
Pros: Interesting way to get more involved and ski with other people
Cons: Obligation to do work, more focus on patrol than just skiing, time commitment
Where will you go on your next solo ski trip?
We absolutely support all our ski travelers who head out solo on their ski trips. It can be hard to find someone who has the same time off as you, or who shares the same passions. Finding someone who has both can be extra challenging.
We love the idea of solo skiers having the best trips possible, so we wanted to put this guide on the best ski trips for solo travelers together to help make it easier to plan an unforgettable trip.
Whether it’s to book you on one of our tours, or just to be in touch, we would love to hear about your favourite ski trips and places to have enjoyed.
Keep your tips up and remember, happiness is only real when shared, so let’s make some memories!
About The Author
Alex Ross- Lead Guide/ Founder
Let’s just say Alex didn’t want to work a real job when he grew up. He had his heart set on avoiding any kind of accounting, human resources, compliance, marketing and business administration, in order to be free for his dream job as a ski guide. Now he guides people on skis, but mostly does accounting, human resources, compliance, marketing and business administration work!