Image by: Nonanet
It may still be summer, but those of us that melt in the heat are already trawling holiday sites for our winter break, drooling over photos of picturesque alpine chalets and untouched blue runs. It’s enough to make you wish winter was here already.
However, once it comes around and you’ve spent two weeks packing, caught the inevitable early-morning flight, experienced that hair-raising coach journey into the mountains, and managed not to fall off the chairlift, you always seem to be hit with that sudden, jolting realisation – you’ve forgotten something.
It might occur at the top of a ski run, or when you’re getting ready for some serious après-ski activities, but it’s inevitable. It’s the moment that you realize you haven’t got it. That completely essential thing. You remembered your ski jacket, you remembered your snow boots, so how on earth did you forget?
But don’t worry, you’re not the only one. Here are the ten most forgotten essentials for a skiing holiday, all in a handy list, so you’ll never them forget again!
1) Ski Gloves
Without gloves, your fingers will fall off. FACT. Okay, maybe not, but they will get very cold and sore, and you may well lose a ski pole or two due to loss of movement in your hands.
2) Sun Protection Cream
Back in the UK, using sun cream in midwinter seems like something only the most obsessively sun-wary people would do. But trust me, you will need it – ski-goggle tan lines do not make you look cool, they make you look like a reverse panda.
3) Ski Socks
Ski socks are completely different to normal socks, I promise. And if you’ve experienced the ultimate pain of freezing toes and multiple blisters from wearing normal socks in ill-fitting rental ski boots, you will back me up, I’m sure.
4) First Aid Kit
If you do get those multiple blisters, it would be mighty helpful to have a blister plaster or two to place over them.
5) Sunglasses
Sun and snow is a blinding combo, and besides meaning that you may repeatedly plow into novice skiers, you can also permanently damage your eyesight without adequate eye protection.
6) Lip Balm
Having dry, sunburnt, chapped lips is never a good look, so making sure you have a good lip balm with SPF in will keep them ready for any après-ski activities. And no, normal sun cream doesn’t work ‘just as good’ – lips need extra moisture.
7) Water Pouch
Supping a beer or four in a slope-side tavern is a wonderful thing, but when you’re at the top of a black run and the crushing hangover kicks in from last night, you’re going to wish you had something non-alcoholic. A water pouch can be fitted easily into your ski jacket or ski trouser pockets.
Thermals
‘I’m a man,’ you say, ‘I don’t get cold.’ Oh yes you do – no one can stay warm once it hits -20°C without some thermal underwear. It ain’t pretty, but long johns are an essential.
9) Plug Adaptor
One thing we all seem to forget is that other countries have different plugs. So if you want to make sure you can continue Instagramming photos of luxury Chamonix chalets with your IPhone, you best remember your charger. Otherwise how are people going to get jealous of your amazing holiday?
10) Insurance
Breaking your leg on a mountainside is never going to be fun, but it’s even less fun when you realize that you now have to pay the hospital several thousand Euros for an x-ray and a plaster cast. Ouch.
Have you ever forgotten an essential item on a skiing holiday? Let us know below!
Gavin Harvey is a travel and skiing addict who once forgot to pack his long johns on a trip to Canada. However after nearly freezing to death on a chairlift, he has sworn to never forget them again. Currently he writes about travel for Dynamic Lives.
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