The bags are zipped, the snacks are packed, and you’re feeling quietly triumphant because everyone is wearing at least one sock. Then someone announces they’ve lost the other one. Somewhere between that and the airport gate, you start to wonder whether a winter break with children was optimism, bravery, or a mild lapse in judgment. And yet, something about snowy mountains makes families keep trying. But here’s what really happens when you take kids to the slopes and the unexpected lessons waiting for you there.

1.   Plans will not meet reality

You can prepare all you like. Colour?coded packing cubes. Coordinated lift passes. A morning schedule that maps out every hour with military precision. And still, none of it survives first contact with a child who suddenly decides snow boots feel too emotional today.

The slopes have a way of mocking your planning. One minute you’re convinced you’ll be the organised parent who gets everyone to ski school early; the next, you’re hunting for a missing glove that was last seen inside the freezer. Kids are unpredictable in any setting, but in the mountains, the unpredictability becomes sport. You end up learning flexibility the way beginners learn balance; mostly through trial, error, and a few soft landings, that is.

One mum I once met told me their carefully planned “gentle first morning” ended with their youngest lying on the snow, starfish?style, explaining to passing strangers that he was “retiring from winter”. Sometimes the best plan is accepting that the plan will change.

2.   You’ll discover new joys (and frustrations)

There’s real magic in watching kids discover mountains for the first time. They don’t see technique or terrain. They see glittering snow, mysterious forests, and the thrilling possibility that they might actually be faster than you. Somewhere between the shouts of “watch me!” and “not like that!”, you realise that a ski holiday unlocks a version of joy adults tend to forget exists.

Of course, every golden moment has a twin. Tears because the hot chocolate arrived with the wrong amount of froth. A meltdown halfway up a drag lift. The dramatic flop onto a snowbank after ten bold minutes of enthusiasm. But here’s the thing: nothing bonds a family like trying to negotiate mittens onto a child who claims their hands don’t believe in gloves anymore.

But then comes that tiny triumph: a confident turn, an unexpected burst of pride, a grin wide enough to melt the nearest icicle. And suddenly it’s all worth it.

3.   Things will definitely not be perfect

We as adults tend to approach holidays with a quiet, unspoken wish for perfection. Smooth travel. Ideal weather. Photographs where no one is scowling or blinking. Mountains cure you of that very fast.

Children operate on a way different logic. The sort where the best moment of the day might be sliding down a snow pile outside the chalet rather than the expensive run you spent half an hour queueing for. Their version of success is refreshingly chaotic. And if you let them, they’ll pull you into it.

Let go of tidy expectations. Laugh when your goggles fog. Smile when someone drops their snack into the snow, then eats it anyway. The imperfections make the memory. Besides, there’s something liberating about realising no one else has it together either. Every parent is out there, silently negotiating with a small person about why they need to keep their jacket zipped.

Look forward to the next adventure!

At the end of the day, what you’ll remember most isn’t the pristine run or the perfect weather, but the wonky photo taken outside the lift station or the unexpected snowball fight. The way everyone collapsed into bed at the end of the day, exhausted in the best possible way.

Family travel will never be predictable – and honestly, thank goodness. There’s joy in the chaos if you let yourself see it. And once you do, you start looking forward to the next trip, not because it will go smoothly, but because it won’t. And that’s the whole point!