20 excited children and 4 eager staff packed their ski gear and headed to La Thuile in Italy for the St John’s 2019 ski trip. The resort has beautiful views of the Aosta Valley and the Mont Blanc Massif and, from the top of the ski area, of the Tarantaise Mountains in France and the Matterhorn on the Italian/Swiss border. After checking into the hotel and eating dinner in a lovely Italian restaurant, the children headed for an early night ready to test the pistes the following day.
The first day on the slopes arrived quickly, skis and boots were fitted and the children were divided into the appropriate ski instruction groups for the week. The buzz of excitement reverberated around the mountains as they stepped onto the snow for the first time and the children were blessed with beautiful bluebird weather on the first morning. The children were soon away with shouts of glee and the odd flurry of snow where someone had fallen over. With blue, red and black runs and the longest run being 11 kms, there was a piste for everyone from the complete beginner to the more intrepid skier doing turns, jumps, flips and skiing backwards.
Mr Carter said, “We had mixed mountain weather throughout the week, from clear blue skies to complete white-outs. Our group persevered incredibly well and tackled the variable weather conditions with rigour and determination. The slopes were in excellent shape and the progress made by the children was very impressive. The children enjoyed a relaxed atmosphere and were treated to evening activities including Karaoke, a DVD night, bum boarding and a pizza night.” On the last afternoon, a presentation was organised where the children received their well-deserved rewards for their efforts on the ski slopes from their instructors and a congratulatory speech was made about each child. There were also prizes for the child who made the most progress in each group and Mrs O’Sullivan’s ‘Good Fellow Award’.
One skier said, “The resort was perfect and not too crowded, the skiing was brilliant - especially in the powder snow and when the sun came out! The evening activities were really fun, and I thought that the instructors were both professional and fun.”