From working as a chalet host to learning to become a ski instructor, there are plenty of jobs available that give you time on the slopes. Here’s our guide on how to track them down and what employers look for. The main thing to remember is that, although you’ll get plenty of playtime, this isn’t just a holiday – you’re going to have to put hard graft in as well. But, with lots of apres ski to boot, you will have the time of your life.
In terms of pay, you’re looking at wages between £80 and £200 per week for most positions, but, let’s face it, you’re here for the powder, not the cash. However, if you’re a qualified chef, you could bag up to £2250 a month, while nannies earn around £250 a week. And ski seasons aren’t just for gap-year students. Kirsty McDougall, operations manager at Ski Familie, which has family resorts in France, says: “We have people on our staff aged 18 to 47, it’s really varied; we get anything from ski-season junkies, to people taking a career break and even people having a mid-life crisis.
“And there’s enough press out there for all of them to know they have to work hard to justify their time on the mountain. If you can’t keep up with the work you go home.”
That sentiment is echoed across the industry. And shovelling snow at -20C will remind you of this. But, certainly, the prospect of skiing every day outweighs the less glamorous aspects of having to work.
Barbara Cullan, 31, who worked as a guest host with Hokkaido Tracks Holidays, Japan, says: “You’ll laugh a lot, have fantastic nights out and meet like-minded people from all over world; everyone has an interesting story to tell.”
If you are unskilled, apply for chalet assistant, cleaner or chambermaid positions. With customer service experience under your belt, you can work behind a bar, as a chalet manager, or as a host. You’ll usually work morning and afternoon shifts and get more skiing time.
To make sure you stand out from the crowd, jump on a training course while in the UK. Natives.co.uk runs a five-day chalet worker course for £399, which teaches customer service, how to run (and clean) a chalet and cook suitable meals. The Avenue Cookery School also offers a dedicated chalet course. And Inghams runs culinary assessments for applicants without cooking qualifications.
While chef and childcare positions are strictly filled by qualified people.
Moira Clarke, of Esprit Ski, says: “We want people carrying out these positions as a career move, not just for the sake of doing a season. It would be the same as what they are doing in the UK, just with a much better view.”
However, the perks of working a ski season are unquestionable. With some roles, you’ll be given free passes to hit the slopes whenever you can in between shifts.
Nicola Ross, of Ski Verbier, which has resorts in Verbier in Switzerland and Chamonix in France, explains: “We set all our staff up with accommodation, free lift passes for all the valleys, return flights, insurance and a food allowance. We don’t like the idea of our staff having to spend their salary.”
If you want to work in the Alps, you’ll need to have a British or EU passport and most definitely a good command of English.
Thousands of 18-35-year-old Australians and New Zealanders also head to Canada’s ski resorts every year, which is best done by signing up to a programme such as Overseas Working Holidays
Anna Betcher, 33, who lives in London, worked as a lodge hostess at a Heli-skiing resort in Revelstoke, Canada.
“The skiing was world-class and because the lodge was remote, I could save quite a bit of money,” she says. See bunac.org/uk for more details.
Which Resorts?
Be open-minded about where you would like to work, says Moira Clarke of Esprit Ski. “If you’ve never skied before, don’t go to a huge ski resort with mile upon mile of runs.” Try Plan Peisey or La Rosière in France, Arabba in Italy, or Saas Fee in Switzerland. To brush up on your French, or experience local culture, avoid the British hubs, Val d’Isère or Verbier. In Canada, working ‘on the hill’ such as in Whistler, means at a ski resort, which gives you close access to the snow and a social scene. Working elsewhere in the vicinity will pay better and allow you days off to ski.
For working in Japan, visit snowjapan.com and boobooski.com. Begin jobhunting in May for the ski season from December to April. Try; natives.co.uk; seasonworkers.com; goski.ca.
– Rebecca Kent
From working as a chalet host to learning to become a ski instructor, there are plenty of jobs available that give you time on the slopes. Here’s our guide on how to track them down and what employers look for. The main thing to remember is that, although you’ll get plenty of playtime, this isn’t just a holiday – you’re going to have to put hard graft in as well. But, with lots of apres ski to boot, you will have the time of your life.
In terms of pay, you’re looking at wages between £80 and £200 per week for most positions, but, let’s face it, you’re here for the powder, not the cash. However, if you’re a qualified chef, you could bag up to £2250 a month, while nannies earn around £250 a week. And ski seasons aren’t just for gap-year students. Kirsty McDougall, operations manager at Ski Familie, which has family resorts in France, says: “We have people on our staff aged 18 to 47, it’s really varied; we get anything from ski-season junkies, to people taking a career break and even people having a mid-life crisis.
“And there’s enough press out there for all of them to know they have to work hard to justify their time on the mountain. If you can’t keep up with the work you go home.”
That sentiment is echoed across the industry. And shovelling snow at -20C will remind you of this. But, certainly, the prospect of skiing every day outweighs the less glamorous aspects of having to work.
Barbara Cullan, 31, who worked as a guest host with Hokkaido Tracks Holidays, Japan, says: “You’ll laugh a lot, have fantastic nights out and meet like-minded people from all over world; everyone has an interesting story to tell.”
If you are unskilled, apply for chalet assistant, cleaner or chambermaid positions. With customer service experience under your belt, you can work behind a bar, as a chalet manager, or as a host. You’ll usually work morning and afternoon shifts and get more skiing time.
To make sure you stand out from the crowd, jump on a training course while in the UK. Natives.co.uk runs a five-day chalet worker course for £399, which teaches customer service, how to run (and clean) a chalet and cook suitable meals. The Avenue Cookery School also offers a dedicated chalet course. And Inghams runs culinary assessments for applicants without cooking qualifications.
While chef and childcare positions are strictly filled by qualified people.
Moira Clarke, of Esprit Ski, says: “We want people carrying out these positions as a career move, not just for the sake of doing a season. It would be the same as what they are doing in the UK, just with a much better view.”
However, the perks of working a ski season are unquestionable. With some roles, you’ll be given free passes to hit the slopes whenever you can in between shifts.
Nicola Ross, of Ski Verbier, which has resorts in Verbier in Switzerland and Chamonix in France, explains: “We set all our staff up with accommodation, free lift passes for all the valleys, return flights, insurance and a food allowance. We don’t like the idea of our staff having to spend their salary.”
If you want to work in the Alps, you’ll need to have a British or EU passport and most definitely a good command of English.
Thousands of 18-35-year-old Australians and New Zealanders also head to Canada’s ski resorts every year, which is best done by signing up to a programme such as Overseas Working Holidays
Anna Betcher, 33, who lives in London, worked as a lodge hostess at a Heli-skiing resort in Revelstoke, Canada.
“The skiing was world-class and because the lodge was remote, I could save quite a bit of money,” she says. See bunac.org/uk for more details.
Which Resorts?
Be open-minded about where you would like to work, says Moira Clarke of Esprit Ski. “If you’ve never skied before, don’t go to a huge ski resort with mile upon mile of runs.” Try Plan Peisey or La Rosière in France, Arabba in Italy, or Saas Fee in Switzerland. To brush up on your French, or experience local culture, avoid the British hubs, Val d’Isère or Verbier. In Canada, working ‘on the hill’ such as in Whistler, means at a ski resort, which gives you close access to the snow and a social scene. Working elsewhere in the vicinity will pay better and allow you days off to ski.
For working in Japan, visit snowjapan.com and boobooski.com. Begin jobhunting in May for the ski season from December to April. Try; natives.co.uk; seasonworkers.com; goski.ca.
– Rebecca Kent