What to Bring on a Ski Trip | 12 Essential Items Beginners Commonly Forget - Mpora

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What to Bring on a Ski Trip | 12 Essential Items Beginners Commonly Forget

A ski holiday checklist to tick off before you head out on your first trip…

What should you bring on a ski trip? A better question to ask might be: what are you going to forget to bring on your ski trip?

If you’ve just booked your first week out on the snow, it can be difficult to know exactly what you’ll need. There’s the stuff like salopettes, thermals and ski jackets that are easy to remember, and then there’s the other equally as important stuff that’s a lot less obvious.

That’s why we’ve made this easily digestible guide – a helpful nudge from your friends at Mpora to turn to whenever you’re preparing for your skiing or snowboard adventure, so you don’t forget the things that a whole lot of people do. We hope this helps!

Sun cream

Photo: Whitelines.com

Probably one of the most commonly overlooked items when packing for a ski trip is suncream. Many assume that because of all that snow involved in snowsports, you can leave the sun protection at home, but the truth is that even if it’s freezing cold, snowing or incredibly cloudy, the altitude means you’re still going to be catching plenty of rays.

The mountains are so much closer to that big flaming inferno in the sky that you’re sure to get sun while you’re skiing or snowboarding – hence the famous goggle tan – so make sure you remember to pack some to stop yourself burning!

Lip balm

The mountains are windy. And cold. And they’re going to destroy your lips if you don’t bring some kind of lip balm along with you.

We can pretty much guarantee that if you do not bring this, you will end up either having to borrow some from a friend, buy some from a nearby shop, or spend as much time as you do on the slopes slowly peeling dead skin off those lovely lips of yours. Sounds nice, doesn’t it? BRING LIP BALM.

Plug adapter

For obvious reasons, you’ll need a plug adapter when you go skiing or snowboarding outside the UK – and on top of this, we would strongly, strongly recommend bringing the CORRECT plug adapter. This may seem like obvious advice, but you’d be surprised how many people get this wrong.

Also, remember that – again, obvious advice – one plug adapter can only charge one thing at one time. So if you can, get a couple of plug adapters or one of those groovy ones that can charge a few things at once. You’ll be the most in demand person in resort.

Actual ski gloves

Those regular woolly gloves you bought from Primark are lovely and all but while they might keep you warm in your hometown, and possibly even while you’re out skiing, they won’t keep the snow out if you fall or offer you any protection.

We’d recommend picking up a good pair of sturdy, warm ski gloves. We’ve been wearing the Dainese Carved Line D-Dry glove and can highly recommend it – they’re warm, tight-fitting and have some padding to protect against branches and scrapes. Dainese also offer a bunch of other protection gear which is rad. The Dianese Flexagon Waistcoat is a comfortable and lightweight form of back protection.

At least two base layers

Base layers are obviously an essential in the mountains, what with it being super cold up there, but when you’re skiing all day, you’re also going to produce quite a quantity of sweat, so it’d be worthwhile remembering to bring a change of base layer so that you don’t have to pull on a crispy garment to head out in after your morning shower.

As many socks as you can pack

The same goes for socks! Ski socks are a near-essential purchase for going away. You can get away without them sometimes, but they are designed for purpose and don’t tend to be too expensive, so you’re best to get yourself a few pairs so you have a new pair for each day of skiing.

Insurance

It may be an annoying piece of paper to spend £20 on, but the cost is low when you compare it to the piece of mind that follows and the financial burden it’ll help you out with should you fall ill while you’re away.

And actually, while we’re on the topic, remember your EHIC card if you’re off to Europe as well. Make the most of it while we’re still in the EU!

A buff or neck warmer

Endlessly useful for keeping your neck warm, for stopping snow getting down where it shouldn’t be and for keeping your chin and face warm on particularly cold days, a buff or neck warmer is an essential on a ski trip and something you can pick up for just a couple of quid.

Foreign currency

SO THAT YOU CAN BUY THINGS.

A warm hat

Even if you’ve got a helmet with you for the riding, remember to bring a hat with you, because a) it’ll keep you warm at night when you’re out and about, and when it’s especially cold, and b) it’ll help you fit in. Think about it. When have you ever seen a skier or snowboarder not wearing a beanie or cap? We’ve got both on right now. It’s the new look.

A Backpack

It can be hard to comprehend packing a bag inside a larger bag for some folk, but it is well worth it! It’s great to have a rucksack with you when you’re skiing. It means you can take water, food – therefore saving a bunch of money – take off layers if it’s too warm, and on top of that it protects your back in a fall. Be aware though – all your mates will want to put stuff in your rucksack. All of them. All of the time.

Sunglasses

This suggestion comes in a similar vein to our first suggestion – the sun cream. There is a hell of a lot of sun up in those mountains, and even though you’ll probably have goggles on most of the time, it’s nice to have the option of something lighter or of being able to switch to sunglasses at lunch.

Have we forgot about something that you often forget to bring? If so let us know in the comments!

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