Ski holiday packing list, for a week in a private chalet

A ski holiday packing list for a private chalet is shorter than one for a hotel or an apartment, because the bulky and the replaceable can stay at home. Pack your documents and insurance, your ski clothing, the kit that has to fit your body (boots, helmet, goggles), medicine and chargers. Leave skis, poles and most household extras to the hire shop, the chalet team and our concierge. Below is the full checklist, category by category, as we would go through it with you before a week in Courchevel, Verbier, Zermatt or St. Moritz.

One rule saves most of the suitcase space: anything that must fit you, or that you rely on every day, travels with you; anything bulky, easy to hire in the resort or already in the residence does not. That is why it pays to know your chalet before you pack. Some deliver skis and boots to the door, some have a laundry, and one of ours provides bathrobes and toiletries throughout the stay.

Clothing takes up the largest part of any ski bag, so it has its own guide: our page on what to wear skiing covers layers, fabrics, sizes and après-ski. On this page, clothing gets a single line in each list, and the space goes to everything else people forget.

Put these in one pouch that lives in your hand luggage, and keep a photo of each page on your phone. If a document is missing, nothing else on this list matters.

• Passports for every traveller, children included, checked against the issue date and expiry rules above. Official advice warns that passports renewed before 1 October 2018 may fail the issue date test.
• Travel insurance that names winter sports and covers mountain rescue, helicopter evacuation and repatriation, as the official travel advice for France and Switzerland recommends. Save the policy number and the emergency line on your phone and on paper.
• A GHIC for each traveller if you hold one, as a complement to the insurance, never instead of it.
• If you drive out: UK photocard licence, vehicle documents, a UK sticker if your number plate needs one, winter equipment for the car and, for Switzerland, the motorway vignette.
• Your rental agreement and arrival details: the exact address of the residence is shared with you on booking, together with the arrival time agreed with the chalet team.
• A list of the group with names, ages and ski levels, plus heights and shoe sizes if anyone is hiring kit. It is all we need to order lift passes, equipment and lessons before you land.
• Payment cards that work abroad and a little cash: euros in Courchevel, Swiss francs in Verbier, Zermatt and St. Moritz.

Children need the same documents as adults and a few extras that make the week work. The chalet often covers more than parents expect: bunk rooms, playrooms, early suppers. What it cannot provide is a helmet that fits a particular head, which is why that one should travel with you.

• Their own passport, even for babies.
• A helmet and goggles that fit, tried on together at home, and their own boots if they ski often enough to own a pair.
• Two pairs of mittens and plenty of ski socks: small hands and feet are the first to get wet.
• Lesson details: dates, level and meeting point. Our guide to children’s ski lessons explains how to choose between group and private lessons by age.
• A swimsuit: Chalet Flys, Chalet Valmont and Chalet Morelle in Courchevel all have an indoor pool.
• Comfort items and the journey bag: a favourite toy, headphones, snacks. Indoor entertainment is already there, from the playroom with a climbing wall at Chalet Flys to the playrooms of Chalet Morelle and Chalet Dace in Courchevel.
• Cots, high chairs and bed guards: tell us the children’s ages when you book, so we can confirm with the chalet team what is in place.

• Phone, chargers and a power bank: batteries drain faster in the cold.
• A travel adaptor for UK plugs, one per person who charges devices; check the socket type for each country you stay in.
• A small rucksack for the slopes: water, sun cream, a spare layer.
• A swimsuit and flip-flops for the spa: most of our chalets have a sauna or hammam.
• Indoor shoes or slippers: ski boots stay in the ski room, and floors are often stone or wood.
• Downloaded films and books for the transfer, and a pen for the hire shop forms.

The best packing list is the one with fewer items on it. Before arrival, Nathalie Nguyen or Adam Haddad goes through these steps with you, so that what is waiting at the chalet does not end up in your suitcase as well.

1. Send the group details

   Names, ages, ski levels, heights and shoe sizes. With these, lift passes, equipment and lessons can be booked in one go.

2. Book passes and kit to the door

   Where the chalet offers it, lift passes are delivered and skis and boots are brought or fitted on site, so the first morning starts on the snow, not in a queue.

3. Book instructors and childcare

   Private instructors, childcare or babysitting are arranged on request, with times that match the chalet’s breakfast and the children’s lessons.

4. Brief the chef and stock the kitchen

   Allergies, dislikes, children’s suppers, the wine you like. In a self-catered chalet, we arrange grocery delivery and a private chef if you want one; our page on catered or self-catered chalets explains the difference.

5. Plan the transfer around the luggage

   Ski bags and pushchairs change the size of vehicle you need. Tell us how many bags you travel with and we book the right car or chauffeur.

6. Fill the gaps on arrival

   Forgotten charger, a child who outgrew last year’s gloves: message us. Our private concierge is at your disposal before and throughout the stay.