Going on a skiing trip as a family is a great way to bond and create many fond memories. However, every holiday involving young children can get a bit stressful, especially if you’re not properly prepared. So, if you want to make sure that your skiing holiday goes as smoothly as possible, it’s important to pack all the right skiing clothes for your kids. Consider the following tips when shopping and you will never hear the words “I’m cold.” or “My feet hurt.”
Waterproofing
Children love snow and will spend as much time as possible playing in it, meaning they can get wet unless properly dressed. To prevent this from happening, you need to cover them in waterproof clothes from head to toe. This means looking for kids ski jackets, pants, gloves and hats that are made of 100% waterproof material. And beware of anything with a tag saying “resistant to water” as this is no indication that the material is waterproof. Also, make sure that the stitching of the coat and pants is sealed from the inside.
Insulation
A warm kid is a happy kid and will gladly spend more time on the slopes. Too keep your child warm even on super-cold days, make sure that the clothes they’re wearing offer great insulation. However, be careful and don’t automatically assume that thick kids ski jackets are insulated. In fact, insulated kids ski jackets are often designed to be thin in order to offer the child more freedom of movement. That being said, instead of focusing on thickness, look for fabrics such as Primaloft, Thinsulate and Omni-Heat which prevent the heat of the body from escaping.
Breathability
Since kids love to run around and play, they are very prone to sweating. And up on the slopes, letting your sweat soak into your body can cause you to get even colder. So, make sure to look for kids ski clothes that are breathable. How breathable fabrics are is defined by how many grams of sweat per square meter they allow to evaporate. The higher the number, the more breathable the material is. The ratings can range from around 2000 – 3000g, to 25 000g for some high-end ski clothes. Some ski jackets also have special venting-zips under the arms to help regulate the body’s temperature.
Windproofing
And finally, make sure that the ski clothes you choose are also windproof. As ski slopes are at altitudes of 1600m or more, winds can get particularly strong. With the wrong clothes, you can easily get chilled. Typically, clothes that are waterproof are also windproof, however, make sure to specifically, check before buying.
