Whether you are new to skiing or you have been doing it for years, there will be differences to skiing on and off-piste that you need to be aware of. The idea of skiing off-piste is one of attacking virgin snow and having no limits of what you can do with just you, your skis and your poles. Yet, the reality is, you need to be fully prepared both in your ability and in your awareness of what might happen when you venture off-piste.
Ski-holidays are a good place to start. Not only will the instructors be able to give you a much better idea of what to do and not to do, they can do so for very specific slopes while also helping you to be aware of the exact conditions off-piste on different days.
Off-piste the snow can change every few feet and be completely unpredictable. It takes practice, but simply going off alone to practice is not advisable. On ski holidays you will find other like-minded people, many of whom will have had plenty of experience skiing off-piste who will more than happily give you advice on the best places to go and the best technique to use.
With the comfort of the chalets at night and the freedom of the slopes in the day, being in the right resort will help you perfect the technique you need, as the experience will almost certainly be different to anything you have experienced before.
So if you want to head off-piste, don’t just head abroad with your skis and hope for the best. Head for the chalets where you can be sure you will have the best possible advice and help to make sure that skiing off-piste is as amazing as it should be and not an experience that leaves you injured, disillusioned or worse.