Travel restrictions have started to lift around the world, which means that long-awaited family ski holiday may now be a reality. Some of you are starting to think about the trip you’ve already booked; others are starting to talk about booking one.

Either way, we’ll share with you everything we’re doing to make your family’s trip as safe as possible.

  • Peace of mind that your money’s safe.
  • Our extra safeguards for your holiday.

We also have a list of frequently asked questions.

2020/21 RESORT CHANGES

The health and wellbeing of you, your family and our local teams in resort will always be our top priority. With this in mind, we will be operating a smaller programme for the upcoming winter 2020/21 season, where we are confident we can deliver the highest level of health and safety measures.

Whilst some of our resorts may not be available this winter, we hope your journey continues with us.

YOUR MONEY'S SAFE

ATOL & ABTA protection

These schemes are backed by the government, so whatever happens, your money is protected.

Covid-19 refund promise

If things change and we have to cancel your holiday because of Covid-19, you can pick another date, or get a full refund.

Low deposits

Reserve your holiday for just £150pp, when you book before the end of September. Your final balance will be due 10 weeks before departure.

For some dates we might need to increase the deposit a little to secure your choice of flights.

We're in a strong position

We’re part of a much bigger family of businesses. Our parent company is a large Swiss supermarket and retailer called Migros, so as a group, we’re stronger together.

No amendment fee from us

We’ve also scrapped our general amendment fee until the date when the final balance is due. Most of our partners have done this too, giving you the flexibility to make changes. If any partners do charge a fee, we might have to pass it on though.

STAYING SAFE ON HOLIDAY

The health and safety of every family who travels with us is our top priority. In preparation for your family ski trip this winter, we are busy working with our teams in resort and the local guidelines to help everyone remain safe.

Due to the constantly evolving nature of the Covid-19 crisis, we might need to change or withdraw some advertised accommodation facilities and resort services so we can keep everyone safe. Wherever we can, we’ll let you know about this in advance if we believe that it will have a significant impact on your holiday, but sometimes it might be at very short notice.

Childcare is at the heart of what we do

Whilst we’re reviewing all of our childcare procedures, we want to highlight some of the things that we’re already doing and have successfully been doing so for many years to help keep your family safe when they travel with Esprit Ski.

  • We already operate smaller group sizes of up to 8, based on ski school groupings, which children stay in throughout the week.
  • Children eat within their specific group, with food and drink served by our team members.
  • We have a key worker system so children will stay with the same small team of staff throughout the week, and we have strict ratios of children to staff.
  • Our team are trained in our deep cleaning and the prevention of spread of infection or illness management processes.
  • We operate a Childcare Guarantee and we are confident that our childcare services are the best in the ski industry.

Whilst we may have to make some small changes to help keep everyone safe, you can rest assured that we’ll do our very best to make sure your Esprit Ski childcare is everything you expect it to be.

Covid-specific training and lots of extra cleaning

All partner hotels and apartments will be managed by their own local, professional teams - compliant with Covid laws of that country. We only work with very carefully chosen, trusted partners.

For the accommodation we manage:

  • All staff will have Covid-specific hygiene training, along with safety equipment (PPE).
  • The communal areas will be disinfected several times a day, with deep cleans on transfer day.
  • We won’t offer self-service food. Your meal will be served to you from a buffet or at your table - distanced from other tables – by staff wearing appropriate PPE.
  • There’s a midweek room clean but you can choose not to have it if you prefer no-one goes into your room.
  • Our local staff will have temperature checks before every shift.

Our Staff:

  • Our overseas reps will manage everything from a central point, electronically and over the phone as much as possible. This is to minimise any risk of spreading infection.
  • One of our overseas team will give you a call around 2 weeks before you are due to travel, to chat through anything you need to know about your holiday and answer any questions you might have.

Spa areas, hot tubs and swimming pools:

  • Opening hours and numbers of guests in spa areas, hot tubs and swimming pools may be restricted, depending on local regulations. Where they’re open, there will be lots of extra cleaning and disinfecting.

While travelling:

  • Everyone, including staff, are expected to wear face coverings when travelling on any transport to and from the resort, in line with all local regulations (in some countries children under 11 are exempt). You’ll need to bring your own face covering.
  • In some countries and regions, you may need to wear a face covering when you’re in other public areas, both indoors and outside. Do check the local regulations before you travel and bring a few spares.

And remember, the best way to stay safe is to regularly wash your hands with soap and water and keep a social distance from others. For latest advice: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

WE’RE WITH YOU AT EVERY STEP

Preparing for your holiday

We’re available for any advice while you’re thinking about booking, or preparing to go away. Just call us and we’ll help.

For more information and FAQ’s please click here

While you're away

When you’re on holiday, our local staff will be there to support you if you need it. You’re never on your own.

You can judge us by our actions

Once it was clear that destinations were shutting down, and that lockdown was coming, we did the right thing:

  • We got everyone home, as fast as possible.
  • We postponed holidays to next year.
  • We happily gave everyone a refund who wanted one.

38 years of trust and experience

Lots of you chose to postpone the holidays you’d already booked, which shows how much our customers trust us. We were touched by the vote of confidence during a crisis we’ve never seen before – thank you.

USEFUL INFORMATION ABOUT TRAVELLING FROM THE UK:

Be prepared with Covid-19 Travel Insurance

We would highly recommend that you take out additional Covid-19 travel insurance. Many travel insurance policies will no longer cover you as standard if your holiday is disrupted due to Coronavirus, but there are new policies and add-ons appearing on the market that will. Look for ones which will cover you in the event of NHS Test & Trace disrupting your holiday plans.

Helpful links: